The School of Communication Design

Graphic Design BA (Hons)

UCAS Code - W214
Location - Falmouth Campus
Length - 3 years Full-time

They have 100% student satisfaction rate in the 2013 National Student Survey and their award-winning graduates and staff prove they deliver a learning experience that's one of the most respected springboards to graduate and career success in the country.

Graphic Design at Falmouth is about great ideas and building the skills to make and deliver them. We help you develop as an individual so you can see the world with fresh eyes and have the confidence to realise your aspirations. You'll leave Falmouth equipped to inspire change, ready for a global industry with ever-evolving boundaries and with a passion for design rooted in innovation.

How is the course taught

Weekly group tutorials, seminars and regular individual tutorials will provide the platform for feedback; presenting work in progress, developing your confidence in discussing your work and contextualising the role of design within society.

Year 1

In the first year you are supported by our course team to establish the core building blocks and skills of your practice as a graphic designer. You'll learn how to go about designing and how to tell a story visually, with workshops, assignments, peer critiques and work-in-progress reviews to build your confidence and capabilities. Alongside this, lectures and seminars from our own staff and expert visiting speakers boost your understanding of graphic language and communication.

Importantly you'll begin not only to understand the subject in more depth, but also gain ability in individual and collaborative working practice. This supports your development as a designer and also gives you the study skills you need to take full advantage of your learning experience with us.

Year 2

The central part of our course introduces you to the professional world in greater depth through skills and project-orientated tasks, to help prepare you for your final year before graduation. You'll begin to grow more deeply as a designer, building individual reflection on professional ambitions.

You'll visit studios in London or Amsterdam, attend designer-led workshops and visit agencies such as Pentagram, GBH, Fitch, Mother and Trapped in Suburbia, and have the chance to gain direct industry experience with placements in leading design organisations.

Year 3

By the end of your course you'll have explored the many opportunities for subject study, developed independence in terms of character and portfolio, and be ready to launch your career.

This is facilitated through intense project work, directed by tutor support and key industry-facing events. These provide you with an important platform to showcase your work and include exhibiting at the D&AD New Blood exhibition and our own exclusive event at the Royal Society of Arts. These events and our extensive networks of leading design professionals also help you to target studios or postgraduate study to support future ambition.

Finally, you'll complete your dissertation and work with course staff to ready yourself for employment, with professional practice workshops, CV development and interview techniques.

Facilities

The design studios and workshops include:

• Large, open-plan, dedicated design studios
• Woodblock type and basic printmaking facilities
• Central IT facility providing both Mac and PC platforms, industry-standard software and printing facilities
• Extensive library facilities including thousands of books, DVDs and periodicals

Staff

The staff have worked at many of the UK’s leading design practices and for clients, type foundries and companies all over the world, with awards and professional recognition to their names. This is seen as an important component of the course, so students learn from highly engaged staff who are passionate about graphic design and the future of the industry and their subject.

Whilst they all continue their professional practice, they are also engaged with research and outreach projects that help feed knowledge that can be shared in the studio. Some of these include regional community projects with organisations like the Design Council, European Erasmus exchange projects in Germany and international teaching exchanges in Sri Lanka.

Experience you'll get

• Work placement opportunities and top industry guest speakers
• Live project opportunities and external briefs set by designers
• Professional practice workshops
• Industry visits and showcase student events

Study trips

Each year Falmout offer study trips to design agencies for our second year students. Students choose from London or Amsterdam. Some of the regular hosts include:

• The Brand Union, London
• BBH Advertising, London
• Saatchi X, London
• Fitch, London
• NB Studio, London
• The Chase, London
• NBC Universal, London
• Coley Porter Bell, London
• Lewis Moberly, London
• AKQA, London
• Hat-trick Design, London
• 300 Million, London
• The Partners, London
• Design Bridge, London
• Thomas Matthews, London
• Unreal, London
• Purpose, London
• Form, London
• Airside, London
• Pearl Fisher, London
• Brandopus, London
• Pentagram, London
• Lava, Amsterdam
• Trapped in Suburbia, Amsterdam
• Underware, Amsterdam
• Lust, Amsterdam
• Dolly Rogers, Amsterdam
• Silo, Amsterdam
• Sid Lee, Amsterdam
• De Designpolitie, Amsterdam
• FOAM, Amsterdam
• Design Bridge, Amsterdam
• KesselsKrammer, Amsterdam

Careers

• Work as part of a design consultancy
• Set up your own consultancy or work freelance
• Careers in multidisciplinary design consultancies or as specialists within the areas of packaging design, branding, advertising, television graphics, interactivity, exhibition design, magazine and book design, and animation

Graduate destinations

• Graphic designer: Pentagram, The Chase
• Brand designer: Lewis Moberly, Someone
• Packaging designer: Turner Duckworth, Design Bridge, B&B
• Digital designer: the Sunday Times
• Art director: Arnold KLP, Bartle Bogle Hegarty

Work placements

The course works hard to provide work placement opportunities for our students. Here is a selection of  typical work placement design contacts:

• Mytton Williams
• Biles Inc
• Nixon Design
• ASHA
• Smith & Milton
• B&B
• The Partners
• Springetts
• Open Agency
• Bisqit
• Lush Design
• Thomas Matthews
• Brand Union
• Oakwood
• Unreal
• Fitch
• Music
• The Chase
• Lewis Moberly
• Turner Duckworth
• Design Bridge
• Bow & Arrow
• Sparks

Entry Requirements

A typical offer is between 260 and 300 UCAS points, mainly from the A2 level or equivalent Level 3 qualifications or relevant experience.

Due to the creative nature of the University’s courses, applicants will be considered on individual merit and you should contact the admissions team if you are predicted UCAS points outside of this range.

If English is not your first language, you will also be required to have an IELTS score of 6.0 points, or an equivalent English language test, completed within the last two years.

All applicants will be invited to an interview and to present a portfolio of creative work at interview.

The School of Communication Design

Creative Design BA (Hons)

UCAS Code - N561

Location - Falmouth Campus

Length - 3 years full-time

This is one of the first complete Creative Advertising undergraduate degrees in Europe. The syllabus is best suited to individuals driven by ideas, who relish the challenge of embracing new media. Creative Advertising at Falmouth is designed for aspiring creative directors, art directors, copywriters and brand strategists.

This is a full-time practice-based course. It's focused on creative and strategic communication skills, and underpinned with a theoretical understanding of the industry and its contexts. You'll work on live projects (in groups and individually) and participate in study visits.

Year 1

Divided into six modules with an early site visit to select London agencies, the first year introduces you to key concepts and practices in advertising. Apart from creating ads you'll be analysing the way advertising works, learning how to come up with ideas and the craft of copywriting, considering consumer behaviours including relationships with brands, and becoming confident in explaining your ideas. The syllabus is delivered via lectures, seminars, workshops and smaller tutorials.

Year 2

This is the time when you begin to build your all-important final portfolio, showcasing fully integrated campaigns. Over six modules you'll work on real agency briefs, invent new product and brand concepts, and look at the strategy behind advertising campaigns and the use of Google and social media in the context of advertising.

The second term is your chance to gain valuable work experience through an internship during the April holiday. Supported by your tutors and the University's work placement team, you can apply the skills you've acquired in the workplace. It's an opportunity that has been pivotal in differentiating our graduates when they enter the world of work.

Year 3                                                                                                                                                                    The final year is the culmination of all your work. It's your opportunity to combine all the skills you've acquired and present them to industry. Divided into four modules, you'll produce a dissertation project and create a final advertising portfolio to professional standards. There's even a special Advertising Management module to help equip you for when you work in an advertising agency.

All third years have the chance to show their work at the D&AD New Blood exhibition in London, the gold-standard venue which provides the platform to showcase your material, network with creative directors and cement the industry links established throughout your time at Falmouth.

Facilities

• Digital labs, lecture theatres and seminar rooms

• Libraries housing a collection of 140,000 books, 17,000 DVD and video titles, exhaustive electronic and journal resources, and an extensive slide collection

Experience you'll get

• Live projects with local and national organisations

• London study visits to spend time in leading London agencies

• Input from key industry figures

• Member of the D&AD

• Member of YCN

• Opportunity to show your work at the D&AD New Blood exhibition upon graduation

• Work placement module in year two

The Media Centre and Library are at your disposal. Specific facilities include:

Staff

All staff on Creative Advertising at Falmouth are either former creative directors or current practitioners. They bring with them industry partnerships with, amongst others: Droga 5, Ogilvy, M&C Saatchi, Poke, VCCP, AMV BBDO and JWT.

Careers

• Work in an advertising agency as a creative, account executive or strategic planner

• Career as a marketing professional

• Work as a freelance consultant

Portfolio career including teaching and postgraduate 

Graduate Destinations

• Art director and copywriter: Table 19
• Copywriter: AMV BBDO
• Art director: Ogilvy & Mather
• Art director: Arcade Advertising, Singapore

Entry Requirements

A typical offer is between 260 and 300 UCAS points, mainly from the A2 level or equivalent Level 3 qualifications or relevant experience.

Due to the creative nature of the University’s courses, applicants will be considered on individual merit and you should contact the admissions team if you are predicted UCAS points outside of this range.

If English is not your first language, you will also be required to have an IELTS score of 6.0 points, or an equivalent English language test, completed within the last two years.

All applicants will be invited to an interview. Applicants will be asked to bring an example of an advertising campaign of their choice and to participate in a creative group brainstorming session at interview.

Falmouth University

Falmouth University is a performance and creative arts establishment based in Cornwall, England. Originally founded as Falmouth School of Art in 1902, today the University is one of the world’s leading international specialist arts institutions. It has campuses running through Falmouth and Penryn offering creative courses in specialisms such as arts, journalism, music, theatre, fashion, textiles, photography and gaming. 

The Falmouth Campus

Falmouth's Penryn Campus

Departments
The Falmouth School of Art
The School of Communication and Design
The Fashion and Textiles Institute
The Institute of Photography
The Academy for Innovation and Research
The Academy for Music and Theatre Arts
The School of Film and Television
The School of Writing and Journalism


Falmouth Town
Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 26,767.

Falmouth Harbour

Falmouth is famous for its harbour. Together with Carrick Roads, it forms the third deepest natural harbour in the world, and the deepest in Western Europe. It is also famous for being the start or finish point of various round-the-world record-breaking voyages, such as those of Sir Francis Chichester and Dame Ellen MacArthur. Falmouth Docks Police enforce the law in the docks.

Falmouth Art Gallery

The Falmouth Art Gallery is a public gallery with a diverse 19th century and 20th century art collection including many notable modern Cornish artists exhibited in four to five seasonal exhibitions a year, as well as a "family friendly and free" community and schools education programme.

Accommodation

As a new full-time foundation student, first year UK, EU or international undergraduate or international postgraduate student, you will be guaranteed a space in university owned, managed or approved accommodation if you apply through by the deadlines (confirmed in Spring 2015).
We offer a variety of room types, at varying costs, allowing you to choose an option that suits your budget.

Approximately 20% of our rooms are shared occupancy and single rooms are therefore offered on a first come first served basis. Unsurprisingly, we find that many students welcome the opportunity to share in order to make lasting friendships and save money. Our accommodation brochure details your options and is available online from Spring 2015. During periods of high demand, we enter into agreements with approved accommodation providers in Falmouth and Penryn in order to increase the availability of university owned, managed or approved accommodation. In the past, these residences have included The View (New Street Apartments), Montezuma House and Maritime Studios, all located in Falmouth. A small number of rooms are available on campus for second and third year students with exceptional circumstances. Private housing is also available for rent in Falmouth and Penryn, with rents typically in the region of £70-90 per week excluding bills. Our Accommodation Office runs accommodation fairs and other services to help you find private sector accommodation.

Outside the Falmouth Accomodation

Inside the Falmouth Accomodation

Advertising and Marketing

What is Advertising?

Advertising is a form of marketing communication used to persuade an audience to take or continue some action, usually with respect to a commercial offering, or political or ideological support.

Advertising agencies handle a broad range of marketing tasks requiring people with experience and ability in overall management and specialized skills. In all agencies, the jobs usually fall into five categories:

• Account Management
• Account Planning
• Creative
• Media
• Interactive Marketing

Some of the Major Advertising firms

• Adam & Eve
• Amaze
• Barrington and Johnson Lorains
• Bartle Bogle Hegarty
• BETC London
• Draft FCB
• Fallon
• Intro
• Langland

Creative Advertising

The creative department of an advertising agency is responsible for developing the ideas, images, and words that make up commercials and ads. While many people in the agency contribute to the process, the invention and production of advertising is mainly the responsibility of copywriters and art directors.

The positions include:

Chief Creative Director - Manages the whole creative function of the agency. 

Creative Director - Responsible for the quality of all creative work produced by the agency for all clients. 

Assoc. Creative Director - Supervises and guides the total creative effort of one or more creative groups. 

Creative Supervisor - Integrates art, copy, and production functions and guiding overall creative effort of assigned general advertising creative groups on one or more accounts.

Copywriter - Generates concepts/ideas and highly targeted copy on one or more accounts. May adapt to changes in format, media and/or Clients' strategies.

Art Director - Responsible for the visual creation of general advertising campaigns on one or more accounts. Coordinates the design and reproduction of the copy with the art and production staff. 

Illustrator - Prepares a variety of illustrations for one or more accounts. May design, select layout materials, prepare interpretive drawings from written plans. 

What Positions In Creative Advertising are of interest to me?

The positions of Art Director and Illustrator are of interest to me as I have a big imagination so I could come up with some interesting ideas and concepts. I also enjoy making a visual outcome in response to an idea.

Degree courses that could help me attain these careers:

• Graphic Design
• Fine Art
• Art and Design
• Illustration
• Photography
• Creative Advertising
• Advertising

 

The Careers Fair

On Wednesday 23rd July, the school held a careers fair. This was to give us an insight into the potential universities or colleges we could go to after we leave the school. We also were given the opportunity to meet, participate in workshops and have talks with individuals who have careers in performance and creative industry. We were given a selection of workshops or talks to choose from, but despite the selection i felt most of them that were aimed at VAD students were mainly fashion based. This didn't seem entirely useful to me as I don't wish to take a career path in fashion. In the end I chose a workshop with a lady from Fashion Retail Academy and a creative industries Q&A session with past Brit School students and other individuals working in the industry.

There was a university fair held in the OBIE Theatre, where we had the chance to find out about and meet representatives from universities and colleges that are especially good for the arts. There was a wide variety of schools such as Goldsmiths, LCF, Bath Spa, Ravensbourne, Falmouth and many more. This was very useful as we were able to find out about the schools and the courses first hand from students who attend them. Through talking to some of the university representatives I gained a wider understanding as to what type of course i needed for my favoured career path. We also received prospectus' and dates for open days. The universities I liked the most in order were Falmouth, Bath Spa and Ravensbourne as they each had the courses I was looking for.

Next, we had a talk with a lady from Middlesex University about writing our personal statement. She started of by showing us examples of a good, a mediocre and a bad personal statement. We were given advice and tips on how to write an exceptional personal statement and the do's and don't's of writing one. The Lady gave us the deadlines we needed to meet for our applications and certain requirements such as how many characters and roughly how long it should be.  

The talk was followed by a workshop session with a lady from Fashion Retail Academy. It started out with the lady giving us a brief insight into FRA and to what the school offers. We then moved onto an activity where had to go into groups and make a garment out of paper, using words we picked out of a hat. I enjoyed making the garment and getting creative. However, on a whole I felt that the workshop did not benefit me as i don't intend to pursue a career in fashion.

The day ended with a Q&A session with people who work in the creative industry. There was also former Brit school students there who are now working in the industry. Each of the speakers started by introducing themselves and what they do, also if they were ex Brit students they informed us which strand they were in when attending the school. What I found really useful about this session was how they gained a career in the industry and what they needed to do in order to land the opportunities they did. I also loved the fact there ex Brit students there, as they were once in our shoes and have experienced life after Brit. We told about how they used there time at the school to benefit them in the future and how the school helped them gain success. I found that each if their experiences and stories were all very different but the common link to there success was perseverance and determination.

Overall, I found the day quite helpful when it came to the university fair, the personal statement talk and the Q&A session. They were informative and also helped in making my decision as to what course and potential uni choices. 

Find

Advertising and Marketing

Finding professions it is best for?

 

  Useful websites I found for career prospects

• Advertising Educational Foundation website

   

         http://www.aef.com/industry/careers/9000      

When you first go on to the website it shows the 5 job categories in advertising

Search advertising career options

I clicked on creative and it came up with a table showing the job titles, alternative titles and the job description.

         

•  Prospects

      

         

 

        http://www.prospects.ac.uk/types_of_jobs_advertising_marketing_pr.htm