Graphic Design

Master branding, typography, publishing, motion graphics, and more – all while tackling real-world design projects. Hone your professional and technical skills and develop a visual design language that's uniquely you. You'll go beyond theory, experiment with emerging technologies, and refine your technical skills to equip yourself to thrive in the ever-evolving graphic design landscape.

By the end of your degree, you'll graduate with a professional portfolio that showcases your unique design voice. Our graduates are making waves in the industry across fields such as art direction, branding and identity, editorial design, interactive design, illustration, and more.

Key features

• Study a broad range of disciplines including branding, editorial design, graphic design, illustration, interactive design, information design, motion graphics and typography.

• Learn in a creative studio environment, using industry-standard equipment and software.

• Work on live briefs with companies like Brand Opus, JKR, Elmwood and Vault 49.

• Develop your professional skills through self-initiated work experience placements, industry competitions, collaborations with organisations and guest lectures.

• Go on optional study visits to cities like New York and Berlin.

• Opportunity to apply for a European or international exchange to one of our partner institutions, such as RMIT in Australia.

• Develop a professional portfolio tailored to your own career aspirations.

• Exhibit your work at our Showcase, with the opportunity to be selected to exhibit at other portfolio events, such as New Designers and D&AD New Blood in London.

• Our graphic design degree has an excellent reputation for producing industry-ready, interdisciplinary graduates.

• Gain a professionally accredited degree – this course is accredited by the Chartered Society of Designers (CSD).

• NTU is in the UK’s Top 15 for Art & Design in the Complete University Guide 2023 (Ranked 15th).

Employability

Some graduates choose to use their skills in other fields, such as teaching and management, while others go on to set up their own business or work on a freelance basis. Graduates from this course go into a range of roles. Recent examples include:
Designer, Unidays
Junior Designer, McCann Birmingham
Junior Designer, Pentland Brands
Product Development, Bakerdays
Freelance Artist, Advocate AA
Junior Designer; Landor
Junior Motion Designer; DixonBaxi.

Your space to create at NTU

We’re committed to helping you explore, expand and refine your craft, as you discover new creative horizons with some truly great tools, equipment and workspaces. Visit our facilities hub at www.ntu.ac.uk/artfacilities to find out more.

Our students’ work – ‘We Are Creatives’

Explore our online showcase ‘We Are Creatives’ - celebrating the work of the School of Art & Design students. You will find a sneak peak of some of our students’ work and gain a real insight into what it’s like to be part of the NTU creative community at wearecreativesntu.art

[Year One]

• The Fundamentals of Graphic Design (100 credit points)
• Design in Context 1 (20 credit points)

[Year Two]

• Exploring the Graphic Design Industry (60 credit points)
• Design in Context 2 (20 credit points)
• Co Lab: Research, Exploration and Risk-taking (20 credit points)
• Optional module. You will also choose one optional 20-credit module from:
  Materials and Making
  Publishing: Experimental Formats
  Typography: Use and Expression
  Telling Stories
  Motion Graphics
  Ethical Design (online and in person)
  Digital Marketing and Communication
  Exploring Creative Coding

[Year Three]

Optional Placement Year (Sandwich)*

We have an option for all of our students to undertake a placement year (Sandwich) and allow you to decide whether this is right for you once you have completed years 1 and 2 of your course. This time spent working in industry provides our students with crucial work experience, which is highly prized and much sought after by employers upon graduation. If you are successful in securing a placement you will have the chance to gain an additional Certificate or Diploma in Professional Practice, dependent on duration.

• If you choose to take the sandwich route option, you will still need to apply for this course with the full-time UCAS code.

[Final year]

• Developing a Personal Portfolio (100 credit points)
• Design in Context 3: Dissertation (20 credit points)

Year 1 coursework (100%).
Year 2 coursework (100%).
Year 3 coursework (100%).

People excel in different ways, and we want everybody to have the best possible chance of success. On this course you will be assessed on a range of individual and group presentations, and your final year project.

Your work in Year Two accounts for 20% of your final degree mark, and your work in your final year accounts for the other 80%.