Course summary

Arts University Plymouth is an arts university for the 21st century, preparing students who are uniquely placed to provide creative solutions to the complex global challenges of a changing world. Formerly known as Plymouth College of Art, we were granted full university title in Spring 2022. We are now the city of Plymouth’s first and only specialist arts university, allowing us to offer our students a dynamic and unique learning experience. If you want to pursue a creative degree at Arts University Plymouth but feel you have yet to acquire the experience and range of skills necessary, our Extended BA course will prepare you for entry to one of our BA (Hons) undergraduate courses. This four-year route offers an exploratory year, developing your insight into a range of art, design and media skills and approaches, before focusing on your Graphic Design degree. **There’s never been a more exhilarating time to study graphic design as a discipline, as companies strive to cultivate culture and connect with their audience in new and unexpected ways. Discover what it takes to influence public conscience, capture imagination and provoke discussion through effective visual communication.** On this course you’ll become part of a new breed of professional designers and communicators – empowering brands, inspiring community action on a global scale and taking timeless traditional methods of practice and merging them with more contemporary approaches. If you’re interested in the role of graphic communication as a vehicle for change and idea transfer, this degree will equip you with the practical skills and theoretical knowledge necessary to succeed at the forefront of industry. From print publications to large-format advertising, user experience to data visualisation, you will learn how to make your ideas an online and offline reality. Early on you will be encouraged to adopt the mindset of a design professional grounded in a critical awareness of societal and cultural contexts. With the support of our expert academics and industry-practising technicians, you will forge your own professional journey within an ever-evolving international landscape of motion, print, imagemaking, illustration and social and interactive media design. You’ll learn how to respond to current design needs, from research and concept through to prototype and design, strategising packaging and campaigns that inform, entertain and persuade. Your studies will also equip you with progressive problem-solving skills needed by future employers, addressing themes of ecological sustainability, emerging technologies and user-centred design. The content of this course has been designed in close consultation with industry professionals so that you can be confident your learning will future-proof you for a dynamic and competitive job market. Our award-winning students have been celebrated through international competitions, gaining internships and industry recognition from D&AD (best in show), Sky Arts, New Designers, JDO RAW, Creative Conscience and South West Design Award. Your studies will also be underpinned by our enviable programme of visiting lecturers. Recent industry contributors to the course include: Getty Images, Mother London, Design Bridge, Bellow Studio Bristol, Little Brown, Edenspiekermann, Hoefler&Co, Dalton Maag, Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv, Jones Knowles Ritchie, Radim Malinic, B&B Studio, Home Bristol, me&dave, NoDesign Paris, Atlantic Youth Creative Hubs, Saatchi and Anthony Burrill. Our graduates either go on to establish their own freelance practices or collaborative studios, or find rewarding work as in-house designers in publishing, branding and consultancies. Whether you aspire to work for an independent studio, advertising agency, household name brand or for yourself – a world of opportunity awaits you on our Graphic Communication degree.