Creative and Performing Arts

This sector offers a wide range of job opportunities and encompasses careers in acting, music, dance, production, writing, technical work, and funding.

As well as the support from the Career Zone team, the Drama Department has produced a comprehensive Drama Careers Toolkit about the creative industries, which can be accessed via the Drama: Student Information ELE page.

Although the majority of University of Exeter graduates that enter this profession are from the Humanities and more specifically from our Drama department, graduates from other disciplines have found success in this area and society participation is a great way to gain experience in this area.

Career Zone Employability Schemes

To help increase your work experience and networks in this area 

  • Career Zone Internship schemes: Internships can be extremelyuseful, so try and get relevant vacation work or placements.  
  • Ask an Alum: A fuss-free way to connect with University of Exeter alumni to ask careers questions.
  • Career Mentor Scheme: A popular employability scheme which matches a student or graduate with an experienced professional, for sector insight and one-to-one careers advice and guidance, over a 6-month period. 
  • Pathways to Arts, Culture and Heritage A sector specific programme, consisting of employer-led training, group work and a paid internship. 

Information Resources

Have a look at the following brief videos for an overview of this sector. 

If you would like to do further research into this sector, the following webpages may be very useful: 

Internships and work experience in this sector will enhance your chances in most areas of employment, and an increasing number of organisations now offer graduate employment to students who have a successful placement with the company.

For general information about finding graduate opportunities, please visit our Graduate Jobs page. For sector specific job listings, the following resources may be particularly helpful: 

  • ArtsJobs – Arts Council England’s free mailing list for jobs in the art and culture sector
  • Arts Professional – Arts management and charity jobs
  • Creative Access – A range of internships and entry-level roles in creative industries, particularly promoting opportunities for those from under-represented backgrounds
  • BBC Work Experience – Various training, graduate, apprenticeship, and work experience schemes across the BBC throughout the year
  • Channel 4 – Work Experience with Channel 4
  • Entertainers Worldwide Jobs – For creatives and performers looking for auditions and local/global jobs and opportunities
  • ITV – Apprenticeships and work experience placements with a national broadcasting network
  • Mandy – Jobs and auditions for creative professionals
  • Sky – Various internship and work experience placements 
  • Target Careers – Sector specific job opportunities in the creative art

If you have studied a related degree, check if your course is accredited by one of the professional bodies. Being a member of a professional body is voluntary however, it can be valuable for developing networks, continuing your professional development, and generally keeping up to date with what's happening in the sector. 

If you would like to pursue postgraduate study before entering your chosen sector, please visit our Postgraduate Study information page for more information about choosing further study. 

Courses to consider for further study and training in theatre and performing arts include:

 It can often be useful to gain postgraduate qualifications in the relevant subject area if your undergraduate degree is in a different topic but, beware, there are many courses on the market, and they are not all equally successful in getting you that "dream job". You can always complement your degree with professional qualifications to show your commitment towards the industry (see Professional Bodies section). 

As jobs are not always advertised, it can be useful to develop your networking skills and also apply speculatively.