Illustration Welcome Guide : Arrival and your first week

We're delighted that you've chosen to join our creative community at Arts University Bournemouth. We can't wait to see what you'll create.

Arrival and your first week

Welcome to BA (Hons) Illustration at Arts University Bournemouth. We’re excited to get to know you as a creative and see what you’ll make with us as you develop through the course.

Arrival

Online enrolment opens in September 2026 for applicants who’ve met their conditions. Once open, it's important that you enrol as soon as possible so we can set up your timetable.

Once you’ve enrolled, you’ll be able to set up your student login to access your email account and more information via the myAUB portal.

Your timetable will be available to view in the calendar of your Outlook emails, shortly before your first week. Normally, your timetable will only show course-level sessions when you first enrol. Any sessions that take place in a smaller group will be added later on as we put you into your groups on the timetable system, so please be patient if there are only a few sessions to start with!

Students should expect to be on campus throughout the whole of your first week - course sessions for your first week will be explained to you on your first day when meet your course team. These sessions won't show on your Outlook calendar

Please note, we're still finalising some sessions, so it's likely there'll be updates between now and starting your course.

Your first day on campus

We're looking forward to meeting you all on campus soon. We'd recommend that you make sure you're available to attend on campus or online sessions throughout the whole of your first week.

Please ensure that you have completed your Online Enrolment before your first day on campus. Check the ‘Next Steps’ page for information including setting up your AUB IT login to access myAUB.

Face-to-face registration

During your first day, you'll need to attend a face-to-face registration session, where we'll check your details and complete your enrolment. You'll need to bring along your identity documents. There are more details about what documents you'll need on the "Next Steps" tab.

AUB Student ID collection

When you have completed face-to-face registration, you'll be able to swap your Registration Passport for your physical AUB student ID card. This will also be your library card for the duration of your course.

Getting to campus

AUB is proud to have achieved a Platinum Ecocampus award, as well as Fairtrade certification, and we have a commitment to reach Carbon Net Zero by 2030. Sustainability is very important to us and plays a big role in how we work.

We encourage you to come to the campus using the most sustainable means available to you.

Bournemouth has great public transport links, and most students catch a bus from their accommodation onto campus.

UNIBUS provides frequent services between AUB campus and our halls of residence in Bournemouth town centre, as well as the neighbouring towns of Poole, Westbourne, Boscombe and Southbourne. You can download the app to buy tickets before you hop on, follow live routes, use the journey planner and timetables.

The UNIBUS app will gain you access to the U1, U2, U3 and U4 routes, plus the Morebus services that stop at campus – 6, 6a, 15, 17 and 36.

MoreBus is Bournemouth and Poole’s main bus provider, which can get you around town and surrounding areas. We’d recommend using the Morebus website too, so that you can find bus routes outside the UNIBUS network including buses to the beach.

Digital ID card

Once you've completed online enrolment and your ID card photo has been approved, you'll be able to download a digital ID card, which can be used to purchase student bus tickets. Your digital ID card will be available through myAUB in your eVision tile.

Bournemouth has a well-established cycle community, with lanes across town making it a great way to travel safely.

Our campus and all halls of residence all have bicycle storage, and we’d recommend using a D-lock or chain lock to keep your bike secure. The Universities Police Team offers free security marking and Hope2Cycle visit AUB monthly for discount bicycles and repairs. You can get a discount at many local cycle shops with your student ID too.

Not got your own bike? Try a Beryl hire. These are available across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and they’re an easy and affordable way to get around town. Check out the Beryl app for bundles, discounts and to see what’s available.

Walking is a great way to get around Bournemouth – and it’s free. Here’s an idea of how long it’ll take you to get from campus from our most popular accommodation spots:

Winton – 25-30 minutes
Charminster – 40-45 minutes
Bournemouth halls of residence – 50-55 minutes

For more information on travel, see our Guide to Bournemouth.

AUBSU and Freshers'

Arts University Bournemouth Students’ Union (AUBSU) is a charity, separate from the University, partnering together to ensure the student experience is the best it can possibly be when studying here. AUBSU is run by elected officers, two full-time Sabbatical Officers and four part-time Student Executive Officers, who are elected by the student body in the annual elections. They also have dedicated staff members working alongside to deliver their manifestos and the day to day running of the Students’ Union. When you enrol at AUB, you automatically become a member of AUBSU, and you can vote or run in these elections.

Not only does AUBSU represent your academic interests and champion your student experience, but they also run campaigns, events, clubs and societies, provide support, and represent student voice and opportunities. To see what they have going on check out their Instagram @aubsu and website.

Freshers' Week

Each year, AUBSU holds a series of events at the beginning of term for new (and existing) students. The wide range of events offers something for everyone and are a great chance to meet new faces, learn new things and settle into life at AUB – you might even make some friends for life!

AUBSU will begin announcing their line-up of Freshers' events in the summer. These will be on the website and Instagram.

AUBSU is here for you! If you have any questions, get in touch at studentsunion@aub.ac.uk.

Orientation for international students

If you are joining AUB as an international student, you may want to attend our in-person orientation sessions, which are for all international students starting their studies with us this autumn. These informative and friendly sessions are designed to answer your questions and help you meet people on campus.

For dates and times of the in-person orientation sessions, along with other useful information and resources for living and studying in Bournemouth, explore our Orientation page.

Explore Orientation