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Are you excited by design and the creative possibilities of new technology? Do you want to learn how to blend the two together? Our Digital Design degree allows you to develop your design and technical skills, helping you to bring your ideas to life whilst equipping you with skills sought after by employers.
On our Digital Design degree, you take a practical and theoretical approach to design. You will develop the technical skills you need to showcase your creativity. Using the latest technology, you can work with a broad range of design assets and immersive technologies including audio, still and moving image, 3D, and interactive interfaces, to create new experiences for audiences, setting yourself up for an exciting and fulfilling career in the creative industries.
Teaching in the School of Engineering and Digital Arts has been rated as excellent. It is taught by a team of experts and industry professionals in the areas of 3D production, online design immersive experiences and interactive applications, and human-computer interaction. Most modules consist of a mixture of lectures, seminars, practical workshops and computer sessions. All modules are continuously assessed.
In your first year, you are given a broad grounding in digital design, including content creation, 3D design, virtual environments, and design thinking.
In the following years, you go on to explore 3D production and simulation, online design, virtual and mixed realities, and interactive environments.
You also complete a final-year project based on your own interests. This could be an interactive or immersive experience, 3D project, or web-based application. We often also have a range of briefs for projects students can undertake in association with an industrial partner.
Your year abroad is taken between your second and final years. This gives you an excellent opportunity to develop multidisciplinary skills through experiencing a new culture, and to discover how your subject is taught in a different environment. You are taught in English and destinations include universities in the US, Singapore, Europe, Hong Kong and Australia.
You can also take this course as a three-year degree without a year or abroad or in industry. For details, see Digital Design.
It is possible to take this course with a year in industry. For details, see Digital Design with a Year in Industry.
Four final-year students from the School of Engineering and Digital Arts worked with the BBC to produce a five-minute animation documenting mental health treatment as part of Mental Health Awareness Week. It tells the story of Sophie, who suffers from Borderline Personality Disorder, and details her experiences with mental health services in the UK.
In May 2018, the animation won a BBC Ruby Award. The Ruby Awards celebrate outstanding programming from across the country and span a range of categories from news coverage and best programme to awards for individual journalists.
Find out more:
You have access to industry standard equipment, such as
There are a number of student-led societies at Kent which you may want to join. These include
We have close links with those working in the creative industries and have worked with industry practitioners including:
You are more than your grades
At Kent we look at your circumstances as a whole before deciding whether to make you an offer to study here. Find out more about how we offer flexibility and support before and during your degree.
The University will consider applications from students offering a wide range of qualifications. Some typical requirements are listed below. Students offering alternative qualifications should contact us for further advice. Please also see our general entry requirements.
If you are an international student, visit our International Student website for further information about entry requirements for your country, including details of the International Foundation Programmes. Please note that international fee-paying students who require a Student visa cannot undertake a part-time programme due to visa restrictions.
Please note that meeting the typical offer/minimum requirement does not guarantee that you will receive an offer.
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The University will not necessarily make conditional offers to all Access candidates but will continue to assess them on an individual basis.
If we make you an offer, you will need to obtain/pass the overall Access to Higher Education Diploma and may also be required to obtain a proportion of the total level 3 credits and/or credits in particular subjects at merit grade or above.
Distinction, Merit, Merit.
34 points overall or 15 points at HL
Pass all components of the University of Kent International Foundation Programme with a 60% overall average.
Please see our English language entry requirements web page.
If you need to improve your English language standard as a condition of your offer, you can attend one of our pre-sessional courses in English for Academic Purposes before starting your degree programme. You attend these courses before starting your degree programme.
Duration: 4 years full-time
The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This listing is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.
On most programmes, you study a combination of compulsory and optional modules. You may also be able to take ‘elective’ modules from other programmes so you can customise your programme and explore other subjects that interest you.
Compulsory modules currently include:
EL316 - Design Thinking (15 credits)
EL325 - Digital Content Creation (15 credits)
EL340 - 3D Fundamentals (15 credits)
EL326 - Virtual Environment Design (15 credits)
CO328 - Human-Computer Interaction (15 credits)
EL317 - Technical Rigging (15 credits)
EL542 - Tangible Media (15 credits)
EL313 - Introduction to Programming (15 credits)
Compulsory modules currently include:
EL532 - 3D Production (30 credits)
EL510 - Online Design (15 credits)
EL511 - Interactive Environments (15 credits)
EL509 - Virtual Reality (15 credits)
EL577 - Entrepreneurship and Professional Development (15 credits)
EL576 - Second Year Project (30 credits)
Your year abroad is taken between your second and final years. This gives you an excellent opportunity to develop multidisciplinary skills through experiencing a new culture, and to discover how your subject is taught in a different environment. You are taught in English and destinations include universities in the US, Singapore, Europe, Hong Kong and Australia.
Please note that progression thresholds apply. In particular, in order to be considered for the year abroad, students are required to achieve an overall mark at Stage 1 of at least 60%.
Compulsory modules currently include:
EL793 - Year Abroad (120 credits)
Compulsory modules currently include:
EL611 - Final Year Project (45 credits)
EL610 - 3D Simulation (15 credits)
EL643 - Design Futures and Emerging Technology (15 credits)
EL609 - Mixed Realities (15 credits)
You also undertake further optional module(s)
The 2021/22 annual tuition fees for this programme are:
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
For students continuing on this programme, fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.*
The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.
Find out more about accommodation and living costs, plus general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.
Kent offers generous financial support schemes to assist eligible undergraduate students during their studies. See our funding page for more details.
You may be eligible for government finance to help pay for the costs of studying. See the Government's student finance website.
Scholarships are available for excellence in academic performance, sport and music and are awarded on merit. For further information on the range of awards available and to make an application see our scholarships website.
At Kent we recognise, encourage and reward excellence. We have created the Kent Scholarship for Academic Excellence.
The scholarship will be awarded to any applicant who achieves a minimum of AAA over three A levels, or the equivalent qualifications (including BTEC and IB) as specified on our scholarships pages.
The scholarship is also extended to those who achieve AAB at A level (or specified equivalents) where one of the subjects is either mathematics or a modern foreign language. Please review the eligibility criteria.
Most modules consist of a mix of lectures, seminars, practical work, computer sessions and private study. The workstations in our computer suites are equipped with current industry-standard software.
All modules contain design and project work, and are continuously assessed. The specialist project at Stage 3 is assessed by a written report, poster, a critique and, of course, the outcome of the project itself. Both Stage 2 and 3 marks count towards your degree result.
The industrial placement year is assessed by a written report, poster, and industrial assessment that together count as 10% of your overall degree result.
The year abroad is assessed on a pass or fail basis.
Our students have 24-hour access to our extensive air-conditioned computer suites and are able to take advantage of a dedicated production studio, with green-screen, VR suite and makerspace.
For a student studying full time, each academic year of the programme will comprise 1200 learning hours which include both direct contact hours and private study hours. The precise breakdown of hours will be subject dependent and will vary according to modules. Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.
Methods of assessment will vary according to subject specialism and individual modules. Please refer to the individual module details under Course Structure.
The course aims to:
You gain knowledge and understanding of:
You develop the following intellectual skills:
You develop the following subject-specific skills:
You develop the following transferable skills:
All University of Kent courses are regulated by the Office for Students.
Based on the evidence available, the TEF Panel judged that the University of Kent delivers consistently outstanding teaching, learning and outcomes for its students. It is of the highest quality found in the UK.
Please see the University of Kent's Statement of Findings for more information.
Art and Design at Kent was ranked 7th for graduate prospects and 16th overall in The Complete University Guide 2021.
Digital Design prepares you for careers in areas such as:
Employers are always keen to employ graduates with knowledge of the work environment and some students receive job offers from their placement company.
The University also has an award-winning Careers and Employability Service which can give you advice on how to:
Studying on this degree not only equips you with an in-depth understanding of some of the most exciting technologies of the 21st century, it also helps you to develop useful workplace skills such as:
You can gain extra skills by signing up for one of our Kent Extra activities, such as learning a language or volunteering.
If you are from the UK or Ireland, you must apply for this course through UCAS. If you are not from the UK or Ireland, you can choose to apply through UCAS or directly on our website.
Find out more about how to apply
T: +44 (0)1227 823254
E: internationalstudent@kent.ac.uk
Discover Uni is designed to support prospective students in deciding whether, where and what to study. The site replaces Unistats from September 2019.
Discover Uni is jointly owned by the Office for Students, the Department for the Economy Northern Ireland, the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales and the Scottish Funding Council.
It includes:
Find out more about the Unistats dataset on the Higher Education Statistics Agency website.