Has anyone considered an undergraduate graphic design/communication design program abroad?
While I realize that the US is tops for design, the cost of art school and our D’s interest in studying abroad has us considering the option. Add to that is that it only takes 3 yrs for a BA and it starts to look pretty appealing!
Are there any parents with kids getting their degrees in Graphic Design abroad?
Hey,
I’m not a parent – I studied law in the UK but lived with a bunch of animation majors, and have had my finger on the pulse for art schools in the UK given I initially wanted to do a BFA. I can offer some advice on UK art schools based on what I’ve heard/found out from my friends and my own research:
UAL: Central Saint Martin’s is pretty much the UK’s top art school and their graphic design programme is just about everyone’s first choice. It’s got a great reputation and places there are really coveted, I’d recommend your D think about applying there as it’s really the first port of call for anyone who wants to study art in the UK.
UAL: Goldsmith’s is probably your next bet – the school is primarily known for churning out most of the Young British Artists in the 90s and its fine arts/painting and drawing programmes rather than graphic design but the uni as a whole has a solid reputation and I wouldn’t rule it out.
You could also try the London College of Communication – I don’t know much about their graphic design programme though. I have a friend who studies animation there though, and he’s not entirely satisfied with the course and the way he’s being taught, so maybe keep it on the back burner.
@treejoakley Thanks for the input! I will definitely check these out.
Hello! I’m an international student that is currently applying to both US and UK schools for product design so to my knowledge these are some of the best schools for graphic design (some of my friends are applying for graphic design)
These are the universities previously mentioned:
University of the Arts London (UAL):
UAL has 6 colleges. The most well known is “Central Saint Martins” (CSM) but “London College of Communications” (LCC) and “Camberwell College of Arts” is also well respected for graphic design! UAL students gets to use any facilities at any colleges but their classes are based on the college they attend. They also have other courses in more specific fields like “advertising” or “fashion communications” if your daughter is interested.
For UAL, they use the interview to determine wether or not you get accepted. You can actually sign up for an in person interview in the US. You can check it out on their website.
Goldsmiths, University of London:
This school is not strictly an art school because it has courses in social sciences as well. Despite being respectable for design, it actually does not have graphic design but it has a general design course then students get support to do whatever they’ll like to do. They also have a “Media & Communications” course if you’re interested.
Other non-art universities that the best for GD:
Other art universities:
UK programs are 3 years because they are very major focused (the courses you take are only/mainly related to your major. This makes me prefer US, I’m interested in taking liberal arts classes as well as have more freedom in the variety of classes I’m taking.
However, UK schools (especially UAL) has amazing facilities (the Central Saint Martins campus is like a dream). Plus the tuition is more affordable, but if you manage to receive good financial aid + scholarship in US schools it’s probably comparable.
My kid was accepted at Duncan of Jordanstone, U of Dundee (a wonderful school) and offered a merit scholarship. But worried about deciding to be far from home with coronavirus a factor right now. Anyone else have feelings about this?