BA (Hons) Graphic Design

The BA (Hons) Graphic Design course benefits from deep professional practice knowledge, driven by our passion for conceptually led design projects and collaboration with industry partners and the creative sector. The curriculum, informed by industry, supports progressive learning, giving graduates a stronger critical knowledge of self-efficacy, participatory creativity, emerging technologies, and experimentation. Graduates are highly employable for their creative ideas, design skills, process thinking, and teamwork.

Conceptual thinking, resulting from creative openness to prototyping and exploration, is believed to define the future of graphic design. Thinking through making is central to the course. ‘Bringing ideas to life’ involves turning concepts into tangible realities through creativity, innovation, and craft. This approach promotes design practice as a conversation, encouraging students to work collaboratively on set and industry-led projects. This experience builds strong studio communities and networks, mirroring industry practice. Co-creation helps reframe ideas, challenge assumptions, and build trust and empathy for others' ideas and experiences.

The curriculum embraces innovative technologies and addresses design challenges from climate emergency, social injustice, economic inequality, and cultural development. You'll learn to respond ethically, with curiosity, and strategically to new challenges by identifying essential themes for each unit. The aim is to inspire responsible practitioners with core conceptual and technical skills, understanding graphic design's potential to influence and shape perceptions and behaviours.

A human, nature, and planet-centred approach nurtures positive, progressive interactions between the designer, the design output, and the end user. We aim to inspire future designers to become responsible practitioners, gain core skills, and understand graphic design's potential to influence and shape perceptions. The course connects with internal and external speakers through talks and workshops integrated into the AUB Human initiative.

You'll participate in study trips, events, set and ‘live’ projects, and designer-led workshops to integrate professional and transferable skills. This integration helps you to become confident, empathetic designers positioned within ‘design practice.’ Studio and cultural visits, attendance at the portfolio ‘Network Event,’ and placement options inform career ambitions and support the transition to industry or further study.

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.

The first year provides you with opportunities to develop fundamental skills, principles, processes, and knowledge. These are considered core attributes encompassing the tasks and knowledge expected of all graphic designers. All Level 4 units are designed to provide experience in the studio and computer lab, to promote confidence in using digital processes, methods, and materials essential to the study of graphic design. Additionally, gaining a working knowledge of typography is a key goal for this year, enabling you to effectively structure and arrange information to enhance communication and expression.

This level of study also offers a broader contextual understanding of the subject. Theory and practice are seamlessly integrated across all units. Skills in research, critical analysis, evaluation and communication of interrelated practices and technologies, are delivered to enhance your creative potential.

You'll explore contemporary global themes and issues related to design practice, contributing to the creative dialogue between theory and practice. Alongside incorporating these concepts into their design work, you're encouraged to be curious, take risks, and engage in experimentation – fostering growth as creative individuals who formulate and communicate visual solutions, either independently or collaboratively.

Throughout the year, emphasis is placed on generating and developing ideas. Units such as Exploring Graphic Communication and Visual Thinking will help in developing your typographic skills, visual language, and to the ability to research, experiment and generate ideas tailored to specific audience needs. The final unit in the year, Purposeful Curiosity, serves as a bridge to Level 5. Here, you're introduced to fundamental animation and motion graphic skills while delivering designed solutions. The importance of team working is also recognised within all units and include elements of self-reflection and peer evaluation.

In the second year, you'll consolidate and expand your digital, technical, typographic, design thinking and making skills. You'll identify different perspectives, specialisms, and modes of critical design thinking, within the broader field of graphic design. Furthermore, you'll explore code, moving image and emerging technologies, engaging in individual or collaborative projects with real-world applications. To highlight and celebrate your work, you'll participate in an industry 'Network Event' during the summer term, providing you with opportunities to build your design networks and establish connections within the creative industry.

Units in this year encourage you to engage with the subject from different viewpoints. In Innovate, you're challenged to embrace critical design practice and become agents of change. In Narrative, the focus is on designing motion design sequences and web interactions; you'll explore methods of analysing, constructing, and accessing narratives.

In Experience, you'll be introduced to immersive design and the user-centred agenda, preparing you for Level 6 study and units such as Future Practice. In this way, the Level 5 experience provides a way of scoping different understandings, skills, and methods of working that can inform your thinking in relation to the more self-directed practice, and project-based learning occurring at Level 6.

Theoretical and contextual understanding is broadened and deepened in a variety of ways in Level 5. Ethical and sustainability issues are addressed in units such as Experience and Place where talks and lectures align and integrate with the University’s AUB Human initiative. The Place unit provides opportunities to explore and reflect on practice, in relation to themes and issues that might go on to become the focus of Level 6’s Critical Practice and Major Project as well as future career planning.

The 'Network Event' encourages and supports you to participate in industry placements during summer break, which may help with the start of a career planning process.

In your final year, you'll continue to expand the scope of your skills, delve deeper into critical enquiry, and confirm your personal creative aspirations. You'll develop a strategic approach that directs your individual graphic design practice towards future career destinations. In the units Future Practice and Major Project, a research-oriented approach underpins experimental, disruptive, and speculative methods. This encourages you to take the lead in shaping your own path, empowering your practice. Learning in these units is primarily project-based, emerging from the challenges and nuances of each project.

The Critical Practice unit offers opportunities for advanced independent research, which can complement the Major Project. The integration and consolidation of themes across Level 6 units support and enhance creative practice and career aspirations. Additionally, beyond academic writing, you're expected to use your writing skills for reflecting on and organising ideas and process, messaging, specification, copywriting and pitching ideas.

At Level 6, all units require you to define your study through Learning Agreements, which are negotiated with the teaching team. These agreements provide focus and enable you to demonstrate agency by integrating your own interests and passions into your learning.

The course emphasises an outward-facing perspective, evident through engagement with competition briefs and input from visiting speakers. Project briefs may be ‘ignited’ in workshops led by designers, providing a springboard for research and ideation.

We enter National and International competitions to connect with high level industry and take advantage of the opportunities these bring to build networks, gain internships and employment.

• Creative Conscience Awards (2024) Animation (bronze), winners – Rosie Lorane, Hal Rumney Hunt, Lettie Suen, Amoré van der Linde
• Creative Conscience Awards (2024) Health, Wellbeing and Disability, highly commended – Millie Harvey, Finlay Heanue, Oona McLeary, Cui Xuan Aw
• D&AD New Blood Award (2024) Graphite Pencil, winners – Karla Noren, Klaudia Ptasinska
• D&AD New Blood Award (2024) Wood Pencil, winners – Gergana Sarieva, Phoebe Hart, Conrad Wells
• D&AD New Blood Award (2024) Wood Pencil and Portfolio Prize, winner – Duc Anh Le
• D&AD New Blood Award (2023) White Pencil, winners - Eve Sawyer, Sara Hunt
• Royal Society of Arts Student Award (2024) Xposure, Skin, winner – Ailsa Smith
• Royal Society of Arts Student Design Awards (2023) Planet Generation, winner – Josie Field
• Royal Society of Arts Student Award (2024) Steady, Caring Culture, Highly Commended for Innovation – Amelia Blantern
• Royal Society of Arts Student Award (2024) Terra Hex AI, Highly Commended for Innovation and Sustainability – Tess Taylor
• ISTD Accreditation Award (2024) Tweed – Zoe Higham Rowe
• ISTD Accreditation Award (2023) – Daniel Bryant
• Design + Digital Student Award (2024) Fault – Cerys Bessell
• Penguin Cover Award (2024) Atomic Habits – George Griffiths
• 3 Sided Cube Design for Good Award (2024), winner – Ailsa Smith
• 3 Sided Cube Design for Good Award (2023), winner – Jessie Denyer
• Creative Conscience (2023) Bloody Good Period – Zoe Higham Rowe, Grace Rolls, Ailsa Smith, Joe Taylor
• JDO RAW (2023), winner – Chiara Causer
• Wadworth Brewery Competition, (2023) winner – Gemma Cook

Careers include:

• Graphic designer
• Brand strategist
• Brand consultant
• Motion graphic designer
• Systems, service designer
• UX/UI designer
• Packaging designer
• Strategic director
• Art director
• Content and social media designer
• Digital media designer
• Experience designer

Some BA (Hons) Graphic Design graduates choose to take postgraduate courses before embarking on their career.

BA (Hons) Graphic Design has close links with industry, and graduates are actively recruited by leading national and international design companies, including:

Forpeople | Sky Creative| JKR | Mad River | Moving Brands | NB Studios | Bond and Coyne | Pentagram | Walker Agency | Dixon Baxi | Ustwo | Nice & Serious | Bright Blue Day | Multi-adaptor | Dyson | Ogilvy | Accenture | 20 Ten Creative | Quantum

You can find out more about our alumni by browsing their profiles below.

As part of BA (Hons) Graphic Design, you'll gain insight into the industry by visiting a range of design studios. You may also get the opportunity to take part in cultural course trips, previous trips have included:

• Berlin
• London
• Barcelona
• Madrid
• Venice

These trips are optional, and some may incur additional costs.

BA (Hons) Graphic Design has welcomed a wide range of inspiring speakers, to provoke discussion, deliver practice advice and workshops.

• Pali Palavathanan, TEMPLO
• Rob Nicoll, Co-Founder and CMO Chip[s] Board ltd
• Dr Cathy Gale, ‘X’ PhD research
• Rosie Isbell, Senior UX designer
• Rachel Andrews, Web developer, co-founder of Perch CMS and Notist
• Régine Debatty, Writer, curator, critic, We make money not art
• Alex Kosmidis, Joe Egan, Forpeople
• Tammy Johal, designer, Tide
• Izzi Hays, Creative Strategist Multi-adaptor
• Ruth Andrade, Lush
• Rebecca Ford, Head of Design and Innovation, The RSA
• Sevra Davies, British Council
• Laura Yarrow, Senior UX designer, Experience UX
• Ted Hunt, independent, discursive, critical designer