About BA (hons) Graphic Design in University of Suffolk

Our Graphic Design and Graphic Illustration courses offer you control over your creative direction and career ambitions. Because we teach both degrees together, you are not tied to one study route; for instance, if you develop a passion for illustration you can transfer to Graphic Illustration to study that pathway in much more depth.

Within both courses, projects help you develop the creative and technical skills you need for industry, while also being open enough to allow you the freedom to steer your work to suit your interests. This way, you get the most out of your time with us—tailoring your degree, exploring your career options and developing a personal approach to your creative process

Career opportunities

We encourage work placements for all of our students and are happy to support you in approaching design studios. Thanks to our links with professionals in the industry, we strive to provide you with the knowledge and networking opportunities to prepare you for employment with the likes of our Life After Lectures—a series of talks by designers, illustrators and creative directors about progressing from education to the workplace.

Access to national competitions give you opportunities to get your work seen and promote your talent. Recent successes at the Starpack Awards saw students winning 3 gold awards and 1 silver; alongside 2 students being highly commended and one winning a work placement.

We are proud that many of our graduates find jobs with respected graphic design studios in Suffolk such as Firebrand Creative, Itineris, Jacob Bailey, Linassi + Co and Spring Agency; while others have gone on to work at national organisations including Government Digital Services, FutureGov, JellyFish, M-is and Saatchi & Saatchi.

If you want to run your own business, the degree also equips you with the crucial skills to be a successful freelance designer or to set up your own design practice. Alternatively, you can progress to a design-related Masters degree or initial teacher training.

Entry requirements

IELTS 6.0 overall (minimum 5.5 in all components) where English is not the students' first language.