FAQs

Yes. Students study exactly the same Ofqual regulated qualifications; GCSEs, A Levels, Vocational Level 2,3 and 4 courses as you would study at your local college - it’s just online.

Students log in to their course online using a computer or other suitable device. Courses can be studied independently or via Live interactive group classes. Assignments are set and marked and useful constructive feedback is offered. Tutors are available via online chat and video call for support as required.

OCAD students can meet online if they wish but it is not required to complete the course. Some students enjoy connecting with other students and others do not and that’s absolutely fine.

Yes, absolutely! By studying and completing our Level 3 courses OCAD students can enter University. OCAD will even support students with their UCAS application.

Yes, absolutely! Many OCAD students with a full-time job successfully achieve creative qualifications. All OCAD courses are flexible, 100% online and can be studied around a full-time job at any time. Students work through their course units with the support of their online tutor. Students can message their tutor online and meetings with your tutor can be scheduled at mutually convenient times.

Yes, absolutely! Many OCAD students with family commitments successfully achieve creative qualifications. All OCAD courses are flexible, 100% online and can be studied around family commitments at any time. Students can message their tutor online and meetings with your tutor can be scheduled at mutually convenient times.

You need no formal qualifications to apply to OCAD courses. However, if you have completed GCSEs or A Levels you will be able to study on higher level courses and perhaps get to University sooner (if this is your goal).

Yes, absolutely! OCAD students study from all over the world. OCAD is a truly global college.

OCAD never sleeps! Our college is open 24/7/365 so time zones are not a barrier to achieving your qualifications. Some OCAD courses offer optional LIVE lessons at specific times but these are all video-recorded and so can be watched at any time.

Yes, of course. OCAD Level 1 and 2 courses are open to students of any age. Level 3 courses are open to students who are 16 years or older at the time of registration.

Yes, absolutely! The flexibility and stress-free learning environment is especially appreciated by our students. We have a special educational needs and disability coordinator (SENDCO) who ensures students’ individual needs are met. OCAD works with many local authorities and schools to support SEND students on EHCPs - see our SEND courses for more information.

Yes, of course! Many OCAD students opt to study from home and achieve their creative qualifications around their other subjects. OCAD courses are a great way to balance your homeschool curriculum/programme. OCAD can provide homeschool students with the formal qualifications they need to access University and dream creative careers.

Unfortunately not. However, it’s worth noting that happy people tend to be in careers they love and are suited to. Happy people tend to do better at their job and earn more money. At OCAD we know that paying for courses can be a struggle but what price can you put on your own future happiness and prosperity? A small sacrifice today will pay off many times over in your future. All committed OCAD students pass their courses, so your dream creative career will be a reality if you want it enough!

Age is irrelevant and you are never too old to study at OCAD. Many OCAD students are over 70 years!

Yes, absolutely! It’s actually not uncommon for OCAD students to lack confidence and even self-esteem. Many OCAD students struggle with anxiety, depression and low self-esteem. Many others lack confidence in their creative skills or they think of themselves as not suited to formal education. An outdated obsession with academics in schools has marginalised creative students for decades and many creative students are left feeling dejected and undervalued. Some students who are brilliant artists and designers go completely unnoticed in schools. At OCAD we know you can achieve greatness if you are given time, understanding and expert support. If you really want to be a successful artist or designer we will support you until you get there!

Some people ARE artists and designers. No amount of discussion will change this fact. At OCAD we receive countless telephone calls from lawyers, accountants, doctors who have spent decades in a job they hate. If you are an artist or a designer then that’s what you should study and don’t let anyone talk you out of it. Studying to do a ‘proper job’ that you’re not suited to will only result in tensions that will cause unhappiness in your life. Choosing the creative career you were born to do will result in a sense of purpose, fulfilment and prosperity. Loving your job usually means you do particularly well at it and rise to the top positions. It’s worth noting that creative careers in 2019 were worth £116 billion - 6% of the UK economy employing 5 million creatives and paying between £35k to £70k per annum (similar salaries to lawyers and doctors and considerably more than the average accountant). With the explosion of the internet there really has never been a better time to become an artist or designer.

Not at OCAD. If you have studied an equivalent formal qualification (Level 2 Certificate, BTEC, High school art, Arts Award) or you have worked in a creative career and have the skills and understanding required of an A Level art student then you can study A Level art or design. However, most schools and colleges will expect A Level art students to have passed their GCSE in art.

Yes absolutely! In fact many top colleges and universities actively seek home educated and homeschooled students because they are considered more mature, more independent, better organised and more likely to pass formal qualifications than school children. Remember that accredited qualifications are the same irrespective of whether you studied them at home or at a school so choose to study at home if it suits you.

It depends if you’re creative or not. Many left-brain logical, mathematical students can struggle with creativity and so for these students A Level art may be their most difficult A Level. In all probability, if you did well at Level 2 art (GCSE, BTEC, equivalent etc.) you’ll really enjoy the course and excel in it.

A Level art is likely to take 20 hours per week to complete for most students. That said, many students can spend considerably more or less hours. People tend to spend more time doing what they enjoy and so if they enjoy making art they will spend longer doing it than subjects they like less.

Yes! If you are creative and love art and design you can enjoy every day of your career. The creative careers in the UK alone are booming! Creative careers in 2019 were worth £116 billion - 6% of the UK economy employing 5 million creatives and paying between £35k to £70k per annum (similar salaries to lawyers and doctors and considerably more than the average accountant). With the explosion of the internet there really has never been a better time to become an artist or designer.

Both are related but different. Both art and design are creative and have elements of design and share similar processes and skills. A key difference is that art is about you and design is about the client (and less about you). So making art is about you expressing yourself and the things you care about. Design is about you using your own unique flare and creativity to meet the needs of a paying client. Both have equal status and choosing art or design usually comes down to what kind of creative you are. Some creatives do both art and design.

Of course you can. As a creative person with experience in art, you can bring a great deal of that to your own particular brand of graphic design. This could make your graphic work stand out which is often a good thing in a market that is always hungry for something different. Try it and see. At OCAD we would accept you onto our courses.

Usually students study A Level art and later they study a Foundation Diploma or a Foundation year at a University. At OCAD you can choose to skip A Level art and jump straight to the Foundation Diploma. Both A Level and Foundation Diploma are Level 3 courses which means neither course is more difficult than the other. Despite this, Foundation Diplomas can be completed in half the time (one year instead of two) and offer twice the UCAS points. Also, Foundation Diploma portfolios are usually more specialised than A Level portfolios which Universities prefer.

Yes you can! Both our Level 2 and Level 3 courses can be studied during free periods at your school or from home after school.

100% - every student who fully participates on courses and follows our tutor’s instructions has passed their course and received their qualification. All OCAD courses are flexible; there are no deadlines, no time limits, no compulsory classes to miss, and no reason to fail. If you want to pass your course as much as we want you to pass it, you will pass it. Pass rate excludes some students with special educational needs and disabilities whose full participation in courses isn’t possible.