Bachelor of Dance (Honours)

Overview

The Bachelor of Dance (Honours) is a more advanced and specialised course of study requiring a higher standard of performance than the pass degree. It involves one year of additional study following the completion of the requirements for a pass degree. The Honours year will provide an opportunity for graduates of VCA Dance to extend their knowledge and dance experience by undertaking a specialised advanced program in a fourth year of study which may lead to formal postgraduate studies and/or to opportunities to enter the dance industry with enhanced knowledge and experience. A substantial part of the honours year program will involve practical studies undertaken as field experience or in the VCA Dance performance company. These studies will enhance the students career prospects and also ensure their adequate preparation for postgraduate studies in dance such as the Master of Dance (Performance), where the maintenance of strong dance technique is essential.

Description

The program is one year of full-time study.

Students who are eligible for the Honours program will undertake a major project which will require their secondment to a dance company, or organisation, for field experience. The artistic directors of several dance companies have already expressed their willingness to cooperate with the program as it gives them an opportunity to observe potential recruits in a professional situation over several weeks. The Ausdance network, and organisations such as the Choreographic Centre, have also expressed their interest in mentoring the progress of outstanding students who wish to undertake projects within their jurisdiction. The student gains direct experience in the profession and is guided in this program by experienced mentors from within the industry.

The results applicable to subjects in an honours course are in the range 65% to 100%, ie H3 to H1. A results below 65% is considered a ‘non pass’.

Before a recommendation can be made to award the degree of Bachelor of Dance (Honours) candidates are required to complete 100 points at fourth year level at the appropriate grade level.
A minimum of 7.5 hours of technique training each week in ballet and/or contemporary dance will be required while resident in VCA Dance.

Objectives

The objectives of this course are to provide opportunities for students:

• to work within their chosen area in the dance industry;
• to devise and perform a dance demonstration program;
• to extend their range of knowledge and competency within their chosen area;
• to prepare for postgraduate studies in dance.

Prerequisites

Applicants require an Undergraduate Degree in dance. Candidates for entry into the Honours year will be selected on the basis of an audition and interview. Under the regulations the minimum requirement for admission of a candidate into the fourth year is normally the completion of a pass degree with a minimum average of H2B grades in the Bachelor of Dance at VCA Dance or an Undergraduate Degree in dance with an appropriate level of attainment from another institution.

Generic Skills

At the completion of the Bachelor of Dance (Honours), students should be able to:

• exhibit extensive practical and theoretical knowledge of dance across its various aesthetic domains, including current professional dance practice, relevant skills in allied disciplines and current developments in the field;
• apply this knowledge through practical projects within industry and professional standard settings;
• embody an informed respect for the principles, discipline and ethics of the practicing, professional artist;
• demonstrate interpretive abilities in performing new and existing performance scores;
• participate effectively as a team member in projects with a shared focus;
• confidently communicate, both orally and in writing, opinions, ideas and observations with regard to their dance practice and that of others, in group and individual teaching and learning situations;
• respond with a flexible, imaginative and innovative approach to explore, investigate and resolve unfamiliar problems and challenges;
• conceptualise, plan, organise and realise their own choreographed work within the time constraints and demands of the program;
• independently research and investigate areas of theoretical and practical relevance from a wide range of sources;
• critically and creatively engage with topics of cultural significance and effectively participate in or contribute to contemporary cultural discourses;
• exhibit openness to new ideas and unconventional approaches, critiques and practices;
• develop effective planning, management and self-promotional skills.

Student Commitment

A minimum of 7.5 hours of technique training each week in ballet and/or contemporary dance will be required while resident in VCA Dance.

Assessment

Students who are eligible for the Honours program will undertake a major project which will require their secondment to a dance company, or organisation, for field experience.

The artistic directors of several dance companies have already expressed their willingness to cooperate with the program as it gives them an opportunity to observe potential recruits in a professional situation over several weeks. The Ausdance network, and organisations such as the Choreographic Centre, have also expressed their interest in mentoring the progress of outstanding students who wish to undertake projects within their jurisdiction. The student gains direct experience in the profession and is guided in this program by experienced mentors from within the industry.

The results applicable to subjects in an honours course are in the range 65% to 100%, ie H3 to H1. A results below 65% is considered a ‘non pass’.

Before a recommendation can be made to award the degree of Bachelor of Dance (Honours) candidates are required to complete 100 points at fourth year level at the appropriate grade level.

Subjects by Year

Year 4

• 756-401 - Honours Fieldwork Project
• 756-402 - Research Project
• 756-403 - Group-Devised Demonstration Program

Subjects

Year 4

Subject description:

Preparatory seminar program to introduce students to current workplace practices in the dance industry and subsequent field experience with a dance organisation.

Objectives:

On completion of this subject students should have acquired the following:

• the ability for collaborative learning;
• the capacity for teamwork;
• the capacity to access, evaluate and analyse data from a range of sources.

Assessment:

The fieldwork placement as negotiated (70%); daily journal of work practice including a weekly summary of 400 words (30%).

Subject description:

Original research on an approved research project may be in fields such as dance history, dance in a particular cultural context, dance kinesiology or therapy, aesthetics or philosophy of dance. A minimum of 80% of the students research project must involve theoretical study culminating in a written essay of 5000 words. This may be supported, in the oral presentation, by documentation in other media such as video or notation or by a performance of relevant movement material.

Objectives:

On completion of this subject students should have acquired the following:

• the capacity to access, evaluate and analyse data from a range of sources;
• the ability to communicate in writing;
• the ability to connect theory and practice.

Assessment:

Oral presentation of research findings in chosen topic in an open forum (20%); a final essay of 5,000 words (80%).

Subject description:

Students will undertake the development of a public demonstration program including the exploration and selection of appropriate materials and methods; rehearsal of material chosen; and the management of resources necessary to achieve a cohesive public demonstration. These will include:

• a prepared address;
• three or four short group works, making up approximately 15 minutes of dances devised and performed by the students in the group;
• a studio workshop program devised to introduce some of the practical aspects of dance making to non-trained people.

Objectives:

On completion of this subject students should have acquired the following:

• the ability to move within aesthetic domains;
• the capacity for imagination and transformation;
• the ability to create and organise aesthetic material;
• the ability to perform;
• the ability for collaborative learning;
• the capacity for teamwork;
• the ability to communicate orally and in writing.

Assessment:

Assessment by supervisor(s) of the student’s contributions to the process of devising performance works (40%); assessment by supervisor(s) of the student in performance situation (40%);  a paper of 1,000 words summarising the process and evaluating the outcomes of the subject (20%).