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Pearson BTEC Level 5 Higher National Diploma in Art and Design (Graphic Design)

Intake DateProgramme TypeCourse Fees
Click here to know more Advanced/Higher Diploma Click here to know more
Introduction

Beacon International College is a BTEC Approved Centre for the above programme.

About Pearson

Pearson is the world’s leading learning company, with 40,000 employees in more than 70 countries working to help people of all ages to make measurable progress in their lives through learning. We put the learner at the centre of everything we do, because wherever learning flourishes, so do people. Find out more about how we can help you and your learners at qualifications.pearson.com

Edexcel, BTEC and LCCI qualifications

Edexcel, BTEC and LCCI qualifications are awarded by Pearson, the UK’s largest awarding body offering academic and vocational qualifications that are globally recognised and benchmarked. For further information, please visit our qualification websites at www.edexcel.com, www.btec.co.uk or www.lcci.org.uk.

  • To equip students with art and design skills, knowledge and the understanding necessary to achieve high performance in the global creative industries sector.
  • To support students to develop their capacity for creative thinking and to recognize its value in the creative industries and beyond.
  • To provide students with the skills to communicate their ideas and creative output through visual, written and oral presentation.
  • To provide education and training for a range of careers in creative industries, including Graphic Design, Photography, Fashion, Textiles, Product Design, Interior Design, and Arts Practice.
  • To provide students with an understanding of the way technologies are transforming the creative industries, and prepare them to work with these technologies.
  • To provide insight and understanding into the diversity of roles within the creative industry, recognizing the importance of collaboration at all levels.
  • To equip students with knowledge and understanding of culturally diverse organizations, cross-cultural issues, diversity and values.
  • To provide opportunities for students to enter or progress in employment in creative industries, or progress to higher education qualifications; such as an Honours degree in art and design subjects or a related area.
  • To provide opportunities for students to develop the skills, techniques and personal attributes essential for successful working lives.
  • To support students to understand the local, regional and global context of creative industries and, for those students with a global outlook, to aspire to international career pathways.
  • To provide students with opportunities to address contemporary issues facing the industry, and society at large; with particular emphasis on sustainability and the environment, recognizing the role that creative industries play in addressing these issues.
  • To provide opportunities for students to achieve vendor accredited certifications.
  • To allow flexibility of study and to meet local or specialist needs.
  • To offer a balance between employability skills and the knowledge essential for students with entrepreneurial, employment or academic aspirations.
  • To provide students with the context in which to consider professional ethics and their relation to personal, professional and statutory responsibilities within the industry.
Course Structure

The Pearson BTEC Level 5 HND in Art and Design (Graphic Design) is a Level 4 and Level 5 qualification made up of  240 credits. This 240-credit qualification consists of mandatory core units, specialist units and optional units determined by the college that provide for a combined total of 240 credits.

The Higher National Diploma course comprises of subject units of study determined by the college from the following list:

Level 4 Mandatory Core / Specialist Units

The aim of this unit is for students to begin to define areas for personal professional development, in the context of a growing awareness of the broad scope of the creative industries.

This unit is designed to introduce students to key cultural developments, practices and movements related to the history of art, design, visual and popular culture since 1900.

This unit is designed to develop the skills to apply creative practice in response to a theme and topics set by Pearson.
Through this unit students will explore the critical facets of art and design practice that will enable any project.

The aim of this unit is to raise awareness of techniques and processes of typography in both print and digital forms, to understand the current terminology and to creatively explore skills within graphic design, which are then applied within a typography brief.

The aim of this unit is to develop students’ confidence in managing a graphic design project through the full spectrum of the design cycle.

Level 4 Optional Units

Through this unit students will develop and understanding of the fundamental properties of common materials and their structure.

The aim of this unit is to provide students with a greater appreciation for the function of packaging; to advertise the product, to protect the product and to facilitate use of the product.

Through this unit, students will explore this variety of roles and the techniques used to support visual merchandising.

This unit aims to support students in exploring communication techniques and methodologies relevant to a specific field of study.

This unit aims to develop students’ understanding of how visual narratives are employed in a wide variety of contexts, including examining diverse media such as children’s books, graphic novels, instructional diagrams, storyboarding and animation.

The aim of this unit is to explore observational drawing practices through development and application of lifedrawing principles and practices.

Level 5 Mandatory Core / Specialist Units

The aim of this unit is to support students in making the transition from study to employment or freelance work.

The unit focuses upon the students’ engagement with the wider community and provides a platform to explore collaborative practice through industry, competitions, cultural organisations, community-based groups, non-governmental organisations and charities.

This unit aims to provide students with an opportunity to engage in an extended study of the diversity of graphic design practice and to develop an in-depth project that will allow them to begin to establish their own approach to graphic design.

Level 5 Optional Units

The aim of this unit is to introduce students to the concept of designing interfaces and digital content delivery systems, and to the practical coding skills required to implement interactive prototypes.

Through this unit students will develop their awareness of different types of technical drawings, and related information, with consideration of their uses in the design and manufacturing processes.

This unit aims to give opportunities for students to develop their knowledge and application of branding and identity through understanding the relationship between social, cultural and historical contexts.

The aim of this unit is to provide students with the opportunity to explore art direction through the development of a unified visual style in an advertising, marketing, fashion or editorial context.

This unit works alongside students’ studies within their specialist pathway, and they will have the opportunity to explore the selection and specification of materials as used in their specific subject area.

The aim of this unit is for students to gain an appreciation of the collaborative nature of modelmaking as they identify and demonstrate practical knowledge of a wide variety of material behaviours and craft processes through the creation of different types of model in response to a brief.

This unit will introduce and explore new methods of producing forms in jewellery.

Through this unit students will develop skills and techniques in the use of 3D modelling and Rendering to communicate art & design ideas.

The aim of this unit is to provide students with the opportunity to develop strategies for user-testing in relation to project development and deployment.

This unit introduces students to the technical skills and knowledge required in digital animation.

This unit provides a framework in which students have the opportunity to explore their creative entrepreneurial skills by developing ideas and exploring their viability in a business context.

The aim of this unit is to introduce the process of trend forecasting and understanding how to use forecasting information to support design decisions.

Upon completion of the course, the student is expected to develop their careers in the creative industries sector through:

  • Entering employment
  • Continuing existing employment
  • Linking with the appropriate vendor accredited certificates
  • Committing to Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
  • Progressing to university
Admission Criteria

Academic Requirement

  • Diploma
  • Chinese Senior Secondary Year 3
  • GCE ‘A’ Levels – at least two (2) Grade E
  • ITE Higher NITEC 2.5
  • STPM – 2 passes
  • Vietnam Grade 12
  • Any other equivalent qualification

English Entry Requirement

Students with equivalent foreign qualifications may be admitted provided they are proficient in the English Language, and possess

  1. IELTS 5.5 or equivalent qualifications OR
  2. a Pass in English Placement Test determined by the College

 

Those who fail the English Placement Test will be required to successfully complete the EAP/ESL (Lower Intermediate) course conducted by college

Course Information
Course Length: This Award takes approximately 960 hours excluding the development and implementation of coursework.
Total Duration: 18 months (full-time express/fast-track mode) 24 months (part-time express/fast-track mode)
24 months (full-time normal mode) 30 months (part-time normal mode)
Total Course Hours: 960 hours

Certification:

To be awarded the Pearson BTEC Level 5 Higher National Diploma in Art and Design (Graphic Design), the student must meet the award criteria below.

The Pearson BTEC Level 5 Higher National Diploma in Art and Design (Graphic Design) is a Level 4 and Level 5 qualification made up of 240 credits. This 240-credit qualification consists of mandatory core units and specialist optional units and that provide for a combined total of 240 credits. The rules of combination for this qualification are as specified as follows:

  • Completed units equivalent to 120 credits at level 5;
  • Achieved at least a pass in 105 credits at level 5;
  • Completed units equivalent to 120 credits at level 4;
  • Achieved at least a pass in 105 credits at level 4.

Teacher-Student Ratio

Beacon maintains a maximum teacher-student ratio as follows:

Tutorial – 1:40

Lecture – 1:72

Course Details

Lectures/Tutorials

The course is mainly conducted in the classroom via face-to-face learning which encourages student-teacher interaction. Students are encouraged to attend field trips and live projects organised by the school to encourage experiential learning.

Assessment

In-course assessments will be conducted only. In-course assessments may include report, design journal, oral presentation, drawings, models and project etc.