Graphic Communication
Our MA Graphic Communication is an ideal opportunity to develop your skills and interests by exploring the creative issues and technical aspects of graphic design today.
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The practical element of this graphic design masters is strengthened by an enhanced critical understanding of contemporary professional design debates, issues, and trends, plus a greater understanding of research and how to apply them effectively.
DESIGNED FOR
The course provides you with an opportunity to grow your existing design skills to a highly accomplished level and interests by exploring the creative issues and technical aspects of graphic design today. For designers working in industry, it offers a platform for career development by revising, developing, and updating your skills.
Career Paths
- Graphic Designer
- Campaign and Marketing
- Motion Graphics Designer
- Brand Strategist
- Education
Skills taught
- Advances understanding of working practices
- Awareness of sustainability and diversity
- Analyse, evaluate, organise and manage creative projects
- Develop digital skills
- Ability to encourage critical engagement with approaches to creative practice
- Advanced understanding of business practice
Course Highlights
Module Overview
This degree is based at USW’s purpose-built campus, in the creative centre of Cardiff. Our MA Graphic Communication is an ideal opportunity to develop your skills and interests by exploring the creative issues and technical aspects of graphic design today. For designers working in industry, it offers a platform for career development by revising, developing, and updating your skills.
Graphic Communication Principles
In this module, you will gain an advanced understanding of the methodologies, principles, skills and working practices involved in designing for branding/identity in graphic communication.
Professional Design Practice
Develops an advanced understanding of the skills and theories of business practice in a
range of design business environments. Scrutiny is given to the social, economic, and
political factors effecting decisions made within the design industry. The entrepreneurial
aspects of contemporary Design Practice involved in starting up and running a small design consultancy or freelance design practice are.
Research and Practice in the Creative Industries
To encourage a critical engagement with approaches to creative practice, and with ideas, debates, and issues in the creative and cultural industries.
Graphic Communication Applications
Engenders an innovative and creative approach to the design process for graphic
communication artefacts. It will develop your understanding and skills in producing graphic communication design work for production.
Graphic Design Projects
The module seeks to provide opportunity for collaborative work between cohorts, awards, and organisations in differing locations working on common projects. You will engage critically with current practice, research, and advanced scholarship in relation to the creation of a coherent body of creative work. Develop innovative original visual solutions negotiating unpredictable situations, complex problems within the context of production.
Final Major Projects
In this module, you will be given the opportunity to demonstrate the application of highly
advanced level graphic communication design skills to a challenging and complex problem with autonomy. You will also employ the Graphic Communication Design process of research, development, visualisation, production, presentation, and evaluation in the completion of a complex major design task.
ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
A good Honours degree in a relevant discipline, or an appropriate professional qualification, or HND/HNC and appropriate experience. UK applicants will be interviewed with their portfolio. Part-time students are usually required to be practising professionals. Relevant subjects include, but are not limited to, Art/Fine Art, Design, Graphics, Illustration, Art History, 3D Design, Fashion Design/Textiles, Interior Design, Advertising, Design Marketing, Animation, Game Art, Web Design, Fashion Promotion, or any subject that uses creative conceptual thought as part of its main process.
Equivalent accredited international qualifications are acceptable. International students need to supply a CD or DVD of their work, or a link to their personal website, to evidence their ability. Commitment to study will be considered. Where possible, video-conferencing, Skype or other communication will be used to contact you.
International applications welcomed:
We welcome international applications with equivalent qualifications of our entry requirements. For more details related to your country of residence please view our dedicated country pages.
English language requirements
International applicants will need to have achieved an overall of IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component/TOEFL 72 overall and a minimum of 18 in reading, 17 in listening, 20 in speaking and 17 in writing or equivalent.
Equivalents can be located on our English Language pages.
If you have previously studied through the medium of English IELTS might not be required, please visit our country specific page for further details. If your country is not featured, please contact us.
If you do not meet the English entry criteria please visit our Pre-Sessional course pages.
Contextual offers
We may make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (where you live and the school or college that you attended for example), your experiences and individual circumstances (as a care leaver, for example). This is referred to as a contextual offer and we receive data from UCAS to support us in making these decisions.
USW prides itself on its student experience and we support our students to achieve their goals and become a successful graduate. This approach helps us to support students who have the potential to succeed and who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university.
We're here to help
Whether you a have a question about your course, fees and funding, the application process or anything else, there are plenty of ways you can get in touch and we'd to talk to you. You can contact our friendly admissions team by phone, email or chat to us online.
Fees and Funding
Additional Costs
As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.
Media Loans
You can hire a range of equipment, for your assignments and practical work, for free from our Media Loans facility.
Media LoansCourse Highlights
How you'll learn
Assessment on the MA takes variety of forms to enrich and structure your learning
experience, including practical projects, presentations, and written work.
Teaching staff
Dr Rachel Grainger (Course Leader/Senior Lecturer),
Emma Marshman (Academic Subject Manager/Principal Lecturer),
Ryan Preece Senior Lecturer (Senior Lecturer),
Stephen Leadbetter (Lecturer).
Placements
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Facilities
Cardiff Campus offers Green Screen Capture Studio, 3D Printing facilities, laser cutting
machines, photography studios and printers. Our studios are equipped with the latest Macs with Apple Silicon, specialist software (Adobe Creative Cloud, Cinema 4D and Figma), as well as Wacom Graphics Tablets. Specialist equipment can also be borrowed from our student equipment loans services.