Graphic Design BA (Hons)
Course Code
UCAS Code: W211
International Code: AHU055
Location
Coventry University (Coventry)
Study mode
Full-time
Part-time
Sandwich
Duration
3 years full-time
4 years sandwich
Up to 6 years part-time
Start date
September 2022
January 2023
Course overview
Study level: Undergraduate
The future graphic designer is curious, empathetic, responsible, knowledgeable, and technically adaptable. Coventry University’s Graphic Design BA (Hons) course challenges and guides you to become just that.
- This course shows you the skills and knowledge you need to become an independent designer with a conscience and boundless imagination. You can explore your own passions, adapt to changing briefs and understand the needs of diverse audiences.
- With an ethos of experimentation, critical thinking, community and vocation, this course aims to encourage you to explore creative freedom and mediums, techniques and technologies.
- We have a supportive network of staff, students, alumni, clients and industry guests to help you visualise research-informed concepts and innovative design strategies.
- Your aims will be to develop a strong portfolio of work, and proactively define and pursue your own interests and long-term goals.

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 study this course
The course exposes you to a wide range of design contexts and outputs, giving you an holistic approach to graphic design whether you are a generalist or specialist. The purpose of the course is to teach you fundamental design skills and experience a range of design contexts. In turn, you will have the knowledge to develop your specialist skills in line with your personal creative identity.
- The School of Art and Design is an ‘Adobe Partner by Design’, as well as being an Adobe Outstanding Centre of Excellence.
- Current, excellent links with industry, many of whom in the past have offered employment, placements or professional guidance to our students, like IBM, Opus Books and Design Bridge.
- Access to a network of practitioners through our Creative Voices speakers programme and regular studio visits, both local and international. Past speakers include Craig Oldham, Anthony Burrill and Jonathan Barnbrook. Previous studio visits include Pearlfisher, AKQA, Design Bridge, Kontrapunkt, Pentagram and JKR.
- Opportunity to participate in self-funded study trips abroad* to places like Cyprus, Finland and Australia, as well as Holland and China as part of shorter cultural trips.
- Strong track record of student success in national and international competitions. In recent years, these have included: first prize and runners-up for the Penguin Student Design Awards book cover design competition; a D&AD Yellow Pencil and ‘Best of the Year’ commendations; nominations for YCN.
- Opportunities to work collaboratively with Coventry University Graphic Design students based in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia.
Coventry University is ranked among the 20 best universities in the country for Design and Crafts
Guardian University Guide 2021
Accreditation and Professional Recognition

Adobe
As part of our extensive skills development, we offer you the chance to take Adobe accredited modules as part of the university’s Add+vantage scheme. Assessed by exams, this training will give you official Adobe accreditation in whichever software you’ve elected to study, providing a valuable addition to your CV, which is sure to enhance your employability.
The Add+vantage modules are accredited by Adobe and you can opt into them. However, the course itself is not accredited.
Graphic Design student Fiona Cheung talks through the preparations her course are making for the 2018 Degree Shows.
What you'll study
On this course, we teach within a framework that takes into account the multi-faceted roles a graphic designer might perform. Be it a storyteller, a problem solver or a persuasive strategist, the course allows you to explore these roles through a wide variety of projects along four main threads of inquiry: Narrative & Time, Systems & Information, Strategy & Direction and Personal Development Planning.
Cumulatively, these four branches of learning and their respective modules, make up the full course curriculum and celebrate the course’s key pillars: experimentation, community, vocation and critical thinking. Therefore, we’ll help you discover your individual style as you engage in creative play and begin defining your personal design identity; you’ll explore technologies and materials and get the chance to use a variety of digital and traditional making workshops to visualise your ideas; you’ll engage with industry through live client-led projects and through simulated projects, including competition briefs; and you will underpin your entire design journey in critical investigation of theories and research. In all modules, you are encouraged to explore lateral thinking, develop the capacity to advocate for your work and take risks in a safe environment.
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
You can study this course for three years full-time, and four to six years part-time. In a typical teaching week, you will have approximately 13 ‘contact’ hours of teaching. This includes a combination of:
- medium group teaching: workshops, seminars and lectures
- small group teaching: seminar, critiques and tutorials
- studio practice and bookable workshop access
The contact hours may be made up of a combination of face-to-face teaching, individual and group tutorials, and online activities*.
The School of Art and Design often provides opportunities to engage in external or collaborative activities such as competition/Industry briefs and speakers beyond your course studies. We strongly encourage you to take advantage of these opportunities to support your learning journey.
Assessment
Our teaching and learning strategy is based around four key pillars:
Community - taking part in collaborative projects, international trips (previous destinations include Berlin, Amsterdam, Copenhagen) and global studio visits.
Vocation - positive graduate outcomes through employment or entrepreneurship.
Experimentation - expression, play and experiments are serious components on the course.
Critical Thinking - research methods, design writing and critiques.
Job ready
On successful completion, you will be able to:
- demonstrate your accountability, adaptability and resilience to practice within continuously changing diverse cultural contexts at a professional and at a socially engaged level.
- demonstrate ownership, engagement, initiative and self-awareness of your work.
- work independently and collaboratively with professionalism.
- present and advocate work effectively and competently to a variety of audiences, demonstrating your conceptual, visual, oral and interpersonal skills.
- practise critical thinking through design development by applying sustained methods of research, investigation, analysis and interpretation.
- develop work which reflects relevant skills, including context, stakeholder expectations, environmental factors and socio-cultural norms.
- employ convergent and divergent thinking, speculative inquiry, experimentation and risk-taking in the processes of observation, investigation, visualisation and making.
- effectively communicate your sustained creative and conceptual design outputs using appropriate tools, technologies and materials.
- apply key design theories and techniques in the control of form and content.
International experience opportunities
There are opportunities for exchange with students on a similar course in overseas universities. For example, second and final-year students may have opportunities to visit an international university as part of their studies, and European cultural visits will be offered to all students in all years*.
Throughout the course, graphic design projects are set with an international focus, enhancing your global experience and broadening your mindset. Students will also engage in Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) projects with partner institutions and other international universities around the world*.
Entry requirements
Fees and funding
2022/23 Tuition fees
Student | Full time | Part time |
---|---|---|
UK | £9,250 per year | Not available |
International | £18,050 per year | Not available |
For advice and guidance on tuition fees and student loans visit our Undergraduate Finance page and see The University’s Tuition Fee and Refund Terms and Conditions.
We offer a range of International scholarships to students all over the world. For more information, visit our International Scholarships page.
Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessments, facilities and support services. There may be additional costs not covered by this fee such as accommodation and living costs, recommended reading books, stationery, printing and re-assessments should you need them. Find out what's included in your tuition costs.
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. These will include a hyper studio designed for cross-disciplinary projects; immersive studios with cutting-edge virtual reality and mixed-reality technologies. Our aim is to offer you sector-leading facilities in a unique environment.
You’ll also be able to access specialised photographic material including photographic studios through the university’s renting scheme. You will be encouraged to use our spaces and facilities to explore multiple materials, techniques and equipment, pushing the boundaries of visual communication. For example, you might design a brand-new font in Illustrator, make it in wood on the latest laser-cutter, print it on a 150-year-old hand-operated press, then scan it and animate it in After Effects.

Print-making workshops
Our print-making space features silk-screen printing, relief printing and etching facilities that you can use to generate artwork for your graphic design projects. (Location: Delia Derbyshire Building)

Letterpress workshop
Our letterpress workshop provides the opportunity to typeset using authentic metal and wooden type, and print your text on an original handpress.
(Location: Delia Derbyshire Building).

Software suites
Our studios are equipped with the latest Adobe software, meaning you have cutting-edge digital tools with which to design print or multimedia products. (Location: Delia Derbyshire Building).
Careers and opportunities
On graduation, you have the option to continue your study by applying for postgraduate study or setting yourself up as a design consultant, independent practitioner or as part of a studio collective. You could pursue careers, both freelance and in-house, across a wide range of disciplines within the contemporary creative industries or all manner of professional service organisations—from publishing to advertising, education to local government.
We are committed to preparing you for your future career. The university's Talent Team provides a wide range of support services to help you plan and prepare.
Where our graduates work
Graduates from this course have gone on to provide graphic design services for a number of well-known companies including: the Mill, Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, IBM, Springetts Brand Design, Interbrand, Scholastic, and Havas.
Further study
You can choose to continue your studies at Coventry University with our Graphic Design MA. You may be entitled to an alumni discount on your fees if you decide to extend your time with us by progressing from undergraduate to postgraduate study.
What our alumni say
Staff show care and concern for not only our well-being but for the immediate and eventual future of their students. This translates to better performance due to one-on-one tutorship and advice.

How to apply
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UK Students
Full-time students applying to start in September should apply for this course through UCAS. Part-time students should apply directly to the university. Read our application pages to find out your next steps to apply.
For further support or more information about your course get in touch with us today.
Chat with our admissions team
Complete our contact form.
-
International Students
Full-time 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 an undergraduate 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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Disclaimer
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 2021/22 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.
Tuition fees
The tuition fee for the course that is stated on the course webpage and in the prospectus for the first year of study will apply. We will review our tuition fees each year. For UK and EU students, if Parliament permit an increase in tuition fees, we 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. Following the UK’s exit from the European Union, EU students should be aware that there may be a change to UK laws following the UK’s exit, this may change their student status, their eligibility to study part time, and/or their eligibility for student finance. We will act in accordance with the UK’s laws in force in relation to student tuition fees and finance from time to time.
For International students the tuition fee that is stated on the course webpage and in the prospectus for the first year of study will apply. We will review our tuition fees each year. For international students, we may increase fees for each subsequent year of study but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation.
Accreditations
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.
Facilities
Facilities mentioned on this page may not be relevant for every course. Due to the ongoing restrictions relating to COVID-19, some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) and some non-academic offerings (particularly in relation to international experiences), may vary from those advertised and may have reduced availability or restrictions on their use.
Placements and study abroad opportunities
Please note that we are unable to guarantee any placement or study abroad opportunities and that all such opportunities may be subject to additional costs (e.g. travel, visas and accommodation etc.), competitive application, availability and/or meeting any applicable visa requirements. To ensure that you fully understand the requirements in this regard, please contact the International Office for further details if you are an EU or International student.
Additional costs
This course may incur additional costs associated with any field trips, placements or work experience, study abroad opportunities or any other opportunity (whether required or optional), which could include (but is not limited to), equipment, materials, bench fees, studio or facilities hire, travel, accommodation and visas).