Hereford College of Arts - National Diploma in Art & Design

National Diploma in General Art & Design Top Pic

Level: Further Education [level III]
Study Mode: Full-time
Duration: 2 years
Minimum Age: 16 years
Entry Requirements: 4 GCSE’s at Grade C or above, or First Diploma in
Art & Design
How to Apply: Direct to College

The Art, Design & Media industries include an incredibly wide variety of different subjects and opportunities for employment. Without enough knowledge or experience of these different areas it can be very difficult deciding which area is most appropriate to your interests and skills.

The National Diploma in Art and Design aims to introduce you to a wide variety of different areas and support you in making an informed decision about which area you should specialise in.
The course is worth the equivalent of 3 A Levels.

All pathways start with a common first year when you can gain experience of all the different areas before choosing which broad subject area you want to specialise in.

Art & Design offers students the opportunity to develop outcomes in a wide variety of applications and media. Students will typically develop skills that enable them to progress to all art and design and related industries.

By studying across a multidisciplinary area (fine art, textiles, art & design, applied arts) students will develop a broad skills-based portfolio enabling and equipping them to progress onto a variety of higher education courses.

Art & Design focuses ideas and techniques across the many subject areas within art and design, and enables you to develop a specialism across both 2D and 3D disciplines. Students are encouraged to work on a multidisciplinary basis, through processes and materials - generating new ideas and products.

Students typically work in:
Applied Arts including ceramics, jewellery and 3D techniques|
Fine art, drawing, painting, printmaking and illustration
Textiles, surface pattern and related techniques

Year 1
Term 1 provides students with a grounding in the skills they will need to be successful on the courses such as generating ideas, drawing, problem solving, IT, and digital image making. It also introduces students to a wide range of new skills in such as printmaking, video making, ceramics, photography, textiles techniques, animation, and working with different materials such as wood, metal, plastics and glass.

In terms 2 and 3 students use these skills by producing project work within a broad specialist area. These projects provide an opportunity for you to use your creativity to experiment within a subject area in order for you to decide where your passions and skills really lie. On each project, every student will be able to choose between either an Art & Design or Media Arts subject area. By the end of the first year students have the opportunity and guidance chose their own discipline area and will continue to do so into the 2nd year, offering a unique opportunity to tailor your work to your future aspirations, creating a portfolio and course that is personal to you.

Art & Design (read on)
or Media Arts (click here)

Year 2
Students specialising in mostly Art & Design based projects will combine the general skills developed during Year 1 whilst being introduced to new and diverse specialist units such as Multi-Disciplinary Fine Art, Fabric Manipulation, 3D Design/Applied Arts and Specialist Printmaking, enabling students to produce a strong and varied portfolio of work. 2nd year students will also have the opportunity to work on live projects, submitting work for cross college showcase exhibitions such as the national touring Book Arts Exhibition and the HCA Affordable Arts Fair.

Students who successfully complete this course are qualified to progress directly on to any of the college's undergraduate courses (click here) which will train the students to meet the demands of a professional creative life.

Any student successfully completing this course and is recommended for a full-time degree course at Hereford College of Arts by their tutor, and is offered a place will be guaranteed a generous bursary in their first year of study with a further financial benefits in each subsequent year. This bursary is not means-tested and does not affect a student’s eligibility for applying for maintenance grants or loans. Click here for more details

Students are also qualified to progress on to Higher Education at Universities and Colleges throughout the country, or to potentially gain entry to employment within the art and design industries at a junior level.

Please click on the blue link A - Z of Creative Careers