Illustration and Animation MA
Study level: Postgraduate
The Illustration and Animation MA aims to expand digital and physical knowledge of your craft, helping you find your own ‘voice’ and style.
Year of entry
Location
Coventry University (Coventry)
Study mode
Full-time
Part-time
Duration
1 year full-time
2 years part-time
16-24 months (with professional experience)
Course code
AHT037
Start date
May 2023
Course overview
The Illustration and Animation MA expands digital and physical knowledge of your craft, helping you find your own ‘voice’ and style.
If you are seeking to enhance your professional portfolio and understanding of emerging practice, we offer a vibrant creative community environment in which you should progress your personal research and practice to make your own unique contribution to the arena of illustrative and animated visual communication.
- The course explores illustration, publishing, photography, image generation and animation. While you develop your talent, both conceptually and technically, we help you achieve a deeper understanding of your role as a visual interpreter and of the importance of adapting to market needs and to a developing field.
- We will encourage you to develop a unique visual signature and a compelling visual voice that will help you to effectively communicate with intended audiences; both essential for success in professional practice.
- You will have the option to apply for a ‘professional experience’ opportunity2, designed to further develop your skills and knowledge with the aim of maximising your employability prospects. See modules for more information.

Global ready
An international outlook, with global opportunities
Teaching excellence
Taught by lecturers who are experts in their field
Employability
Career ready graduates, with the skills to succeedWhy you should you study this course
- Coventry School of Art and Design has taught art and design for over 150 years and our award-winning faculty will share the lessons learned from their significant experience of global academic, creative, industrial and commercial environments. We have a successful track record including Oscar nominee Chris Townsend, BAFTA winner Amy Dodd and Turner Prize nominee artist George Shaw.
- Internationally acclaimed for their own creative practice, our faculty staff have exhibited in Berlin, Athens, Helsinki, Bucharest, Istanbul, Tokyo, Linz, Zurich, Zagreb, Gijon and London (staff are subject to change). This course provides illustrative and animated input into many areas of professional practice including the publishing, scientific, technical, marketing, publicity and advertising, medical and cultural arenas; all of which provide opportunities to help you stay abreast of emerging trends and the challenges of contemporary professional practice.
- This practice-based course provides opportunities to develop a broad range of traditional and digital skills, including drawing, etching, screen-printing, typography, film effects, and working with sound; all using industry-standard practices and toolsets.
- Your studies will take place in a studio environment with access to our range of specialist facilities, including laser cutters, 3D rapid prototyping, screen printing, computer suites and clay modelling to enable you to produce original informative artefacts4. We encourage you to creatively explore emergent and mixed media, considering these art forms in their broadest application: from films and games design to advertising, training videos and technical illustrations as used in science, engineering and medicine.
Accreditation and professional recognition
This course is accredited1 and recognised by the following bodies:

Chartered Management Institute (CMI)
As part of this course, you will undertake a professional development module which is currently accredited by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) for the 2022-23 intake. Upon successful completion of this module, you will gain the CMI Level 7 Certificate in Strategic Management and Leadership Practice at no additional cost. Further details can be found under the modules and on the Professional Development module web page.
Coventry University’s accreditation with CMI is currently ongoing for the relevant modules and is regularly reviewed and monitored by the CMI through their quality systems.
What you'll study
With professional experience option
The professional experience opportunity2 enables you the opportunity to apply for optional professional experience in semester 1, which, upon successfully securing an opportunity, will extend the duration of your master’s to either 16, 20 or 24 months. The professional experience provides an opportunity for you to develop expertise and experience in your chosen field with the aim of enhancing your employability.
Please note that the optional professional experience modules incur an additional tuition fee, which for 1 semester of professional experience is £1,333.33, for 2 semesters of professional experience is £2,666.67, and for 3 semesters of professional experience is £4,000.
Professional experience may also be subject to additional costs, visa requirements being met, subject to availability and/or competitive application. Professional experience opportunities are not guaranteed but you will benefit from the support of our Talent Team in trying to find and secure an opportunity. Find out more about the professional experience option.
We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course modules may be updated.
How you'll learn
Teaching methods include:
- Lectures
- Seminars
- Tutorials
- Presentations
- Group projects
- Workshops
- Practical laboratory sessions
This course can be offered on a part-time basis. Whilst we would like to give you all the information about our part-time offering here, it is tailored for each course each year depending on the number of part-time applicants. Therefore, the part-time teaching arrangements vary. Request further information about part-time study.
Teaching contact hours
Part of university life is undertaking self-directed learning. Across the course of the week you will have non ‘taught’ time that allows you to work independently to apply the skills you have learnt in taught or facilitated sessions to your projects or assignment briefs. This is particularly important in the school of art and design as it allows you to put into practice making in workshop and studio spaces.
This self-directed learning allows you to monitor and self-evaluate your development and how best to manage this time to best impact your creative work. SDL is key to designing and making as it is a process that takes discipline and repetition. This mode of learning under pins our community of practice approach.
A third of your time will be taken up with facilitated sessions whether that is group, seminar, lecture, 1-2-1’s and in the remaining 24 hours you will be applying that knowledge to your on going assignments. Every student is different and manage workloads differently so this can vary across students and times of year.
The contact hours may be made up of a combination of face-to-face teaching, individual and group tutorials, and online classes and tutorials.
As an innovative and enterprising institution, the university may seek to utilise emerging technologies within the student experience. For all courses (whether on-campus, blended, or distance learning), the university may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via online technologies and methods.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are prepared for courses due to start in or after the 2022/2023 academic year to be delivered in a variety of forms. The form of delivery will be determined in accordance with Government and Public Health guidance. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.
Assessment
This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which will vary depending upon the module.
Assessment methods include:
- Group work
- Presentations
- Portfolio
- Projects
- Coursework
- Individual Assignments
The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.
Entry requirements
Fees and funding
2022/23 tuition fees.
Student | Full-time | Part-time |
---|---|---|
UK | £10,600 | £14,600 (with prof. experience) per year | Request fee information |
International | £16,950 | £19,350 (with prof. experience) per year | Not available |
For advice and guidance on tuition fees3 and student loans visit our Postgraduate Finance page.
We offer a range of International scholarships to students all over the world. For more information, visit our International Scholarships page.
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How do you know if you need to pay UK or international tuition fees?
We carry out an initial fee status assessment based on the information you provide in your application. Your fee status determines your tuition fees, and what financial support and scholarships may be available to you. The rules about who pays UK (home) or international (overseas) fees for higher education courses in England are set by the government's Department for Education. The regulations identify all the different categories of student who can insist on paying the home rate. The regulations can be difficult to understand, so the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) has provided fee status guidance to help you identify whether you are eligible to pay the home or overseas rate.
If you meet all the criteria required by any one category, including any residence requirements, your institution must charge you the home rate. You only need to find one category that you fit into.
Facilities
The Faculty of Arts and Humanities is joining two of our school’s completely refurbished Art and Design buildings and adding a range of new facilities, which is planned to full open in 2023. These will include a hyper studio designed for cross-disciplinary projects; immersive studios with cutting-edge virtual reality and mixed-reality technologies4. Our aim is to offer you sector-leading facilities in a unique environment.

Games Technology lab
Our gaming lab is a technological paradise, equipped with high-end gaming PCs that have all of the industry-standard software necessary for your course4. It also houses virtual reality game development and motion capture technology.

Printing Studio
We have print pressers dating back to when we first started as Coventry School of Art and Design back in 1843. This studio consists of two studio spaces for all printing needs from screen printing to etching.

Arts and Humanities Building
We are currently in the process of a major redevelopment of our Faculty of Arts and Humanities buildings. The building will be open to the public, as well as students, and will feature an expansive gallery space.
Careers and opportunities
Upon successful completion, you will be able to:
- Demonstrate through practice, an advanced understanding of the creative production of animation and illustration genres.
- Analyse problems of a creative nature and provide appropriate solutions.
- Describe, interpret and evaluate artefacts, artworks, designs and events from a range of critical perspectives, taking account of the context of their production, consumption and critical positioning.
- Research and synthesise information to make presentations.
- Prepare a working brief in keeping with the creative business practices associated with the field.
- Apply with a high degree of confidence and mastery the conceptual and practical elements of hybrid techniques as appropriate.
- Participate in, and engage with practice surrounding new and traditional media.
- Engage creatively when applying differing and various media and techniques in the pursuit of a successful answer to client/brief requirements.
- Engage with the needs of a client which aids both client and practitioner to create a successful brief.
National and international graduate career prospects are many and varied and include education, curation, film and television, games disciplines, print and publishing, animation, film, scientific and technical illustration, storyboarding and character generation in 2D and 3D for traditional and emergent media.
We help you develop a wide range of transferrable skills associated with the use of information gathering, communication technology, professional practice, time management, project management and self-promotion. This could open up career opportunities that include education, television production and web-based media. You may also wish to continue your studies at PhD level or to establish a freelance business.
Where our graduates work
Some of our recent graduates have gone on to work in games-based, scientific, televisual and educational areas.
How to apply
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UK students
To apply to study for a postgraduate course at Coventry University, you can apply online.
For further support or more information about your course get in touch with us today.
Chat with our admissions team
Complete our contact form.
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International students
Full-time international students applying to start in September should apply directly to the university. Read our application pages to find out your next steps to apply.
How to applyFor further support for international applicants applying for postgraduate degree view our International hub.
You can also download our International guide which contains lots of useful information about our courses, accommodation and tips for travel.
Get in touch with us today for further advice and guidance.
Chat with our admissions team.
Complete our contact form.
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Disclaimers
1Accreditations
The majority of our courses have been formally recognised by professional bodies, which means the courses have been reviewed and tested to ensure they reach a set standard. In some instances, studying on an accredited course can give you additional benefits such as exemptions from professional exams (subject to availability, fees may apply). Accreditations, partnerships, exemptions and memberships shall be renewed in accordance with the relevant bodies’ standard review process and subject to the university maintaining the same high standards of course delivery.
2UK and international opportunities
Please note that we are unable to guarantee any UK or International opportunities (whether required or optional) such as internships, work experience, field trips, conferences, placements or study abroad opportunities and that all such opportunities may be subject to additional costs (which could include, but is not limited to, equipment, materials, bench fees, studio or facilities hire, travel, accommodation and visas), competitive application, availability and/or meeting any applicable travel COVID and visa requirements. To ensure that you fully understand the visa requirements, please contact the International Office.
3Tuition fees
The University will charge the tuition fees that are stated in the above table for the first Academic Year of study. The University will review tuition fees each year. For Home Students, if Parliament permit an increase in tuition fees, the University may increase fees for each subsequent year of study in line with any such changes. Note that any increase is expected to be in line with inflation.
For International Students, we may increase fees each year but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation. If you defer your course start date or have to extend your studies beyond the normal duration of the course (e.g. to repeat a year or resit examinations) the University reserves the right to charge you fees at a higher rate and/or in accordance with any legislative changes during the additional period of study.
4Facilities
Facilities are subject to availability. Due to the ongoing restrictions relating to COVID-19, some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) may vary from those advertised and may have reduced availability or restrictions on their use.
Student Contract
By accepting your offer of a place and enrolling with us, a Student Contract will be formed between you and the university. A copy of the 2022/23 contract can be found here. The Contract details your rights and the obligations you will be bound by during your time as a student and contains the obligations that the university will owe to you. You should read the Contract before you accept an offer of a place and before you enrol at the university.
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