Graphic Design, BA

Graphic Design at CCCU is a course for students who want to develop as confident, critically aware designers.

You’ll work within a supportive studio culture that values peer-to-peer learning, creative risk-taking, and the belief that design has real power to communicate and create change.

The course is taught by practising designers who bring current industry experience into every session.

You’ll have access to state-of-the-art facilities in the Daphne Oram Building, including a print studio and digital design labs.

Across three years you will develop from foundational skills and design theory through to professional practice, client projects, and your own specialist area, whether that’s branding, typography, editorial, or digital design.

Throughout, you’ll engage with live briefs, industry events, and a growing professional network.

Welcome Week is an important part of getting started, you’ll receive studio inductions, meet your Personal Academic Tutor (PAT), and take part in creative workshops designed to help you hit the ground running.

Your PAT will be a consistent point of contact throughout your studies for both academic and personal guidance. Make sure you attend the early weeks set the tone for everything that follows.

Your Course

In your first semester you will study Welcome to the Studio and Graphic Design Tools, taught be myself and Tony Lyons.

These modules introduce you to studio culture, professional working practices, and the core software and technical skills that underpin your design practice across all three years. You’ll begin working on real briefs from the start.

Teaching takes place through a combination of studio sessions, seminars, workshops and one-to-one tutorials, all delivered on campus.

The balance shifts depending on the module, but you should expect a mix of group critique, contextual lectures, technical instruction and self-directed project time from the outset.

In the first few weeks, teaching will focus on orientation, getting to grips with the facilities, meeting the team and establishing working habits that will carry you throughout the degree.

 You’ll be introduced to the print studio, digital design labs, and specialist equipment in the Daphne Oram Building.

You will also meet our excellent technical team. Don’t worry if things feel unfamiliar at first; the early weeks are designed to ease you in while getting you making work quickly.

Blackboard

Blackboard is the university's virtual learning environment, where you'll find module handbooks, assignment briefs, reading lists and any resources shared by the team. You'll also use it to submit work and access feedback. Make sure you log in before Welcome Week and familiarise yourself with where your modules are held - if you have any trouble accessing it, contact the IT helpdesk.

To help you prepare

Before you arrive, it's worth looking at the Learning Skills Hub. In particular, look at anything covering academic writing, referencing and research skills - these will support the written elements of your modules from the start.

It’s also worth spending time looking at contemporary graphic design before the course begins – in books, at exhibitions, and online. The pre-course reading list on this page is a good starting point. Looking at design history, typography, and branding will all give you a head start.

In terms of software, the university provides access to Adobe Creative Cloud across all teaching spaces, including Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.

You will be working with these tools from your first week, so any familiarity you can build beforehand – even at a basic level – will be useful. Free tutorials are available via Adobe and YouTube to help you get started.

Lupton, E (2023) Extra Bold: A Feminist, Inclusive, Anti-racist, Nonbinary Field Guide for Graphic Designers, Princeton Architectural Press.

Heller, S and Vienne, V (2012) 100 Ideas that Changed Graphic Design, Laurence King.

Lupton, E (2010) Thinking with Type, Princeton Architectural Press.