Art, Design & Digital Media - Foundation: NQ (Level 5)
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Course overview
This course has been designed for art and design students to develop an independent creative practice within a community of students, lecturers, artists, makers and designers who contribute to the wider cultural life of the city and beyond.
The course is founded in an interdisciplinary approach to art and design. You will engage with multiple processes, techniques, materials and ways of thinking and making across our studio, print and sculpture workshops, digital lab and external spaces across the city. You will work on three major projects where you can work across multiple disciplines for the duration of the year or focus within a specific discipline for your chosen pathway.
This course will equip you with the practical, conceptual, creative, interpersonal and critical skills to produce a body of work to apply to degree programmes to continue your studies beyond college or to begin gaining experience in and applying for work in the creative industries.
What you will learn
The course encourages experimentation and will equip you with a range of skills and techniques, a creative process and the vocabulary required at degree level. A critical component is the ability to develop ideas from conception to solution along with the capacity to verbalise and present concepts and work in a professional manner. Ongoing critiques, tutorials and reflective practice will help you to develop these skills.
You will also have the opportunity to develop your skills in presenting your own and other artists’ work through regular seminars and exhibitions in our gallery space. We aim to prepare you as fully as possible for life at degree level or employment. It is a fundamental principle that you develop your own style, can work independently and that your portfolio reflects this ability.
Entry requirements
HND2 Art & Design Year 2:
- HNC/HND1 (year 1) pass in Art and Design (minimum 15 credit passes)
- A/B grade pass in level 7 Graded Unit 1
- Or equivalent national qualification
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
Studying Art and Design opens doors to a wide range of careers in the creative industries and beyond. In Scotland, the creative industries comprise over 15,000 businesses employing more 70,000 people, in addition to a large number of freelancers as well as students studying creative courses (ScotGov 2025). You’ll gain hands-on experience working to briefs, collaborating with peers, teaching in community settings, making work for public audiences and/or clients and learning the fundamentals of freelance work.
Potential careers include: Artist, Illustrator, Art Technician, Arts Admin, Cultural Organising, Community Arts Worker, Arts Management, Teaching (Tutoring, Primary, Secondary, FE/HE), Art Therapy, Curating, Marketing, Graphic Designer, Museum and Gallery worker and founding independent creative businesses, charities and/or agencies.
We believe that studying Art and Design equips our students with the creative, critical and interpersonal skills that are valuable to the future of our world and transferrable beyond the creative industries.
Future prospects
Our HND is suited to building a portfolio of work for applying to the following programmes. Please note these cover Scotland only.
- Year 1 or 2 of BA (Hons) Fine Art, Edinburgh College of Art
- Year 1 or 2 of BA (Hons) Fine Art (Painting and Printmaking, Sculpture & Environmental Art), Glasgow School of Art
- Year 1, 2 or Year 3 of BA (Hons) Fine Art, Art & Philosophy, DJCAD
- Year 1, 2 or Year 3 of BA (Hons) Fine Art, Gray’s School of Art
- Year 3 BA Art & Design Forth Valley College & UHI, UHI
- Year three of BA (Hons) Contemporary Art Practice at City of Glasgow College
- Year 2 BA (Hons) Creative Practice, UWS, Dumfries
- Year 1 or 2 of BA (Hons) Illustration, Edinburgh College of Art
- Year 1 or 2 of BA (Hons) Communication Design at Glasgow School of Art
- Year 1, 2 or 3 of BA (Hons) Illustration or Visual Communication at Dundee University.
- Year 1, 2 or 3 of BA (Hons) Communication Design at Gray’s School of Art.
- Year 3 BA Art & Design Forth Valley College & UHI
- Year 3 Digital Design Glasgow Caledonian University
- Year 3 BA (Hons) Graphic Art & Moving Image, UWS, Ayr
- Year 2 BA (Hons) Creative Practice, UWS, Dumfries
