View art work from our HNC students
Course overview
This art course will help you to engage with digital trends in graphic design and illustration. You will gain a realistic, industry-standard knowledge of the creative processes involved in graphic design and illustration, utilising current, specialist software and hardware, and experience of the client/designer relationship.
You will learn the rudimentary principles of graphic design and illustration whilst exploring the variety of approaches and techniques that contemporary digital and traditional designers use. You will engage with historical approaches and contemporary innovative practice and will experiment with various media and techniques. Students will primarily work within our specialist Mac studio with Creative Suite software such as Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects and InDesign.
The course puts a strong emphasis on research and development within sketchbooks and the use of design processes to produce highly finished, professional standard work that will build a portfolio for employment or further study.
You will also be working in a traditional studio setting with access to drawing, painting and printmaking facilities.
This course is delivered by a team of professionals who have a comprehensive knowledge and experience within the creative industries that will help to foster your creative thinking, technical ability and research skills.
You will undertake professional design practice that will develop and expand your technical knowledge and employability within the creative industries.
What you will learn
Includes the following units:
The following are just some of the Art and Design: Digital units you will learn:
- Graphic Design
- Illustration
- Digital Imaging
- Digital Media
- Design Semantics
- Development Drawing
- Creative Process
- Mixed Media
- Art and Design Context
- Cultural Identity
- Creative Project for Artists and Designers
- Portfolio Production
Entry requirements
HNC year:
- Minimum C grade pass in higher/advanced higher Art and Design
- A/B grade pass in English at Nat 5 or min C grade at higher
- NQ in Art and Design or related area (minimum 15 credit passes)
If you have an equivalent national qualification but no formal qualifications you will be assessed on your artwork and will be asked to give a short description of selected pieces chosen from your portfolio
You will be asked to upload a portfolio of art work to support your application. You maybe asked to attend an interview.
You must be 16 years or over at the start of the course commencement date.
For this course, if English is not your first language
- you need to have SQA ESOL Higher (or equivalent, click here to see equivalent qualifications)
- If you do not have a formal ESOL qualification but your language skills meet this level, you should apply for your course and then contact our Admissions team to organise an internal language assessment here at the College.
Career Opportunities
Own business
Future prospects
Students who successfully complete the course are eligible to go progress into the HND year 2, which offers a digital or fine art pathway.
Destinations for our previous HNC/D students include:
Degree Courses: GSA; UWS; ECA; DJCAD; Grays; Heriot Watt; Cumbria; Birmingham; Wolverhampton; Leicester; Liverpool; Leeds; Goldsmiths; Falmouth; Farnham; St. Martins; Portsmouth; Huddersfield; Batley; Newcastle; Sunderland
Careers as Technicians
Junior managerial positions
Arts workers in the community arts