Visual Communication: Illustration - MA

Why study this course?

Take the next step towards your career in visual communication with this illustration-focused MA. With an emphasis on research, experimentation and creative risk-taking, our Visual Communication: Illustration MA course will empower you to enter your field with a clear vision and sense of your role as a designer in today’s world. Whilst building strong industry connections through your tutors and placements, you’ll also become more flexible and independent in your learning.

Read more about this course 

Our Visual Communication: Illustration MA course will enable you to pursue your ambitions to work as a visual communicator with specific expertise in illustration.

Thanks to an interconnected approach to research and design, you’ll utilise both theory and practice to develop a portfolio of professional-level work that demonstrates your complex problem-solving capabilities, creativity and critical thinking. You’ll engage and develop your skills through collaborative, multi-disciplinary practices.

Your core modules will promote critical thinking through design practices, enabling you to work both speculatively and on fully-realised outcomes. Through design research methods and design project development you will form and refine a project proposal, which you’ll go on to complete as your final major project.

Throughout this course you’ll notice an emphasis on recurrent central elements such as socially-engaged design. You’ll be encouraged to explore the social, cultural, ethical and economic impacts of visual communication practice.

What's more, you'll be in good company. As you can see from our photos, visual communication students at London Met's School of Art, Architecture and Design never fail to bring unique talent and creativity to the table. Among recent successes is The Mamas Grandeur (pictured), a book illustrated and made by our alumna Sally Finning. Written by author Rob Pocklington, the story follows the journey of two women who are grounded in the being and knowledge of the woods and their experience as sudden changes occur. The book was shortlisted for the Association of Illustrators World Illustration Awards 2016 Children's Books category, and was Children's Book category merit winner for the 3x3 illustration annual no.13.

The course is full of opportunities for growth:

• professional industry practice – work on live project briefs with industry partners (such as the public realm improvements scheme with the London Borough of Tower Hamlets and The City of London Corporation) 
• situating your practice – how to formulate a clear direction for your practice
• improving complex problem solving and critical thinking
• collaborative and multi-disciplinary working
• building knowledge through research and development
• the challenge of expertly communicating and presenting your thinking and outcomes
• opportunities for exhibition

Alternative core module information

The School maintains a portfolio of alternative core MA (level 7) 20 credit modules, two of which will be core to this course in any particular year. Prior to the start of the course each September, the course team will decide which of the alternative core modules should be the core 20 credit modules for the following academic cycle. This decision is based on the project opportunities arising and the balance of students across the portfolio of MA design courses. Please note, students themselves do not choose which of the alternative core modules to take themselves. See the modular structure section below for more details.