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BA (Hons) - Illustration with Placement

Want to be a great illustrator? One who takes a line and conjures worlds that compel and transfix? Technique is important. Courage is needed. But individuality is demanded. That’s why we’ll give you the space, resources and inspiration to find your voice. That’s why, with our help, you’ll make art that makes a difference.

As a dedicated module in your second year, you'll have the exciting opportunity to embark on a real-world creative industry placement. You will be immersed in a professional environment, allowing you to gain invaluable practical work experience. By putting your knowledge and skills into practice in a real-world context, you'll deepen your understanding of the industry and its inner workings. Moreover, you'll make industry connections, enhance your portfolio, and amplify your creative abilities, ultimately improving your overall career prospects.

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Course Overview

On this illustration degree course, we will help you develop strong drawing, composition, and colour skills that will underpin your personal visual language, allowing you to develop a unique voice as an artist. You’ll gain the experience, confidence and advanced technical skills you need to succeed. And once you find your voice as an artist, your personality, passion and the quality of the work in your portfolio will get you noticed, enabling you to become an illustrator by profession. You’ll receive extensive feedback, support, and advice throughout your studies and have access to state-of-the-art facilities and equipment, as well as the opportunity to work on a variety of projects, including a high-quality placement and ‘live briefs’, to develop and hone your skills.

We are unique amongst university illustration courses in giving you a thorough grounding in graphic design. You’ll have the necessary skills and experience to stand out from the crowd.

On this course you will...

  • Study illustration within an institute recognised by the industry as a course provider that engenders strong drawing skills. Through doing so, we provide our graduates with the backbone of a long career in illustration.
  • Be encouraged to develop an individual approach to illustration - allowing you to develop a personal style that stands out from the crowd.
  • Have regular and meaningful contact with tutorials, workshops, and discussions - reinforcing your practice with the support of tutors and peers who know you and your work inside and out.
  • Be included in deciding what direction the course/module/brief should take. Small group sizes mean a supportive and open community of practice.
  • Have access to a large professional studio space that is open plan and shared across all-year groups. Stock up on supplies with our in-house shop and experiment in our reprographic department.
  • Undertake a real-world creative placement where you have the opportunity to gain high-quality work experience during the second year of your studies.
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Course Structure

What you will learn

Learn within an institute recognised by the industry as a course provider that engenders strong drawing skills. Through doing so, we provide our graduates with the backbone of a long career.

Be encouraged to develop an individual approach to illustration - allowing you to develop a personal style that stands out from the crowd.

Have regular and meaningful contact with tutorials, workshops, and discussions - reinforcing your practice with the support of tutors and peers who know you and your work inside and out.

Be included in deciding what direction the course/module/brief should take. Small group sizes mean a supportive and open community of practice.

Have access to a large professional studio space that is open plan and shared across all-year groups. Stock up on supplies with our in-house shop and experiment in our reprographic department.

Year one

In a professional sense, the word ‘lllustration’ represents an exciting and very varied discipline that ranges from self-authored graphic novels and comic art, through concept art for film, TV, and games to the more traditional work for magazines, books and advertising, animation, and much, much more. What links all of these disciplines is the ability to connect audiences with ideas, information, or products through engaging and memorable illustrative communications.

Our aim is to inspire you to become an innovative, individual illustrator. We’ll help you develop strong drawing skills as a firm foundation for your life as an illustrator, but our uniquely-designed course will also expand your design skills to give you an insight into one of the major markets for illustration work.

  • Introducing Visual Communication
    Develop effective working practices and habits.
  • Collaborative Practice
    Work with other students to explore and practice the skills involved in creative collaboration.
  • Multi-Dimensional Illustration
    Explore multiple forms and formats, from traditional print to the latest digital platforms, simple symbols to complex information and ideas, ephemeral to iconic.
  • Cultural Contexts
    An introduction to the cultural, historical, and social contexts in which creative work from a range of disciplines.
Year two

Second year is focused on applying the knowledge and skills you’ve gained to a series of creative challenges, including a placement in the second semester of study. Testing and refining your creative and personal management skills in a number of scenarios will give you confidence in your ability to tackle unfamiliar challenges. As your confidence grows through experience you’ll begin to develop personal strands of interest or specialism.

  • The Illustrators Toolkit
    Develop and refine your image making techniques, both digital and analogue.
  • Drawing
    Explore the surrounding area to improve your drawing and mark-making skills.
  • Illustration Projects
    Utilise the technical skills developed previously to create appropriate, targeted illustrative communications.
  • Creative Economy Placement
    An opportunity to undertake work within a professional environment.
Year three

As you enter your final year, flexibility increases where all of the skills, knowledge and confidence you have developed so far are brought together to produce a portfolio of work that showcases your talents.

By this time you’ll be preparing for progression – life after you finish your degree-seeking work or preparing for Masters or Postgraduate study. Much of your professional practice will be focused on that exciting step.

  • Advanced Illustration Projects
    An opportunity to work within a design brief and explore a particular area of interest.
  • Independent Research Paper
    Develop specialised and focused knowledge and understanding of a subject of your own choice.
  • Illustration Showcase
    An opportunity to show-off the skills, knowledge, and professionalism developed throughout the course to potential employers and the wider world.

Attend an Open Day at Cumbria

An Open Day is your opportunity to explore one of 5 campuses, meet your lecturers, and find out how the University of Cumbria could become your new home.

Take the next step towards achieving your dreams.
A student stands in front of a wall splattered with paint.