Graphic Design

Graphic design is the visual discipline through which ideas, information, and identities are communicated. It encompasses typography, image-making, layout, branding, user interface design, motion graphics, and the full range of visual problem-solving that underpins how organisations present themselves and how information reaches audiences across print, screen, and physical environments. Good graphic design is not just aesthetically pleasing; it is strategic, communicating a message to a specific audience through deliberate visual choices, and it requires both creative ability and rigorous analytical thinking.

At the University of the West of England in Bristol, this three-year full-time degree is taught in a studio environment with professional-standard facilities. You will develop your design skills through practical projects that focus on the real-world skills needed for a career in the field, working with the tools, processes, and critical frameworks that professional designers use. Bristol's creative sector is one of the most active outside London, with significant strengths in advertising, animation, digital media, and publishing, and the degree benefits from its location in and connections with this community.

The programme does not include a placement year, keeping the three years focused on developing design ability and critical understanding.

Graphic design graduates work across the full range of visual communications roles. Branding and identity, digital design and user experience, editorial design, packaging, advertising, motion graphics, and type design are all areas where graduates find roles. Many work in design agencies, in-house design teams, technology companies, media organisations, and cultural institutions.

Others establish freelance practices, building client relationships across different sectors. The entrepreneurial dimension of graphic design is significant, and many graduates combine employed and freelance work throughout their careers. Postgraduate study in graphic design, typography, or design research is a further option.

The typical entry tariff is 152 points.