Are you thinking of studying Art and Design at university?
This course will introduce participants to the creative potential of design and equip them with the tools required to develop an expressive personal portfolio to apply to university. Through a studio-based, hands-on learning approach, participants will engage in the creative process by exploring design thinking and acquiring practical image-making and research skills.
This course is open to students in the penultimate or final year year of high school and interested in pursuing an undergraduate degree course in design. A portfolio review has become an integral part of most university applications for courses in Fashion, Graphic Design, Textile, Product Design, Animation and Illustration. This two-week residential course offers students an opportunity to begin curating a personal portfolio in the field of design.
Key information
Subject
Art and Design
Course teachers
Stephen Lee and Pepe Gomez
Credit bearing
No
Eligibility
Students must be in their penultimate or final year of high school and aged 16-18 years.
Language requirements
Applicants should meet the minimum English language requirements in order to fully benefit from, and engage with, Summer School courses. Your English language ability must be equivalent to, or above, 6.5 IELTS overall with 5.5 in each component.
Device requirements
Course materials will be delivered via the University of Edinburgh's Virtual Learning Environment. To access these materials, you will require a suitable device, such as a laptop or tablet.
Teaching location
Holyrood Campus
Dates
tbc 2025
Length
2 weeks
Contact hours
30
Course fee
tbc
Application deadline
tbc 2025 (17:00 - BST)
Stephen Lee is a Teaching Fellow, Graphic Designer and Visual Communicator.
Stephen is a Teaching Fellow (Arts) within the Centre for Open Learning at The University of Edinburgh, and teaches Graphic Design with a background lecturing in Fashion Communication. He has an industry background centred around Visual Communication, with experience working in all aspects of creative imagery, design and media that has included working as a Graphic Designer, Art Director, Photographer and Sound Artist.
Pepe Gomez is a Teaching Fellow in Arts at the University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Open Learning, where he teaches Digital Animation.
Pepe has years of experience working as a Character Animator, Animation Supervisor, Director and Producer, bringing forth a range of award-winning short films and music videos. He was a Graduate Teaching Assistant in the University for the Creative Arts, Farnham.
Course Overview
The course aims to introduce the design process, creative tools and techniques, and develop communication and presentation skills. Tutorials, group critiques and individualised feedback sessions will support and guide the student to identify their strengths and hone skills in a particular field of interest.
The overall experience has been designed to emulate the everyday realities of attending an undergraduate design course in the heart of the Scottish capital. Participants will be expected to embrace the responsibility of creative freedom that the course will provide working on individual and team projects. The immersive nature of the course will provide an in-depth understanding of the iterative and experimental nature of creative practice as well as the practicalities of translating ideas developed in a sketchbook into a refined outcome.
Course Content
The course involves a series of creative skill building workshops which are vital to the creative process such as image making, visualisation techniques, and contextual research. Using the Adobe Suite and Studio Workshop facilities available at the Centre for Open Learning, students will explore visual communication through, typography, collage, photography, moving image and digital image manipulation using industry software such as Adobe Creative Suite.
An overarching theme that ties these disciplines together is visual communication through image-making to create items such as a Poster, Zine and a short film / moving image. The workshops will also introduce the concept of “studio culture” as an important aspect of specialised study in design.
The studio-based workshops will be complemented with the opportunity for students to attend a field trip during the two-week course which will have the city as a point of focus. Suggestions of galleries and historical sites will also be given, which the students can explore outside class for a chance to experience the rich history, culture, and heritage of Edinburgh.
The course will move from a collaborative to a self-initiated project, offering each student the opportunity to focus on their own interests in different design disciplines. One-to-one tutorials and guided studio sessions will help them discover individual strengths to focus on for the personal project. Students will work individually but also engage in group discussions to develop their ability to reflect and enhance their communication and presentation skills.
The studio classes and tutorials will focus on individual and team projects. This will be an opportunity to engage in team-building activities and develop personal skills. In this way, students will be equipped with the tools necessary to develop a strong, expressive personal portfolio, ready to apply for an Undergraduate Design Programme.
Week 1 (01 July)
Monday (10:00-13:00) Stephen (and guest Susie Wilson- Talk/workshop)
Tuesday (10:00-11:00) and (11:00-14:00) Stephen & Pepe
Wednesday (10:00-13:00) Pepe
Thursday– (10:00-13:00) and (14:00-15:00) Stephen
Friday (10:00-13:00) and (14:00-16:00) Pepe
Week 2 (08 July)
Monday (10:00-13:00) Stephen
Tuesday (10:00-12:00) and (13:00-15:00) Pepe
Wednesday (10:00-13:00) Stephen
Thursday (10:00-12:00) and (13:00-15:00) Stephen
Friday (10:00-13:00) Stephen and Pepe
Sample timetable for information - please note that we will share a final timetable with students prior to arrival.
On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Employ a range of design research methods to explore and develop a self-initiated idea.
- Demonstrate basic practical image-making and visualisation techniques, by exploring and employing a range of mediums and approaches.
- Visually present and communicate ideas and concepts to an intended audience.
We want all Pre-university students to have an enjoyable experience in Edinburgh. We have robust safeguarding measures in place to support students, and look after their safety and welfare during their stay.
The course fee includes accommodation during your study. Please see our Accommodation section for more information.
To ensure your experience at the University of Edinburgh's Summer School is memorable, we encourage all students to embrace the city and its culture and take part in the variety of social activities available.
Applications have now closed for 2024.