The Arden School of Theatre awarded prestigious national accreditation

UCEN Manchester’s Arden School of Theatre has been awarded accreditation from the Council for Dance, Drama and Musical Theatre (CDMT) recognising the high quality standard of its programmes.

The highly prestigious accreditation validates The Arden as a leading provider of Acting and Musical Theatre degree courses, giving it a status held only by a select number of providers identified as providing elite programmes that equip students with the skills they will need to progress into professional roles. 

Director of Creative Arts and Media Industries, Rob Owen, commented: “We are incredibly proud to have been awarded CDMT accreditation in recognition of the high standards of training we provide. The accreditation gives us independent validation of the quality of our conservatoire model used in shaping the skills of our students so that they are ready to secure professional work upon completion of their degree. 

At The Arden School of Theatre we have a proud track record of our students securing high profile roles on the stage and on the screen – big and small. Coupled with the CDMT accreditation, this signals to aspiring actors nationally that we are an institution that will enable them to turn their ambitions and aspirations into a reality.

To achieve accreditation institutions have to undertake a thorough and comprehensive institutional level review led by a panel of nominated industry experts that assesses them against a range of industry benchmarks.  Successfully accredited schools satisfy a range of CDMT’s criteria including offering a course that is either three or four years in duration, guarantees students a minimum of thirty contact teaching hours per week and can evidence that a high percentage of graduates progress to performance roles. 

Michael Walsh, Dean UCEN Manchester, commented: “This CDMT accreditation attests to the high quality of education we offer to our students and our focus on providing programmes that equip students with the skills they will need to progress into professional roles upon graduating. It is also a testament to the dedication, commitment and professionalism of our exceptional teaching colleagues that we are now proudly a CDMT accredited school.”

Find out more about the courses on offer at The Arden School of Theatre and apply now.