Illustration
Entry requirements
UCAS Tariff
We would normally expect applicants to have achieved 80 UCAS Tariff Points at entry but whilst qualifications are important, our offers are not solely based on academic results and we may make offers based on other evidence of talent and suitability for the course. Portfolio submission (where applicable) and successful interview or audition are required.
You may also need to…
Attend an interview
Present a portfolio
About this course
Illustration is an important part of our visual heritage and culture. From childhood and throughout our lives, illustration helps us all make sense of a complicated world. It is a communication tool that entertains, describes, inspires, explains and educates. As an illustrator, you will be called on to create imaginary but believable worlds as the visual stimulus for entertainment, education or persuasion. These worlds can be brought to life on anything from the printed page to the digital screen, including diverse and unexpected places within the urban landscape in advertising, murals or other installations.
This inspiring course explores both traditional and high-tech approaches to picture making and visual communication. You will participate in a wide range of workshops and projects that will encourage you to develop a unique visual language and personal style, before applying it to a range of outcomes such as: graphic novels, picture books, zines and small press publications, maps, prints and more. Throughout this broad-based course, you’ll focus on drawing and image-making processes that create imaginative and innovative ways to communicate to a variety of audiences.
**Industry Links**
A range of expert visiting practitioners contribute to the course. These have included award winning Illustrators: Clive Hicks-Jenkins, Jonny Hannah, Rebecca Gibbon, Matthew Richardson, Laura Carlin, Ian Murray, Geoffrey Grandfield, war artist Xavier Pick and master printmakers Charles Shearer and Nick Morley. Live project briefs will challenge you to apply your skills in new and interesting ways. In recent years, HCA students have also gained great exposure and experience at Hay Festival – providing large format illustrations, and delivering workshops to the public.
**After this Course**
The majority of our graduates enter employment within the creative sector as freelance illustrators or designers. Some form small group partnerships to share knowledge, skills and resources and support each other as they develop their practice, whilst others gravitate to postgraduate study or towards teaching.
**Highlights**
1. Small group teaching in a friendly studio environment.
2. Regular drawing classes and print workshops.
3. Individual workspaces that you can make your own.
4. Exceptional access to tutorial support and expert technical advice.
5. Inspiring, high profile visiting practitioners.
6. Develop your own visual language and evolve a unique style.
Modules
From your first day at HCA you will work as a creative, developing your skills and your own voice through a series of projects. You will develop your creative practice, practical skills alongside your critical awareness and theoretical knowledge. You will study a range of modules that build your knowledge and confidence and total 120 credits each year.
YEAR ONE: Practice in Context 1 (20 Credits), Practice 1 (30), Practice 2 (30), Foundations for Learning (20). Skills 1 (20)
YEAR TWO: Practice in Context 2 (20), Practice 3 (30), Practice 4 (30), Professional Practice 1 (20), Skills 2 (20)
YEAR THREE: Practice in Context 3 (20), Practice 5 (30), Practice 6 (60), Professional Practice 2 (10)
Tuition fees
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What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Design studies
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
After graduation
We don't have more detailed stats to show you in relation to this subject area at this university but read about typical employment outcomes and prospects for graduates of this subject below.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Design studies
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£13k
£17k
£18k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):
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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).
This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
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You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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