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- BA (Hons) Textiles Design
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BA (Hons) Textiles Design
- Duration: 3–5 years full-time
- Placement year: Optional 1 year
- Course code: W236 (UCAS)
- Institution code: A66 (UCAS)
BA (Hons) Textiles Design course information
BA (Hons) Textiles Design at Arts University Bournemouth (AUB) is a specialist textiles course that doesn't ask you to specialise before you arrive. We'll encourage you to fully embrace colour, pattern and texture in the production of both hard and soft surfaces; for both fashion and interiors. Core to course delivery are experimentation with drawing, dye techniques, print, stitch, constructed textiles and knit.
You'll be encouraged to explore the parameters of textiles design for both interiors and fashion and challenge you to contribute to the British textiles industry and its worldwide reputation for originality, creativity and innovation. You'll interrogate long-standing traditions, question existing processes and create new ways of working setting you up to confidently become part of the next generation of distinctive, skilled and inventive designers and makers.
The course emphasises individual exploration of both visual and theoretical principles in the investigation of colour, texture and pattern, through experimentation with drawing, dye, print, stitch, CAD, fabric construction and manipulation, towards the development of tactile materials found within the discipline of textiles. Historical and contemporary cultural studies, alongside critical inquiry, will support conceptual thinking, with practical, ethical and sustainability issues being central to your learning. This will enable you to become a conscientious and responsible designer of the future.
Central to the course delivery is understanding the professional practice of a textile designer/maker, and the demands placed upon them. Awareness of this rapidly changing profession and jobs of the future is supported through industry set briefs, competitions, live projects, student-led placements and engagement with textile professionals from the course’s extensive industry links.
Integrated Foundation Year
On BA (Hons) Textiles Design, you have the option to take a specialised Integrated Foundation Year, or Year 0.
The Integrated Foundation year allows you to explore and develop your skills and knowledge at an introductory level, gaining a better understanding of what the subject area has to offer before joining the degree.
Placement year
All undergraduate courses at AUB offer an optional placement year, to be taken between your second and third years of study.
If you’re unsure about this optional placement, you don’t need to decide now. Once you’re here and studying with us, the course team will discuss the placement options with you, so when the time comes, you can make a decision that’s right for you.
Exchange and international summer programmes
Students on BA (Hons) Textiles Design have the chance to broaden their horizons through exciting exchange and international summer programmes. These opportunities allow you to study abroad at one of our brilliant partner institutions, experience different cultures, and enhance your academic journey.
Level 4 (first year)
Your first year provides you with a sound practical base for the study of the subject, contextualised by parallel study of aspects of contemporary, historical and visual culture.
Projects, lectures, seminars, practical demonstrations, visits, case studies, guided reading and tutorials will be used to disseminate information and develop the necessary skills. This will provide you with the opportunity to learn through experimentation and discovery, and develop skills within a personal context.
You’ll be introduced to a variety of applications and to the fundamentals of critical theory and professional studies that will underpin your knowledge of textiles and their design, production and creative usage.
Work placements are run during the end of the first year of study, for a minimum of ten days and up to a maximum of one month. On your return, you’ll present and discuss your experience.
Level 5 (second year)
Your second year will focus on your individual interests and ensure that your professional and technical skills mature through first-hand experience with industry specialists.
The units anticipate that you'll be able to apply the knowledge, concepts and skills addressed in your second year to fully exploit the range of opportunities for your personal creative development.
You’ll work with fellow students on live industry briefs and enter major national and international competitions.
Previous briefs have included: Hand and Lock, live fashion studio briefs for Style Council NY, and wellbeing projects.
Level 6 (third year)
Your third year allows you to refine your existing creative practice, develop your skills and reflect upon your experience and direction formed from previous study.
The course nurtures students to develop into original, mature and autonomous textile practitioners and makers, encouraging them to lead rather than respond to industry trends.
The integration of theory and practice is promoted and reinforced through a team teaching approach. Lectures, seminars and tutorials may be delivered by team members, as appropriate, in the creative environment of the studio.
You’ll be encouraged to formulate and identify your particular skills and potential. Risk and ambition within the field will be crucial to your individual development. Intellectual and academic integrity will be further encouraged, through ‘thinking through practice’.
External experiences are highly prized throughout, from course trips to textile trade shows e.g. Premiere Vision Paris, to European visits, to London exhibitions, e.g. New Designers, Islington.
This year also particularly focuses on employability, building professional portfolios and gives students the opportunity to participate in industry presentations.
APPLICATIONS ARE OPEN
Now that you've found the perfect course, it's time to apply.
Check out our handy 'how to apply' guide and our portfolio top tips.
OPEN DAYS
Open Days are a great way to get a feel for undergraduate life at AUB. At an Open Day, you'll be able to explore the campus, talk to course teams and discover our industry-standard facilities.
Visit us on:
- 6 December
- 10 January
AUB SHOWCASE
We're proud of our alumni, and rightfully so.
Explore the incredible work of our graduates in our online AUB Showcase.
Browse work by course, student or theme.
Teaching, learning and assessment
The course objectives will be met by deploying a wide variety of teaching and learning methods including workshop/studio practice, lectures, seminars, group critiques, guided reading, tutorials, projects, demonstrations, learning teams, personal planning and reflection, work related learning and independent study.
Each unit is assessed separately, and the assessment forms part of the unit. Assessment both provides a measure of your achievement, and also gives you regular feedback on how your learning is developing.
Unit tutors will be responsible for co-ordinating the course for individual units of study and for selecting appropriate methods of delivery according to the subject matter and student experience.
The methods employed will, wherever possible, induct you in the disciplines required of a creative practitioner in textiles design and making along with transferable skills (managing self, professional skills and team working), and value and credit any relevant previous experience. A key method will be the promotion of work related learning, including work placements; visits to the workshops or studios of relevant practitioners or organisations; guest lectures or workshops led by visiting practitioners; ‘live’ or simulated project briefs; and the mentoring of individual students or small groups by practising designers and other industry professionals. Your learning and career planning will be consolidated through the encouragement of skills in personal planning, reflection and development.
The study time allocated to each unit in the course incorporates a balance of teaching support and learning. The progressive promotion of student–centred learning reflects the anticipated maturity of students and allows you to direct your learning towards individual goals. The teaching in Level 4 is directed at providing you with the knowledge, concepts and skills to take increasing responsibility for the management of your own learning.
Teaching is directed at supporting individual engagement in learning, although there will be opportunities for you to work in teams to enable you to learn the value of peer co-operation. Also, it is anticipated that, due to the professional orientation of the degree and to enable you to benefit from the range of resources and disciplines within the University, opportunities will exist for you to collaborate in teams with peers in, for example, fashion or architecture. It is also envisaged that live project work may benefit from the collaboration of students from all levels of the course.
Guidance and counselling to help you in realising your learning potential will be provided at the start of each term.
Contact hours include all scheduled teaching sessions, but also supervised time in the workshop or studio. In line with national guidance, we include in our calculation of contact hours all the time which is scheduled in the studio for independent study, which is also supported by staff (either academic staff, or technicians).
The information provided below gives the proportion of your study time that constitutes contact hours. Where there are optional routes through the course, we've used the figures for the most popular option.
For every unit of your course, we'll inform you of what you're expected to learn; what you have to submit; how your work will be assessed; and the deadline for presenting your work for assessment. This is made available through Unit Information, which is on your course blog.
You'll receive a final mark for each unit in the form of a percentage, which will be recorded on your formal record of achievement (transcript). Each component of assessment is graded using a notched marking scale, whereby only certain marks are used within each grade. The only marks available within any ten-point band are *2, *5 and *8 (e.g. 62, 65, 68). These marks correspond to a low, mid, and high level of achievement within each grade band.
All learning outcomes must be passed to successfully complete the unit.
On successful completion of your Honours degree course, you'll be awarded a degree classification based on your unit marks. The final classification is determined using all unit marks at Levels 5 and 6 using two different algorithms, which are detailed in the HE Student Regulations. If the two algorithms produce different results, you'll be awarded the higher class of degree.
If you've joined Level 6 through either the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) route or having completed a Foundation Degree (FdA), the final classification is determined using only your unit marks at Level 6.
Digital catalogue
Introducing the 2025 graduating cohort from BA (Hons) Textiles Design. The work presented in this book demonstrates the enthusiasm, determination and diligence that the students have employed over the past three years.
You can also explore the work of our 2024 graduates.