Record admissions growth for Brighton's WaterBear Music College

In line with the UCAS equal opportunities deadline in January, the college experienced the substantial surge in applications for its BA (Hons) on-site and online programmes. Students applying for a coveted place on the courses have the option to study virtually or at one of two campuses – WaterBear’s inaugural campus in Brighton, or at its second campus in Sheffield opening in September 2023.

The record number of applications further bolsters WaterBear’s significant success since establishing in Brighton in September 2018, with the college also reporting a monumental 356% growth in student applications in the last two years alone (since January 2021).

Founded by music education pioneers Adam Bushell and Bruce John Dickinson, WaterBear has celebrated many achievements, supporting students of all ages from across the country keen to embrace the college’s unique ethos of building a long-term, sustainable career in the music industry. WaterBear’s diverse offering has also been a major contributing factor to its success so far, facilitating courses across the full spectrum of music, including song writing, audio production, electronic music, performance and enterprise/business.

WaterBear’s Co-Founder Adam Bushell said: “WaterBear has been on an immense journey and enjoyed many successes to date, with this poised to be strengthened even further as we look forward to officially opening the doors to our second campus in September 2023 located in the thriving city of Sheffield.

“At WaterBear we are immensely passionate about celebrating the individual, the unique and the ground-breaking, equipping our students with the tools and experience to build sustainable careers in the industry – it’s incredible to see a record number of students keen to make the most of the opportunities available here. We believe in empowering the artist and understand that everyone who studies a course with us has their own story to tell, their own path to follow.”

WaterBear offers BA (Hons) degree and master’s courses made for today’s musicians, artists and industry professionals. The college has built an unrivalled reputation for its dedication to specialist one-to-one mentoring, focused class sizes, flexible course delivery and exclusive career development opportunities. WaterBear colleges are based in the heart of Brighton and Sheffield, and also offers a range of online distance learning courses too.