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Graphic Design and Animation BA(Hons)

2024-25 (also available for 2025-26)

It’s not too late to apply for September.
It’s not too late to apply for September.

Start date

16 September 2024

Duration

3 years full-time
4 years inc. placement year

Entry requirements

A Level - BBB-BCC

BTEC - DMM-MMM

See full entry requirements

Places available (subject to change)

96 across a suite of two courses

About the course

Reasons to study

  1. You could enhance your graduate prospects by undertaking a skills-boosting work placement. Alternatively, you might set up your own freelance business through our Enterprise Placement Year.  
  2. Your hard work and achievements will be celebrated at our annual summer degree show – a highlight of the academic year.
  3. You’ll have the opportunity to gain the Adobe Certified Associate accreditation at no extra cost, giving you a competitive edge in the job market.

If you’re keen to learn core creative industry skills – from the handmade to the digital, including 2D and 3D concept realisations – our Graphic Design and Animation BA(Hons) course is designed to set you up to succeed.

Along the way, we’ll support and inspire you to experiment creatively, to help you become a strong visual communication designer. You can also gain a wider understanding of the strategies behind developing your work, gaining skills in:

  • storytelling narratives
  • visual language
  • branding
  • user experience

During this Graphic Design and Animation degree course, our approach closely aligns itself with creative industry practices. It also encourages innovation through collaboration, which will enhance your prospects when you apply for an optional industry placement.

The ambitions and ethos of this course are championed by our students, staff, graduates, and industry partners. It’s vital that you understand how graphic design – both static and motion based – works in the wider world, which is why we work with a range of communication theories and diverse guest speakers. This gives you the chance to understand the factors shaping the industry.

Why study Graphic Design and Animation BA(Hons)

You’ll have the opportunity to learn the techniques and skills to pursue a multimedia design career in the evolving creative industries. From film and advertising to websites and social media, graphic design and animation co-exist across different media channels, including digital, print and moving image.

You could enhance your graduate prospects by undertaking a skills-boosting work placement. Alternatively, you could set up your own freelance business through our Enterprise Placement Year. Your achievements will also be celebrated at our annual summer degree show, too, and you’ll have a competitive edge in the job market, thanks to the chance to gain the Adobe Certified Associate accreditation at no extra cost.

This degree could open the door to a variety of career possibilities, too, in graphic design and animation itself, or in art, illustration or another related subject.

Course detail

Core modules:

Design Process and Production 1

The module will introduce you to the key principles of contemporary professional practice in terms of principles and process. It will focus on the fundamental techniques of production. It will develop your understanding of two- and three-dimensional space and the importance of physical and digital processes to generate and capture your work.

Design Studio 1

This module will introduce you to the creative thinking processes and tools to undertake good quality research in order to identify and fulfil the needs of the client using 2D and 3D Design and their application through project work. Design projects will enable you to explore and develop design proposals using a range of methods, practical skills and specialist knowledge.

Design Theory and Context 1

This module will introduce you to a range of relevant theories for and about design. It will introduce you to discourses and debates relating to the history, influences, production and critical reception of design. It will contextualise these aspects in terms of your discipline providing an overarching understanding of design in general as well as more focused elements pertinent to your design field.

Entry requirements

BBB-BCCat A Level or equivalent.

120-104 UCAS tariff points from a combination of Level 3 qualifications.

Merit at T Level.

DMM-MMM in BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma.

  • Pass in Diploma Foundation Studies in Art and Design combined with A Level or BTEC qualifications, to total an equivalent of 120-104 UCAS tariff points.
  • Access to Higher Education Diploma with 45 Level 3 credits at Merit or above.
  • 120-104 UCAS tariff points from International Baccalaureate qualifications.

Applicants will be invited to attend an Applicant Visit Day, at which you will have the opportunity to present and be given feedback on your portfolio.

If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum for IELTS is 6.0 overall with no element lower than 5.5, or equivalent. Read more about the University’s entry requirements for students outside of the UK on our Where are you from information pages.

Other suitable experience or qualifications will be considered. For further information please see the University's minimum entry requirements.

Placements


The course offers an optional one-year (36 weeks minimum) work placement after the second year, in the UK or abroad. This will give you the opportunity to gain valuable hands-on experience, insight into your chosen career and open up your graduate employment prospects. Our Placement Unit and academic staff have excellent industry links and can support you in applying for and finding your placement(s), as well as during your placement year.

Students within the area of Graphic Design and Animation have previously taken up placement opportunities with companies including: Fantastic Media; Territory Studio – London and Banter Media – Ashton under Lyne.

Alternatively, if you are a student from within the UK, you could consider starting your own small business by applying for the Enterprise Placement Year in conjunction with the University’s Enterprise Team. You’ll have the opportunity to benefit from business advice, mentoring and networking sessions. You can find out more information on the Enterprise Placement Year here.

You can find out more information on placements here.

During my placement year at Airbus Helicopters GmbH in Donauwörth, Germany I created posters, infographics, social media material, assisted other colleagues in creating graphic elements and edited videos. My team were a great mix of people and helped me to develop my skills.

Profile photo of Maria Lynam

Maria Lynam, Graphic Design BA(Hons) final year student

Student Work

A gallery of work by our students and graduates from Graphic Design and Animation. Click on each image to find out more.

Your career


This course aims to help you develop the skills needed in the growing convergence of graphic design and animation. This could enable you to take up roles in new media design, motion graphics, visual effects, brand awareness, digital strategy, user interaction and concept art, for roles such as design director, digital producer, art director, storyboard artist, social strategist, motion designer, digital designer, interaction designer, interface developer, editor or production co-ordinator.Previous students have been on placements and gained employment with Territory Studio (London), Studio NinetyOne (London) and The Mill (USA)**.

*Percentage of our undergraduate students from this course go on to work and/or further study within fifteen months of graduating (HESA Graduate Outcomes 2019/20, UK domiciled, other activities excluded).

**Source: LinkedIn

100% Graduates employed*

Student support

At the University of Huddersfield, you'll find support networks and services to help you get ahead in your studies and social life. Whether you study at undergraduate or postgraduate level, you'll soon discover that you're never far away from our dedicated staff and resources to help you to navigate through your personal student journey. Find out more about all our support services.

Important information

We will always try to deliver your course as described on this web page. However, sometimes we may have to make changes as set out below.

Changes to a course you have applied for

If we propose to make a major change to a course that you are holding an offer for, then we will tell you as soon as possible so that you can decide whether to withdraw your application prior to enrolment.

Cancellation of a course you have applied for

Although we always try and run all of the course we offer, we may occasionally have to withdraw a course you have applied for or combine your programme with another programme if we consider this reasonably necessary to ensure a good student experience, for example if there are not enough applicants to ensure you have a good learning experience. Where this is the case we will notify you as soon as reasonably possible and we will contact you to discuss other suitable courses with us we can transfer your application to. If we notify you that the course you have applied to has been withdrawn or combined, and you do not wish to transfer to another course with us, you may cancel your application and we will refund you any deposits or fees you have paid to us.

Changes to your course after you enrol as a student

We will always try to deliver your course and other services as described. However, sometimes we may have to make changes as set out below:

Changes to option modules

Where your course allows you to choose modules from a range of options, we will review these each year and change them to reflect the expertise of our staff, current trends in research and as a result of student feedback or demand for certain modules. We will always ensure that you have a range of options to choose from and we will let you know in good time the options available for you to choose for the following year.

Major changes

We will only make major changes to the core curriculum of a course or to our services if it is necessary for us to do so and provided such changes are reasonable. A major change in this context is a change that materially changes the services available to you; or the outcomes, or a significant part, of your course, such as the nature of the award or a substantial change to module content, teaching days (part time provision), classes, type of delivery or assessment of the core curriculum.

For example, it may be necessary to make a major change to reflect changes in the law or the requirements of the University’s regulators; to meet the latest requirements of a commissioning or accrediting body; to improve the quality of educational provision; in response to student, examiners’ or other course evaluators’ feedback; and/or to reflect academic or professional changes within subject areas. Major changes may also be necessary because of circumstances outside our reasonable control, such as a key member of staff leaving the University or being unable to teach, where they have a particular specialism that can’t be adequately covered by other members of staff; or due to damage or interruption to buildings, facilities or equipment.

Major changes would usually be made with effect from the next academic year, but this may not always be the case. We will notify you as soon as possible should we need to make a major change and will carry out suitable consultation with affected students. If you reasonably believe that the proposed change will cause you detriment or hardship we will, if appropriate, work with you to try to reduce the adverse effect on you or find an appropriate solution. Where an appropriate solution cannot be found and you contact us in writing before the change takes effect you can cancel your registration and withdraw from the University without liability to the University for future tuition fees. We will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring to another university if you wish to do so.

Termination of course

In exceptional circumstances, we may, for reasons outside of our control, be forced to discontinue or suspend your course. Where this is the case, a formal exit strategy will be followed and we will notify you as soon as possible about what your options are, which may include transferring to a suitable replacement course for which you are qualified, being provided with individual teaching to complete the award for which you were registered, or claiming an interim award and exiting the University. If you do not wish to take up any of the options that are made available to you, then you can cancel your registration and withdraw from the course without liability to the University for future tuition fees and you will be entitled to a refund of all course fees paid to date. We will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring to another university if you wish to do so.

When you enrol as a student of the University, your study and time with us will be governed by a framework of regulations, policies and procedures, which form the basis of your agreement with us. These include regulations regarding the assessment of your course, academic integrity, your conduct (including attendance) and disciplinary procedure, fees and finance and compliance with visa requirements (where relevant). It is important that you familiarise yourself with these as you will be asked to agree to abide by them when you join us as a student. You will find a guide to the key terms here, along with the Student Protection Plan, where you will also find links to the full text of each of the regulations, policies and procedures referred to. You should read these carefully before you enrol. Please note that this information is subject to change and you are advised to check our website regularly for any changes before you enrol at the University. A person who is not party to this agreement shall not have any rights under or in connection with it. Only you and the University shall have any right to enforce or rely on the agreement.

The Office for Students (OfS) is the principal regulator for the University.

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