Photography - A Level

Applications Open: - 7th November 2025

Applications Close: - 13th February 2026

Entry Requirements: - Offers to join Mascalls Academy Sixth Form are conditional upon meeting specific entry requirements for your chosen subjects, and as a minimum, achieving at least 5 GCSE's at level 5 or above, including English and Maths.

How to Apply: -

Internal Students - Apply via Applicaa using this link https://mascalls.applicaa.com/sixthform

External Students - Apply via KentChoices using this link https://www.kentprospectus.co.uk/login. Please note - after sending your application, you'll receive a welcome email from Applicaa asking for further information.

Mascalls Academy offers four separate A Level courses within the area of Art and Design and students will be introduced to a wide variety of experiences exploring a range of media, techniques and processes, with candidates using sketchbooks and portfolios to underpin their work where appropriate.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Students will study areas of photography design such as portraiture, landscape photography, still-life photography, photo-journalism and experimental imagery.

A Level - Years 1 and 2

Year 12

Students will be introduced to a range of techniques and artists, and asked to produce a portfolio of work in response to the common theme, which they will develop in their own direction. This portfolio will be designed to document key skills and techniques students have accessed. In January of Year 12 students will start to develop Personal Investigation based projects which will form the bases for Component 1 investigations. Year 12 work will be submitted to support marks awarded for the Component 1 “Personal Investigation” project.

Year 13 - Component 1

Personal investigation – This is a practical unit with written elements (1500-3000 words) in which students are given the opportunity to develop a personal investigation of their choice based on an issue, concept, theme or ideas leading to finished piece. The investigation will involve students’ researching other artists’ work, both historic and contemporary.

Year 13 - Component 2

Controlled assessment – Students will be able to select a question from the exam paper and will be given eight weeks’ preparation time, which concludes with a fifteen-hour exam, in which to complete the final piece.

Level 5 or above in one of the Art subjects at GCSE. Please note that for students wishing to study more than one art based subject, they will need to perform highly at GCSE. Admission onto multiple courses will be determined on an individual basis.

Many of our Art students go onto Foundation Courses at local or London colleges with whom we have close contact and from there to university, to specialise in the form of the arts most suited to their skills. The creative arts industry is one of the fastest growing employment sectors, and Art students can expect a range of job opportunities - either establishing themselves as artists, designers and photographers in their own right or through working in a gallery, museum, in theatre, film, advertising, marketing, therapy, teaching, publishing or illustrating - to mention just a few.