Top 10 Universities for Graphic Design and Illustration in UK

posted by Imy McNally February 7, 2018

Our Top university courses for Graphic Designers and Illustrators

You have a lot to consider when choosing a university course. Do you want to stay close to family and friends or move further away? Do you want to be in a big city or smaller town? Do you go for the course or the university? Well if you are a keen designer like us, then you want to know our top suggestions for (BA) Graphic Design and (BA) Illustration undergraduate courses.

University of Brighton
www.brighton.ac.uk
Brighton is just bursting with creativity, you’ll find inspiration down almost every street you turn. The University of Brighton offers both an (BA) Illustration and (BA) Graphic Design undergraduate course both with international reputations. The (BA) Illustration and Graphic Design course work closely together to give you a better understanding of the field of work you could be joining. They have dedicated studio space, access to letterpress and book art workshops.

University of Brighton

Nottingham Trent University
www.ntu.ac.uk
Voted university of the year 2017, Nottingham Trent has an ever growing reputation for giving that true university experience as well as providing highly regarded courses. Their (BA) Graphic Design course will allow you to gain skills in illustration, typography, branding and more. They provide a dedicated building of facilities which include print rooms, mac suites, moving image, 3D printing, laser cutting, photographic studios and interactive media.

Nottingham Trent University

Arts University Bournemouth
www.aub.ac.uk
If you do love to be beside the seaside and want specialist equipment at your fingertips then AUB is one of the best. Silkscreen printing, Exposure unit, Etching presses, the list goes on! They also have an extensive list of different design orientated courses, so you’re bound to find one that’s perfect for you.

Arts University Bournemouth

University of the Arts London
www.arts.ac.uk
With six different colleges within University of Arts London at multiple different campuses, you’ll always find a UAL somewhere in London. The beauty of UAL is that no matter which of the colleges you choose you can always use other colleges facilities. Also voted the world’s sixth best university for Art and Design.

University of the Arts London

Loughborough University
www.lboro.ac.uk
Fancy going somewhere out of the city, enjoy a campus lifestyle at Loughborough University. Predominately known for their sports degrees they have become a rising star over the years with their creative degrees. They offer a (BA) Graphic Communication and Illustration degree in one, so you get the best of both worlds. Their facilities include screen printing, printmaking, photography studio, as well as full access to the school of the art facilities.

Loughborough University

Falmouth University
www.falmouth.ac.uk
This university is predominately known for its creative courses. Offering from Acting, Fashion Design, to Gaming Development. Of course, we are most interested in the print side they have to offer and they do offer both (BA) Illustration and (BA) Graphic Design. Each department has dedicated studio and seminar rooms, printmaking workshop, life drawing studio, design lab, photography, audio studio, an extensive library and a dedicated desk space for every student. Falmouth put a strong emphasis on their student mentor scheme which offers all first-year students support from second-year students.

Falmouth University

University of the West of England Bristol
www.uwe.ac.uk
UWE has a strong emphasis on making you industry ready, encouraging placements, internships and traveling abroad for the experience. They have offered a range of print facilities, such as; screen printing, etching, lithography area and relief. Both the (BA) Graphic Design course and (BA) Illustration course offer a foundation year as well. They are also having 7 million invested in their design studios and new physical making in 2019.

UWE Bristol

Kingston University London
www.kingston.ac.uk
Kingston will help you gain a good technical knowledge, on the (BA) Illustration course you are also able to choose different modules in order to specialize your interests. They have specialist facilities for printmaking, photography, 3D materials, digital media workshops, benefiting from refurbished studios and workshops. Kingston School of Art is listed sixth in the Good University Guide.

Kingston University London

University of Leeds
www.leeds.ac.uk
Leeds is a Russell Group Universities. They offer a (BA) Graphic and Communication Design course, this course will teach you the fundamentals, to begin with, then they encourage you to develop in your own directions. They provide printmaking studios, laser cutters, and well-equipped studios. They do not offer an illustration course.

University of Leeds

The University of Edinburgh
www.ed.ac.ukEdinburgh aims to produce designers that will challenge the status quo, they claim to encourage students to think outside the box to produce individual powerful work. They provide both academic and live briefs for their (BA) Illustration and (BA) Graphic Design Courses, they also have money being invested in their facilities.