Conservation Studies, specialising in Books and Library Materials

Study at a specialist college with the assurance of a university qualification. Develop your passions and reach your potential in a small, welcoming environment within a community of like-minded people.

Why choose West Dean?
An international reputation for excellence in conservation and arts education
94% of students studying at the College felt the programme had enhanced their skills and abilities (2019 student survey)
A rich arts environment and a focus on craft skills with vocational application
Be inspired by the unique historic character and beautiful South Downs setting
Located close to Chichester and the South Coast, with easy access to London

The Course

The Graduate Diploma provides the theoretical and practical knowledge and experience necessary to start your career as a conservator and to begin to develop an area of specialisation. The programme is designed to be accessible from both the humanities and science study backgrounds and has an international reputation for developing book conservation skills.

Learn how to assess and record the condition of books to produce a complete record of work. Develop a repertoire of conservation treatments for books ranging from simple enclosure, to repair and reinstatement of the parts.

You can expect

To develop excellent practical skills
To study the history of papermaking, materials science, storage and environmental issues, leather and image materials
To perform historical research and interpretation of the objects you work on
To work with materials from library and archive collections

Learning environment

Low student : tutor ratio
Well-equipped workshops
Workshop access 8.30am-9pm, 7 days a week
Individual work bench for each student
Visiting lecturers and group visits to collections, studios and workshops
Interdisciplinary environment
Teaches students to understand and apply Icon's Professional Standards in Conservation visits to collections

Exceptional facilities

You will work in a purpose-built space for book conservation with two workshops as well as a bindery with individual student work benches and a demonstration bench. The bindery is fully equipped with sewing and forwarding equipment, board chopper, light boxes, finishing room and science lab. Students each have their own benches with storage and can access the studio from 8.30am to 10pm, allowing you to take full advantage of your time at West Dean College of Arts and Conservation. You will also have access to facilities shared with other departments, including:

New analytical laboratory
Photography space
IT suite with specialist databases
On-site Art and Conservation Library with thousands of specialist books and journals

Teaching

On the Graduate Diploma you typically have around 24 contact hours per week.

Independent learning

When not attending lectures, seminars and workshop or other timetabled sessions you will be expected to continue learning independently through self-study for approximately 13-14 hours per week. Typically, this will involve:

Reading journal articles and books
Working on individual and group projects
Undertaking research in the library
Preparing coursework assignments and presentations

Overall workload

Graduate Diploma: 60% of your time is spent in scheduled teaching and learning activity
Scheduled teaching and learning: 720 hours
Independent learning: 480 hours