UAL students’ engagement with industry and communities of practice, Year 3 report of a 4-year longitudinal study for University of the Arts London

Students’ participation in the Diploma in Professional Studies (DPS) is both positively associated with attainment and a narrowing of the inequalities in attainment between student groups. This effect may be present beyond the DPS whenever students take up internships, live projects, competitions and other engagement with industry and communities of practice.

Structured around six student case studies, this report illuminates how students articulate their identities as practitioners, how they are supported, and the developmental advantages they gain through the engagement with industry that they are able to negotiate.