Acting for Stage and Screen MFA



An unrivalled opportunity to develop your stage and screen acting skills in the world’s greatest festival city.

Course overview

Our 2-year MFA is a unique vocational training that offers you a full run in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival at the end of your first year and extensive screen acting work and showreel opportunities in your second year.

You will be training within a vibrant, interdisciplinary postgraduate community of film and theatre directors as well as screenwriters and playwrights.

Classes are delivered by staff with extensive industry experience and our programme is respected within the profession. Our graduates have been featured on Netflix, Starz, BBC, Amazon Prime, Channel 4, and ITV, as well as working at the Royal National Theatre, The Traverse, the Lyceum Theatre, Dundee Rep, Bard in the Botanics, London Regent’s Park Open Air theatre, and have been nominated for Olivier and Ian Charlson Awards.

Edinburgh Napier University is a top 10 UK university for Drama (Daily Mail League Table 2027) and the #1 UK modern university for Drama, Dance & Cinematics (Complete University Guide 2027).

Typical entry point to this course is in September. Please enquire for more information.

a man acting on stage, in a costume

Mode of Study:

Full-time

Duration:

2 years

Course details

The MFA Acting for Stage & Screen is a unique 2-year degree that will reflect the challenge for most working actors today, which is to work confidently both in stage and screen acting. This is a practice-based course that prepares you for an industry in which creative problem solving, advanced practical skills, business acumen, team-working and self-generated work are critical. We hope to train students who will graduate with all these abilities and can thrive as freelance performing artists across a range of opportunities within the creative arts industries.

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    How you’ll be taught

    This is a practical course, and will be taught in workshop settings, rehearsals, one-to-one tutorials, and through independent research and practice.

    Your first year focuses on the foundational skills of stage and screen acting. In the final two trimesters you will work with MA Film directors and screenwriters on short films that will have the opportunity to be entered into festivals around the world. You will also have the chance to work with professional film directors.

    In the second year, you will build on the foundations laid in the first, continuing with skills-based classes. Alongside these, you will develop and refine a production that will be performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival - marking both the culmination of your training and your transition into the professional world.
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    Assessments

     Your assessments will be based on a variety of practical performances and are the culmination of workshops and focused rehearsals, supported by tutorials. 
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    Facilities

    This course is taught in person at our Merchiston campus.

Meet your Programme Leader and Teaching Team

Throughout your studies, you'll learn from experienced professionals and industry leaders who bring valuable expertise, insight and real-world perspectives to your learning experience.

Programme Leader: David Wotton.

This course benefits from the expertise of our Screen Academy Scotland.

Coming from the USA

Are you considering studying with us from the USA? Find more information here about starting your journey.

Disclaimer

Study modules mentioned above are indicative only. Some changes may occur between now and the time that you study.

Full information is available in our disclaimer.

Entry requirements

What are the entry requirements for Acting for Stage and Screen?

The entry requirement for this course is a Bachelor (Honours) Degree at 2:2 or above in a Drama or Humanities subject.

We may also consider lesser qualifications if you have sufficient professional work experience within the industry.

The application process also includes an audition.

Can I get admission in Acting for Stage and Screen based on my working experience in this sector?

This course has academic entry requirements which are assessed alongside relevant work experience. Full details of any relevant work experience, including references should be submitted with your application and may be considered for entry where the minimum academic entry requirements are below those required.

Usually, unrelated work experience is not considered sufficient for entry without meeting the minimum academic entry requirements. Please contact us with your specific circumstances by submitting an enquiry form above and we will be happy to discuss your options.

Can I make an appointment with an advisor to discuss further about the admission process?

If you want to get more information on the admission process, please get in touch with the Postgraduate admissions team by submitting an enquiry form above.

 

If your first language isn't English, you'll normally need to undertake an approved English language test.  The English Language requirements for this programme are IELTS (Academic) with 7.0 with no individual component score less than 7.0.  For guidance on the acceptability of other English Language tests please contact pgadmissions@napier.ac.uk

This may not apply if you have completed all your school qualifications in English, or your undergraduate degree was taught and examined in English (within two years of starting your postgraduate course). Check our country pages to find out if this applies to you.

We welcome applications from students studying a wide range of international qualifications.
Entry requirements by country

Please note that international students are unable to enrol onto the following courses:
  • BM Midwifery/MM Midwifery
  • MSc Nursing courses
  • All Graduate Apprenticeship courses

See who can apply for more information on Graduate Apprenticeship courses.

We’re committed to admitting students who have the potential to succeed and benefit from our programmes of study. 

Our admissions policies will help you understand our admissions procedures, and how we use the information you provide us in your application to inform the decisions we make.

Undergraduate admissions policies
Postgraduate admissions policies

Fees & funding

The course fees you'll pay and the funding available to you will depend on a number of factors including your nationality, location, personal circumstances and the course you are studying. We also have a number of bursaries and scholarships available to our students.

Tuition fees
Students From 2026/27 2027/28
Scotland, England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Republic of Ireland £6,170 tba
Overseas and EU £16,890 tba

You study this course over two academic years, fees listed are per annum.

Tuition fees are subject to an annual review and may increase from one year to the next. For more information on this and other tuition fee matters, please see our Fees and Funding links above.

The University offers a 20% discount on Postgraduate Taught Masters programmes to its alumni. The discount applies to all full-time, part-time and online degrees. The discount can only be applied to year one of a full-time Postgraduate degree, any additional years are exempt from the discount. For part time Postgraduate degrees the discount will apply to years one, two and three only and any additional years will be exempt from the discount. Please read our full T&C here.

Please note that the tuition fees liable to be paid by EU nationals commencing their studies from 1 August 2021 will be the Overseas fee rate. The University offers a range of attractive Tuition Fee bursaries to students resident in specific countries. More information on these can be found here.


Please note:

The discount for Edinburgh Napier alumni can only be applied to year one of a full-time Postgraduate degree, any additional years are exempt from the discount.

For part time Postgraduate degrees the discount will apply to years one, two and three only and any additional years will be exempt from the discount.

Please read our full T&C here

Careers & employability

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This course will give you the skills necessary to work in a variety of areas within the performing arts industry, as well as a wide range of transferable skills (confident communication, leadership, collaborative team working skills, and creative problem solving) that can take you into employment in many other fields.

Career opportunities include:

  • Stage and screen acting
  • Small-scale producing
  • Directing
  • Managing and launching small theatre companies
  • Theatre company management
  • Arts administration
  • Various roles in the entertainment industry which require initiative and creativity
  • Teaching
an actor getting dressed for a scene