Art and Design

Art and design at degree level encompasses a wide range of creative disciplines, from fine art and photography through to graphic design, illustration, interior design and product design. A broad art and design programme gives you the opportunity to develop across multiple areas before specialising, building both technical skills and conceptual depth in a studio environment that mirrors contemporary professional practice. At its heart, art and design education develops your visual thinking, your creative voice and your ability to generate, refine and communicate ideas in visual and material form.

At the University of Bedfordshire, this four-year programme includes a foundation year that builds your creative and technical foundations before you progress to the main degree. The programme is taught by practising artists, designers and photographers who exhibit their work internationally, and who bring their professional networks and industry links into the programme through live briefs and contemporary working environments. The connection to real professional contexts throughout the degree means you will develop the kind of practical and professional knowledge that employers and clients expect, alongside the artistic and design skills the programme develops.

Graduates from art and design programmes pursue careers across the full range of creative industries, including graphic design, illustration, photography, fashion, interior design, product design, art direction and creative production. Many work in advertising, publishing, film and television, games, digital media and architecture. Others pursue independent creative practices as artists, photographers or makers.

Art and design education also opens pathways into art education, curation, arts administration and the creative third sector. Postgraduate study in a specialist design discipline or fine art is a natural route for those who want to develop a research practice or deepen their specialism.