Communication Design

Entry requirements

Applicants should normally have a minimum of a 2:2 honours degree in a relevant design discipline such as graphic design, interaction design, illustration, photography, film, fashion communication, advertising, animation or similar studio-based disciplines.

Applicants with appropriate work experience and/or a relevant professional qualification will be considered.

Applicants are required to submit an online portfolio with their application.

Months of entry

September

Course content

This MA in Communication Design is a timely response to the changing role and increasing worth of communication design. As we move further into a world of positions and services rather than slogans and artefacts, this master's will prepare you for an innovative and exciting career.

Our distinctive repertoire of research themes and live collaborative briefs will provide you with the opportunity to challenge, change and make a positive impact on social, environmental and economic issues.

The programme’s focus on issue-based design research and cutting-edge practice acknowledges the increasing complexity and convergent nature of contemporary design practice. You will explore and address complex challenges by drawing on skills and expertise honed by an increasing awareness and knowledge of approaches and methods used in a range of related disciplines. We will cover ground such as graphic design, interaction design, branding, information design,typography, image-making, user experience design (UX) and human computer interface (HCI).

You will learn through studio-based projects, working collaboratively with your fellow students, with our research-active staff and with a diverse range of external partners. For your final project you can choose a theme and a collaborator that inspires you, giving you a unique opportunity to make a positive impact on a social or environmental area which you are truly passionate about.

You will graduate with a firm grounding in the advanced theory, practice and professionalism that underpin modern day communication design. In the process you will develop a critical awareness of how communication design both shapes and is shaped by the forces of social, technological and economical change.

We have in the past run collaborative briefs with creative agencies such as Wieden and Kennedy, R/GA and Us Two, multinationals such as Virgin Money, Sage and Microsoft and voluntary sector organisations such as The Cyrenians, Newcastle Vision Support and Fulfilling Lives.

You will be ready for employment, entrepreneurship or doctoral research within areas as diverse as graphic design, interaction design, UX design, service design, product innovation, art direction, branding, publishing and information design.