Design for Digital Media BA(Hons)

International equivalencies

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Portfolio and interview advice 

Applying for a place in 2019?

Portfolio advice
In preparation for the portfolio interview, we would like to see:

• examples of work that demonstrates how you develop ideas. The work can be in any medium or combination of media, for example drawing, interactive, typography, collage, photography, performance, video
• evidence of personal work, drawing, use of type, collage, photography, and other mediums. What are your interests in the world?
• your ability to develop an idea from concept, to a finished project
• a range of sketchbooks showing how you experiment and explore different techniques and media
• any completed moving image, animation, interactive work or gifs (show on Vimeo)
• several examples of finished outcomes in either 2-D or animation or moving image
• your potential to experiment and explore ideas, using different techniques and media
• a passion for graphic design illustration.

We recommend using Flickr, Tumblr or making a pdf to create a simple portfolio / blog and Vimeo or YouTube for embedding video. Please note that it is not a strict requirement to have previous film and video work at interview stage. We welcome a creative portfolio and an interest in exploring moving image in future works.

Interview advice

• Aim to arrive with time to spare.
• The interview will normally be between yourself, a member of staff and one current student, and lasts 20-30 minutes.
• Show awareness and interest in contemporary art, design, and culture i.e. books, film, music, exhibitions, etc.
• The interview is a two-way process, a conversation that is designed to be friendly and open, so please think of some questions to ask us.

Why study with us? 

• You'll be part of a community at the forefront of contemporary professional practice, engaging with new areas of graphic design and technological innovation, including game development, app design, AR (augmented reality), VR (virtual reality), motion graphics, and interactive media.

• Our course tutors are active industry professionals, including graphic designers, film-makers, video artists, animators, installation artists, writers and game developers, who will guide you and enable you to create innovative and experimental work in new media fields.

• You'll work with other students on projects and assignments, developing your skills as a graphic designer, but also experimenting with many visual communications tools.  

• Our students will graduate with the confidence of being able to negotiate many specialisms across the full media spectrum and will leave with a wide range of technical, intellectual and graphical design skills.

Work by student Josh Hunt

Areas of study 

• Digital and screen-based typography and its applications in advertising, web and environmental graphics.

• Graphical programming and augmented reality applications of graphic design in e-commerce, signage, mapping, documenting, digital publishing and corporate installations. 

• Experimental image making, visual effects and video editing.

• Digitisation and integration into social media and social, or blended learning.

• Brand development and articulation in a non-static, cross platform environment.

• HTML coding, J-Query coding and gesturing technologies.
  
  
• Lighting, sound recording, digital retouching and broadcast grading.
  
  
• Applied animation for complex information systems, including information graphics and the visual display of qualitative and quantitative information.
  
  
• Design for interactivity, tablets, apps, installations and expanded cinema.
  
  
• Video promos, multi-camera productions and VJ skills for multi-screen events. 

• Music video production, sound art and design.

• High definition moving image for cinema using broadcast standard cameras for gallery, music promo, the web and games.

• Lo-Fi technology for self-produced documentaries and films, including 'Letus' cameras and the integration of analogue into the digital realm.

• Storytelling through both documentary and fiction based projects using both linear and non-linear narratives.

Year 1 

In year 1, you will explore the practical and analytical uses for screen-based graphic design, through a series of projects. Your work will be nurtured and developed through both group and personal tutorials, and inspired by a series of lectures from visiting industry professionals.

Under the guidance of expert teaching staff, you will immerse yourself in an exciting programme of lectures and workshops, shaping your projects and building your portfolio as you progress through the year.

Subjects you will explore include:

• moving image, design history and new developments in digital graphic design
• how to storyboard ideas and sequence complex graphic information
• how to use a range of digital and analogue cameras, professional-standard digital editing facilities (including those for sound production), green-screen studios and animation techniques
• how to create and code online applications.

Modules

• Design Principles and Image Making 
• Sequence and Narrative
• Motion Graphics
• Historical and Critical Studies

Making sure that what you learn with us is relevant, up to date and what employers are looking for is our priority, so courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis. When you have applied to us, you’ll be told about any new developments through our applicant portal.

Year 2 

In year 2, you will focus on developing your creative potential, building on knowledge gained during your first year.

The projects you will be set have strong links with industry, so that the skills you learn and practise reflect those that employers are looking for.

You will be encouraged to work collaboratively with your fellow students to develop ambitious, large-scale projects within the local and wider professional community. Your research and analytical skills will be developed through group discussion and documentation of project outcomes.

You will also be able to experiment with image production and alternative content; exploring a broader approach to source material such as 16mm film, found footage, staged environments and animated sequences.  

Modules

• Visual Language and Personal Voice
• Interaction and Audience with Professional Practice
• 2D into 3D Motion Graphics
• Historical and Critical Studies 2 

Work by student Rowan Bailey

Final year 

In your final year, the knowledge and skills that you have developed so far come together as you work on a final personal project. You will also write a dissertation in conjunction with Historical and Critical Studies.

Final year lectures and tutorials are taught by teaching staff and by visiting industry professionals. They include practical information about professional development, preparing you for your professional or academic life after university, and one-to one personal tutorials offering in-depth, personalised support for your continued development.

Modules

• Context and Consolidation
• Final Major Project
• Personal and Professional Development
• Extended Research Project 

Staff profile 

Paul Burgess, course leader

Paul Burgess is a freelance illustrator, designer, photographer, and writer with interests in collage, music graphics, amateur and folk art, self-publishing, found ephemera and collaboration.

He has exhibited his work in numerous solo and group exhibitions and his clients include The Guardian, Penguin Books, Island Records, Pepe Jeans, Greenpeace, Harper Collins, the Sex Pistols, Pulp, Rough Trade Records and Top Shop. He is the author of 'Satellite: Sex Pistols Graphic Design and Memorabilia' and is an adviser to Sotheby's on the subject of 'Punk Graphics and Clothing'.

Location

Campus where this course is taught

Accommodation

Maps

Accommodation

University building

Grand Parade campus map