This programme is a short-term "customized" MBA course. Everything is personalized and focusing on what I need, what I am looking for… Every section provides the chances to think through my… current status and future. The whole placement is beyond my expectations.
- ZHANG Danli, Shanghai Mercedes Benz Arena （participant from last year’s programme）
What is it?
This is a six-and-a-half-week programme, which includes two workshops and a five-week work placement in the UK. The programme will offer successful candidates from Mainland China the possibility of an extended period of practical professional development in arts management in fields of performing arts, visual arts, museums, and design.
Applicants need to be presently active as arts professionals in China (e.g. working within organisations or as independent curators and producers, art centre programmers, or working in an arts capacity in the government sector or arts information provision sector). The programme will provide participants with professional development through skills sharing, job shadowing, and some task-based work; it will also encourage the development of networks between Chinese and British colleagues, thereby promoting cultural exchange and dialogue between the two countries.
Successful applicants will take part in a five-week professional placement in any one or two of a variety of arts organisations anywhere in the United Kingdom. The organisations will include building-based multi-arts venues, touring performing arts companies, galleries from the subsidised and commercial sectors, museums, design agencies, artist-led spaces, arts development and support agencies, festivals, building based producing theatres, arts funding bodies and arts councils, and range from small to large scale.
The programme is jointly organised by the British Council and Ministry of Culture of China, with the support of NFA International Arts and Culture.
In order to better understand the nature of the programme, please refer to the final report of the 2012 China-UK Arts Management Professional Development Programme: [Please download and read the Evaluation Report (PDF 193KB)]
Length of programme
The programme will take place from Monday 30 September to Wednesday 13 November inclusive. You will need to be in London no later than Saturday 28 September.
Please note that if you are selected to take part in the programme, you must be available to take part during this time as it will not be possible to arrange a programme outside these dates.
Number of places
The programme aims to involve a maximum of 15 arts managers from across China.
Costs of programme
The organiser will pay for participants’ accommodation for six and a half weeks. In addition, the organisers will cover the majority of the costs associated with the administration of this programme including sourcing and negotiating appropriate placements; running the week-long introductory seminar and the three-day closing workshop; and additional networking events. The total contribution from the organisers is estimated at RNB 60,000 per head.
You, or your employer, will be required to pay:
- for your own international flights, UK visa, travel insurance, and personal costs including meals and incidental expenses in the UK.
- a management fee of RMB 5,000 per person paid to the British Council in advance to cover your internal travel within the UK and share some of the costs associated with the administration of this programme.
These costs are estimated to be in the region of RMB 35,000.
What you will get from this programme
- The opportunity to engage in two way cultural exchange and networking (which may lead to collaborative projects in some cases), thereby increasing the mutual understanding of culture and society between China and the UK
- Opportunities for practical training, practical work on specific projects, mentoring, and job shadowing in various fields of arts management in the UK
- The development and acquisition of key skills
- A rounded view of UK arts management practice which will help inform your work within your own organisation
- Firsthand experience of the UK's rich and diverse cultural life
What to expect
The Programme
- Six and a half very intense weeks of total commitment and highly disciplined work
Areas of activity covered by the programme include marketing and audience development, company management (theatre, dance, music), venue management (single or multi-art form), use of digital and interactive technology, festival programming/planning/management/evaluation, the role of the creative curator/programmer, the support and development of new writing for the stage, commercial and public exhibition space management, cultural and arts policy development, approaches to fundraising and sponsorship, the development of education and outreach programmes, staff development, strategic planning and project management, and management of organisational change.
Please note that the programme does not cover artistic development or artistic practice in any of these areas of activity – the programme is intended to develop arts management practice.
1)Six-day introductory workshop in London
The introductory workshop will focus on international arts management terms as well as issues and practice specific to the UK and China. It will also place the experience which will follow in an appropriate context, encouraging participants to question, analyse, and even reject what they learn in the light of their own cultural and organisational structures.
2)Five-week practical work placement in the UK
The placements will be designed to best suit the needs of each individual participant, depending on the nature of their work in China and their level of experience. Participants are expected to play an active role in researching and shaping their placement, which requires significant work prior to arrival in the UK.
3)Three-day evaluation workshop in London
The evaluation workshop will be an opportunity not only to evaluate the experience but also to share experiences with other participants and to discuss future projects and collaborations.
Please note that all three elements are designed to complement each other and are part of the overall programme providing a range of experiences that are inter-linked. Elements of the programme cannot therefore be opted out of, nor undertaken at separate or different times.
The experience
The programme exists not only as a professional development programme for the arts managers involved; it also aims to generate productive, creative relationships and understanding between China and the UK. Participants are therefore expected to take an active, rather than passive, role in this process. The programme may challenge ideas and notions and has often been described by past participants in similar programmes run by British Council as 'a journey of discovery'.
This programme provided me with hands-on experience and knowledge of the UK creative industries ... I got inspiration to improve my work and rethink how to solve our current problems in alternative ways. Eye-opening and memorable experiences will certainly generate new ideas in my future work.
- Xie Meng, Ullens Centre for Contemporary Art（participant from last year’s programme）
- Being in the UK is exciting even if, as many participants will find, the host organisation is situated outside of London. Participants may not be placed in the same city or town and they therefore should be prepared to experience some difficult and lonely times. Although hosts will be expected to have close involvement with the Programme, they will also be running their own organisations at the same time and therefore all participants need an energetic and creative approach to the Programme.
- English language skills will be tested to the limit. Understanding the presentations during the introductory workshop, gaining the wider benefits of attending meetings, reading written materials, attending networking events, and taking part in social activities all require a strong level of English.
Who can apply?
For a full list of application criteria please see Appendix 1.
- Chinese performing and visual arts professionals, including those involved in the design industry, currently living and working in Mainland China and who are already actively working as arts managers . Applicants living anywhere in Mainland China will be considered but priority will be given to applicants working in regional capitals such as (but not restricted to) Nanjing, Wuhan, Hangzhou, Chengdu, etc.
- Professionals who are already active in building new working models and structures in the performing, visual, media and applied arts, as well as others who are in 'multiplier' positions and who demonstrate a strong interest in developing such structures.
- Strong proficiency in and familiarity with English, including listening and understanding, speaking, reading and writing is a strict requirement of the programme and no candidate will be eligible for exemption [IELTS Band 6, BULATS level 3, or equivalent]
- Candidates in the earlier stages of their management career will be given priority.
- Priority will be given to candidates who have not previously benefited from management training in the UK.
Who cannot apply?
- Candidates who have no demonstrable arts management experience
- Participants from previous British Council Arts Management Professional Development Programmes run in partnership with Visiting Arts in 1999, 2003 and 2005 and in the latest programme run by British Council in 2012.
- Candidates wishing experience in organisations that focus on film, publishing, TV, fashion, or architecture
What will be expected of participants
- Very clear motivation for applying and very clear ideas about the kind of placement that will be of use
- Very clear ideas on how to make use of newly-acquired skills and experience on return to China
- Active contact with hosts prior to arriving in the UK to shape and determine own individual placement schedule
- A professional and courteous approach throughout the programme
- Day-to-day attendance at the workshops and host organisations
- An energetic, active and creative approach to building relationships and exploring exchanges
- A spirit of openness and sharing
- A report evaluating and analysing the experience
When and how to apply?
Please email your completed application form (WORD 186KB) in English, CV in English and with photo, scanned copy of a signed reference letter and any other supporting documents (in either PDF, DOC or JPG format and in either English or Chinese) to artsplacement2013@britishcouncil.org.cn with the subject “application” by Sunday 10 March 2013.
Please note:
What will happen next?
Using the attached criteria, candidates will be shortlisted for interview by the British Council and Ministry of Culture of China and by the UK delivery agent, NFA International Arts and Culture.
Prior to interview, candidates shortlisted will be contacted via telephone for a conversation in English and invited by Monday 1 April to an interview in Beijing, Shanghai, or Guangzhou during the period from Saturday 13 to Saturday 20 April 2013 (inclusive). Please note that on submission of your application you will need to ensure that you are available to travel to your pre-arranged interview city at some point during the indicated time period.
Please note that it will not be possible to arrange an interview outside this period and travel costs of candidates to the interview location are the responsibility of the candidate or their organisation.
Following the interviews candidates will be informed of the results by Friday 26 April 2013.
In the unlikely event that the organisers are unable to find a suitable placement for an individual participant, the organisers reserve the right to cancel the placement.
Application Criteria and Core Competencies
1. APPLICATION
An initial assessment of written applications will be made using the following criteria:
- Currently in a management position in the performing or visual arts, or design, with a minimum of three years' experience in arts management
- Whether the candidate is working in one of the major Chinese cities (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, or Chongqing) or in a regional capital such as (but not restricted to) Nanjing, Wuhan, Hangzhou, Chengdu, etc.
- Demonstrable interest in and commitment to the advancement of their own and others’ arts management practice
- Clear personal objectives to be achieved through the programme
- Demonstrable evidence of a desire and ability to disseminate the knowledge and skills acquired
- The programme is ideally suited for individuals in the earlier stages of their management career but more experienced arts producers and curators will also benefit greatly from participation in the programme.
- Strong proficiency in and familiarity with English, including listening and understanding, speaking, reading and writing [IELTS Band 6, BULATS level 3, or equivalent]
- Clarity and completeness of the application submitted within the stipulated period
Candidates whose applications meet the above criteria will be invited to interview. Prior to interview, each shortlisted candidate will be telephoned by a member of British Council China, for a short conversation in English, which will assist in determining the English language capabilities of the candidate and to confirm suitability for an interview.
2. INTERVIEWS
At interview stage, the programme organisers will seek to determine applicants' competency based on the following criteria:
Relations with other organisations:
- Awareness of the external environment including opportunities and challenges within the changing cultural sector
- Understanding of how their own organisation relates to other organisations both within and outside the cultural sector
- An involvement in forward-thinking initiatives and developments
- A desire to share ideas, knowledge and information
- Ability to project a positive image of their own organisation in informal and formal settings
- Position to influence and shape opinions
- Commitment to developing long term cultural relations with the United Kingdom and across China
Management capabilities:
- Evidence of ability to manage their own work and that of others
- Evidence of ability to evaluate outcomes and learn from experience
- Excellent communication skills and likely ability to inspire and motivate people they meet
- Evidence of ability to manage complexity and change
- Evidence of ability to work well in a team structure, with an awareness of the different roles and functions in a team
Information analysis/application and work skills:
- Strong all-round administrative skills
- Ability to collect, store, analyse and use information
- Ability to understand and implement specialist knowledge
- Ability to identify and solve problems and to practice creative thinking
Personal qualities and effectiveness:
- High professional standards
- A flexible, adaptable, positive and confident personal style
- Ability to remain calm when under pressure or stress
Previous experience and opportunities will also be considered. Candidates who have not benefited from arts management training overseas or who have not had opportunity to spend extended periods of time outside China will be given priority over those who benefited from such experiences.
Following interview candidates may be required to undertake a formal language test before being invited to participate in this programme.
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