Pre-University: Design

This course will introduce students to the creative potential of Design and equip them with tools to develop an expressive personal portfolio.

Are you thinking of studying Design at university?

Through studio-based, hand-on-learning, this course will introduce participants to the creative potential of design and equip them with the tools required to develop an expressive personal portfolio. Students 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  of high school who are  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.  

 

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

30 June - 11 July 2025

Length

2 weeks

Course fee

£4995

Application deadline

Tuesday 20 May 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.


The course aims to introduce students to design processes, creative tools and techniques, and to support them to develop communication and presentation skills. Tutorials, group critiques and individualised feedback sessions will help guide students 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.  

The course involves a series of creative skill building workshops 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.

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. 

  


Class times

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 10:00 - 12:00

Tuesday, Thursday: 10:00 – 16:00

 

View our Sample Timetable for an idea of what to expect

 


On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Employ a range of design research methods to explore and develop a self-initiated idea. 
  2. Demonstrate basic practical image-making and visualisation techniques, by exploring and employing a range of mediums and approaches.  
  3. Visually present and communicate ideas and concepts to an intended audience.

The Pre-University courses are based at the University of Edinburgh’s Holyrood campus. This campus sits just off the Royal Mile, which connects Holyrood Palace to Edinburgh Caste. The campus houses a library, cafe and several study spaces and is surrounded by a number of cafes and grocery stores where you can buy lunch. It is also just around the corner from the Pleasance Sports Complex and Gym which you will have the opportunity to visit as part of the programme.

The Holyrood campus is approximately 20 minutes from the accommodation. You will be expected to walk to and from campus each day. The weather in Edinburgh can be changeable - so make sure to pack a rain coat and umbrella!


Applications open at 09:00 (GMT) on Friday 10 January 2025.


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