Final
Evaluation
Overall
evaluation of my 2 years studying
HND
Specialist make-up course at West Thames College Summary
After
leaving school and being given the opportunity to study whatever I desired,
became one decision I found incredibly hard. When I came across the HND that
West Thames was offering and noticed it was not only what I wanted to study
(make-up), but it also gave me all angles and avenues around this topic,
including hair and SFX. I was also drawn in by the lecturers still working in
industry and that have a strong work ethic to their names. It was a course I was
hopeful to be accepted into. When I was notified of my acceptance I was
thrilled.
As
an individual I wasn't aware of how this course would alter and modify me for
the better and push my weaknesses/channel my strengths.
It’s
a course I would love to keep on doing! I feel you can always learn, you learn
all the time, in life in education and in just the simply ways of living. This
course was one of many major steps I hope to take that develop me in my
industry and me as a person.
Once
I started this course it definitely shocked me. In the first weeks of attending
this course, there was much concern and worry whether I could achieve the requirements
and the volume of work. Not only that but the struggles of having to force
myself to be up very early (5:30am) on most college working days and be
productive and organised for the long day events ahead.
One
of the biggest struggles for me personally was definitely the travelling to and
from lectures/workshops. Being only 18 when I started this course, I had only
been driving for a year and as a choice due to money/convenience I decided to
drive to University every day. I think it was very fair to say my body and my
lack of sleep suffered a lot, becoming very emotion due to tiredness and also
concerned for driving at unhuman hours.
Costings
and budgeting was another struggle that I had to adjust to when starting this
course. Costs of kits were a massive amount of money for someone not earning,
someone like me. Personally I had to really watch my outgoings of my Student
Loan and constantly calculate whether or not I was going to be able to afford
everything required plus fuel and car costs/daily costs.
However
I massively fell in love with what I was learning and with my determinations
and organisations I managed to balance the above plus workload/productive work.
By the end of term 1 I was fully in a routine and very on top of most things-
which was definitely something I had to work at.
To sum
up Year 1 for me it was a big eye-opener. It was a nice build up to how my
working life could be and a gentle ease into the work ethic within industry. It
gave me a taster of all that was to come and gave drive to move on from the
work and push myself for that 100% artistry effort. The best parts for me were
the knowledge and skills I gained in Period Make-up/Hair/Contextual Studies.
Period was a topic I was aware of but had only touched on in terms of famous
role models. The in-depth information and practical learning was more than I could
have wished for. That hands down goes to the volume of dedication from
lecturers Sam, Denise and Fiona. Term one gave me that strong foundation to drive
my work into second year.
There
was one a few negatives for year 1 for me and the most important one for me
personally was the lack of time! I enjoyed the course so much I almost wanted
it to be more days of the week- a bit geeky but true! Things like finger waves
and theatre make-up I felt I could have still learnt and have been taught so
much more. Something I will keep drumming into for sure.
Second
year for me was a lot tougher than year one. The workload doubled, the expectations
grew and the levels of work being produced got stronger by the day.
Key
thing for me in second year was the increase and the focus of Opportunities. Not
only did we get great knowledge and understanding of what was out there for us
to challenge ourselves with but also being given the opportunity to do so. I was
very lucky to achieve an award from West Thames and have the chance to work in
the West End with my lecturer Tanya on Phantom of the Opera, something which
opened my eyes the theatre world again. Enrichment weeks/trips became stronger
and career openings were given in greater details for us to store for the
future. I was much appreciative of this especially the opportunity to go to NYC
in March. A second strength within this topic was our insights into creating
industry contacts and the abilities to build up our friendships.
A few
negatives to second year for me on a personal level was the lack of information
supplied about our topics compared to the first year, I felt that topics such
as SFX and body-painting struggled a bit. This I understand was due to time-scale. I think as an improvement to the course, it should be 3 days a week consistently
throughout the year and the third day can allow for extra studies into these
topics. However the lessons I was taught have made me eager to learn even more
individually!
Another
negative to me on an agreed mention by my classmates was the lack of Skin Anatomy
Studies. Something as a make-up artist/hairstylist is so important to know. The
business topic was wasted time for most people, and I felt that it should be
replaced by skin anatomy/types of skin. This is something I will be pursuing
independently also.
To
sum up the Second Year I would say it drove me and pushed me to lengths I wouldn't have ever thought I could extend too. It gave me passion to be me and be me as
an artist, to absorb as well as teach and to hold a strong understanding of
topics I felt I wouldn't have even touched on due to not being interested in.
The
only one major setback to the course was the lack of resources available to
use. Not only was unfair on teachers reducing their abilities to let us try and
learn practically instead of visually but mainly for the students. I feel it’s
something that should be increased and if required the course fees should be
made higher to be able to fund that of what is needed to fulfil these necessities.
The
final show was a moment of the course that was definitely the highlight of the
two years. Something of which draw testing times as well as high achievements. My
final piece was something that not only drove me into channels that I wouldn't normally
look at, it also pushed me into practical elements I wouldn't have even touched
on. I worked with my strengths and pushed my weaknesses to improve with the
help of teachers and friends.
I want
to thank the people of the HND course, the teachers, sub-teachers and the
course format. Without it I would not be at this point in my life and wouldn't have
found me as a person and grown to accept and love who I am as an individual. Most
importantly if I have learnt one thing for this experience is West Thames wants
you, no matter who you are and finally gives you the drive to feel happiest in
your skin!
