Get degree ideas using our A level explorer tool

Graphic Communication (including Year 0)

Entry requirements


A level

C,C

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

24

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DM

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

MMP

UCAS Tariff

64

You may also need to…

Present a portfolio

About this course


Course option

4years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Graphic arts

**OVERVIEW**

Graphic Communication at Norwich University of the Arts is a forward-facing contemporary brand communications degree in which you will design brands and visual identities, advertising campaigns and digital communications including websites, apps, and motion, film and animation.
Typography, copywriting, imagery, motion and print applications lie at the heart of all your work. The course recognises that fact that we interact with brands and their products and services largely through digital interfaces, so the work you do will involve designing for screen as well as print environments. As such, this course is fundamentally at the centre of the wider graphic design industry.

**YEAR 0**

This course includes a Year 0, which promotes developing practical, technical and creative skills and confidence. Building on your prior experience, you will be introduced to some of our workshops to assist your skill development, with an increasing emphasis on professional standards and independent study. The course places emphasis on your personal commitment to study, while supporting you in your progression.

**KEY FEATURES**

- Share your first year with other graphics students, and continue to work alongside each other, allowing for a unique cross fertilisation of knowledge, skills and experience

- Develop skills in typography, layout, photography, motion graphics, copywriting, screen design, design research and idea generation

- Become adept at understanding and deciphering a brief, researching and generating ideas, problem-solving, developing the most successful concept, and executing and presenting the final work

- Create clever ideas-based solutions for organisations and brands, premium food and drink packaging, design for good/change and campaigns that aim to address the problems we face in the world

- Your timetable will be punctuated by regular industry talks from some of the highest profile designers, studios and agencies, anywhere in the world

- Participate in workshops and classes run by external professionals, undertake project briefs initiated and taught by designers from industry, and enter national and international design competitions judged by the design industry

- Engage with industry through portfolio reviews and surgeries, talks from practising alumni focused on portfolio development and employability, interview practice and graduate portfolio showcase events

- You will have the opportunity to create a range of employment focused tools. By the time you conclude the course you will have a professional portfolio and a strong sense of where you want to work within the industry.

**YOUR FUTURE**

Nearly all designers must collaborate with others; even sole traders need to work with clients and suppliers, and of course working within any sort of agency set-up requires that you can work alongside others. Therefore, we provide opportunities for you to develop a set of professional and transferable skills such as teamwork, time management and project planning.
Students from Graphic Communication have been incredibly successful, receiving multiple awards from D&AD New Blood Awards (arguably the most prestigious student design competition in the world), the YCN Awards, Creative Conscience Awards and Dragon Rouge Firestarters.
Students have found employment at some of the most prestigious design agencies including Superunion, Magpie, Weirdo, Tommy, Accept & Proceed, Pentagram, Sunday, Paul Belford and many, many more.
Graduates often start their careers as junior designers, but some have found other roles that they are equally equipped to work within including account/client management, design strategy and user experience design.

**OUR STUDENTS’ WORK**

Explore our online Graduate Showcase – celebrating the very best Norwich University of the Arts graduate work. Scroll each reel to explore at **nuagradshowcase.com**

Modules

You can find more information about the content of the BA (Hons) Graphic Communication (including Year 0) course at www.nua.ac.uk/4-year-degrees/

Assessment methods

The University assesses you through the coursework you produce as you complete each unit. Each unit will require you to present a portfolio of work which may include finished pieces of work, written work, your research, and a reflective journal which allows you to evaluate your learning and highlight your strengths and areas for further development. You can find out more information about our assessment methods at www.nua.ac.uk/assessment/

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£18,000
per year
International
£18,000
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Norwich University of the Arts

Department:

Communication Design

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

75%
Graphic arts

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Design studies

Teaching and learning

79%
Staff make the subject interesting
82%
Staff are good at explaining things
82%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
81%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

77%
Library resources
85%
IT resources
80%
Course specific equipment and facilities
64%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

94%
UK students
6%
International students
21%
Male students
79%
Female students
76%
2:1 or above
5%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
B
B

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Design studies

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£17,000
med
Average annual salary
92%
med
Employed or in further education
46%
low
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

33%
Design occupations
14%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
9%
Information technology and telecommunications professionals

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Design studies

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£14k

£14k

£18k

£18k

£20k

£20k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Share this page

This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here