BA (Hons) Illustration

On this course, you’ll cultivate a variety of conceptual and image-making methods by dissecting and tackling the essential ‘ingredients’ of illustration and how you might apply them to your own creative practice. You’ll be challenged to cultivate a culturally curious attitude while being mindful of the ethical responsibilities that accompany the field of illustration.

You’ll become an effective practitioner in the areas you feel most connected to, informed by the expert experience of your tutors, who work in those fields:

• Editorial
  

• Advertising
  

• Narrative
  

• Books
  

• Research

You will be challenged to develop authentic ways of working, assuming agency and autonomy as an image-maker and learning what this means to you as a practitioner.

You’ll cultivate conceptual and image-making methods by dissecting and tackling the essential ‘ingredients’ of illustration and applying them to your own creative practice.

You’ll approach independent projects with a critical mindset, considering the purpose, rationale, production and application of your own original work.

You will be based in a spacious and naturally lit studio in the heart of our seaside city, where you’ll build your own unique blend of skills and attributes and grow into a well-rounded practitioner.

Within this supportive studio environment, you’ll delve into your subject both individually and as part of collaborative, interdisciplinary teams. We’ll inspire you to engage with our nurturing, student-led communities across the university, showcasing your final outputs as part of enterprising collectives, pop-up shops and curated exhibitions.

During your time on the course you’ll engage with input from industry partners from around the world, including experienced illustrators Molly Mendoza, Roman Muradov and Tommy Parker, plus art directors, agents and project leaders from Profile Books, Airbnb, The National Trust and NoBrow.

Creative empowerment: You will learn how to make great work, developing your ability to express powerful ideas, evoke emotions, and communicate propositions through illustration. You will create artwork that exceeds what you think you’re capable of.

Professional empowerment: You will learn how to find and get work, building the refined set of skills needed to operate as a practising illustrator. You will become comfortable working with real clients, dealing with money, and maintaining professional relationships.

Personal empowerment: You will learn how to enjoy your work, nurturing your independent creativity, confidence, and fulfilment. Across your time on the course, through compassionate teaching and a studio of peers, you will become more than an illustrator.

Career opportunities include:

• Freelance commercial illustration, focused in, or moving between, areas such as editorial (newspapers and magazines), picture books, branding, technology or advertising
  

• In-house illustration in areas such as packaging, technology or retail
  

• Graphic design within an agency, studio or as a freelancer
  

• Studio management and art direction within an agency, studio, or larger creative organisation
  

Further study and qualifications, with options to move into creative education or a more specific creative niche

BA (Hons) Illustration students responded especially positively in the National Student Survey 2026 to questions around creative exploration, teaching and timely feedback.

In the NSS 2026, 95.7% of responding students answered positively to the question “To what extent have you had the chance to explore ideas and concepts in depth?” and 95.7% answered positively to “How often have you received assessment feedback on time?”

91.3% of responding students answered positively to the question “How good are teaching staff at explaining things?”