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Teesside University

UCAS Code: IW24 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)

Entry requirements

Flexible - each application is considered on a case-by-case basis.

About this course

This course has alternative study modes. Contact the university to find out how the information below might vary.

Course option

4years

Full-time including foundation year | 2025

Other options

5 years | Sandwich including foundation year | 2025

Subject

Illustration

**Course overview**: This course includes a foundation year - ideal if you need additional preparation or if you don't have sufficient grades to join Year 1. As a concept artist you illustrate ideas for use in films, games, animation, comics and any other form of visual media. You focus on the pre-production process, creating the look and functionality of characters, creatures, environments and props. You explore the illustrative and storytelling side of concept art including key moments, splash art and storyboarding. You learn using traditional drawing, as well as using digital art tools such as Adobe Photoshop, ZBrush and Blender. The University is Europe’s first Adobe Creative Campus, giving you access to the suite of Adobe Creative Cloud tools and resources to help you develop your digital skills.

**Top reasons to study this course**

1. Taught by professional artists: learn from practising concept artists who have worked on a variety of art projects for clients such as Sega, Double Eleven, Archvillain Games, Sony, Formula 1, Hasbro, Activision, NetEase, Square Enix, Holovis International, Yamination Studios, Shanghai Media Group, Rebellion and Ubisoft.
2. Industry links: take part in Animex, our annual international animation and games festival featuring experts from Rockstar, Pixar, Disney and Sony.
3. Career-ready: our ExpoSeries of events allow for you to interact with employers, allowing you to showcase your work and skills to peers and potential future placements or employers.

**After the course**: Our graduates have started careers as freelance artists or gone on to work or undertake placements for studios such as Atomhawk, Sumo Digital, Jagex and Frontier Developments.

Modules

Access course information through Teesside University’s website using the course page link provided (or visit www.tees.ac.uk).

Assessment methods

Access assessment information through Teesside University’s website using the course page link provided (or visit www.tees.ac.uk).

The Uni

Course location:

Teesside University Middlesbrough Campus

Department:

Computing

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What students say

We've crunched the numbers to see if the overall teaching satisfaction score here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

95%
Illustration

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

87%
Staff make the subject interesting
88%
Staff are good at explaining things
82%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
78%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

82%
Library resources
86%
IT resources
87%
Course specific equipment and facilities
80%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

89%
UK students
11%
International students
34%
Male students
66%
Female students
84%
2:1 or above
16%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
C
C

After graduation

The stats in this section 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

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£25,000
high
Average annual salary
85%
med
Employed or in further education
65%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

38%
Design occupations
10%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
8%
Information technology and telecommunications professionals

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.

£17k

£17k

£19k

£19k

£21k

£21k

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.

Explore these similar courses...

Higher entry requirements
place
Coventry University | Coventry
Illustration
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2025
UCAS Points: 112
Lower entry requirements
place
Teesside University, Middlesbrough | Middlesbrough
Concept Art
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2025
UCAS Points: 96-112
Nearby University
place
University of Sunderland | Sunderland
Illustration and Design
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2025
UCAS Points: 104
Same University
place
Teesside University, Middlesbrough | Middlesbrough
Illustration
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2025
UCAS Points: 96-112

This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

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This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the 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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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

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?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here