Master of Fine Arts in Graphic Design and Art Direction

at Manchester Metropolitan University United Kingdom

Our MA Applied Criminology has been developed to offer real-world knowledge and experience, offering you the opportunity to consider criminology in practice, both in criminal justice and applied research.

Our team includes former justice practitioners and researchers at the cutting edge of research and evaluation in areas such as youth justice, drugs and criminal justice policy. The experience and contacts this brings has given us the opportunity to develop a vibrant, applied curriculum including options of study in criminal justice policy, practice and theory, as well as the opportunity to undertake a placement in a relevant organization. You will also cover research methods and carry out your own research.

We have devised this course to suit people working in, or planning to work in, criminal justice and related areas, as well as those looking for an academic career; there is no requirement that students should have previously studied criminology.

The Textiles in Practice course enables you to experience textiles as a flexible and diverse subject. You will be taught from within core pathways offering the opportunity to specialise or combine the disciplines of print, weave, knit, embroidery and mixed media. We promote and encourage the interdisciplinary nature of contemporary practice where processes and techniques combine and complement one another. Specialist workshop provision offers hands-on traditional machinery and the latest digital technologies, supported by expert academic and technical staff who are actively engaged in research and are professional designers and artists. Emphasis is placed on the development of personal interests and ambitions that reflect the breadth, versatility and potential of textiles within contemporary art and design contexts.

There is politics in almost everything we do. It is the study of power: who gets it, why they seek it and by what means they obtain it. Its principal focus is on power relations among individuals, social groups and nations. Studying history will help you to understand how the past affects every aspect of our lives - from the language we speak, to the politics of race, gender, religion and identity. This Joint Honours degree will provide you with the skills to explore the social and political landscape of human consciousness throughout time and place. You will discover how people lived, and how they perceived and interacted with the world around them. Investigating past events, you will encounter war, injustice, new frontiers, political upheaval, ancient civilisations, invasions, conspiracies, catastrophes and revolutions. You will gain a firm grasp of political and current affairs, understand the news headlines, seeing beyond them to the real issues of politics, and be in a better position to comment upon and understand what the politicians are really saying.

The Joint Honours degree offers you an opportunity to study two subjects at degree level, enabling you to benefit from high quality teaching across more than one subject.

A wide variety of options means that you can pursue your own interests – with increasing flexibility as you progress through the course. With practical skills training, including advanced analytical approaches, – this degree opens up doors to a range of interesting and rewarding career possibilities and provides the skills needed to progress to higher research programs.

Placement options

You may have the chance to spend a year getting a taste of professional life. It is an opportunity to develop core skills and explore how this course can relate to the graduate world. It shows employers that you’re ready to get to work.

Students are free to choose Placement opportunities from a wide range of roles both in the UK and abroad. Students choosing this option are supported by a dedicated placement team who provide links to employers through presentations, events, and fairs, and provide a specialist program of guidance on recruitment procedures including CV and interview preparation, as well as work readiness and working overseas.

The BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion course offers an exploratory and dynamic approach to studying promotion in the fashion industry. This distinctive course covers fashion promotion skills, visual and creative processes, underpinned with business content and cultural and contextual theory.

The flexible design of this course will allow you to explore creative areas such as fashion photography and film, digital communication, fashion styling, social media, website design, journalism and brand communication. You will be expected to explore your field of study through research, investigation and independent practice. The business elements of the course will encourage you to engage with entrepreneurial processes and practical activity, allowing you to apply your knowledge and skills to live professional and industry briefs.

You will have the opportunity to benefit from real-world learning experiences during study trips both in the UK and internationally. Previously, students have travelled to London, New York, Copenhagen and Shanghai as part of the course and have visited industry head offices, educational partners, studios, galleries and trade shows.   

We also offer a four-year sandwich route option that gives you the opportunity to spend your third year on an industry placement to enhance your employability.

You will complete the course with a strong, industry-ready portfolio of work relevant to your career preferences. Graduates will be able to apply for positions in areas such as online marketing, public relations, brand management, styling, and events. 

Placement options

At Manchester Fashion Institute, employability is at the heart of our teaching. All of our undergraduate courses offer an optional sandwich year route that gives you the opportunity to apply for an industry placement between your second and final year. If you choose this route and are successful in the application process, you will commit to working full-time in the fashion industry for the entirety of your third year, before returning to complete your degree in your fourth year.

A placement year is an incredibly valuable element of your course as it allows you to apply your university-based knowledge, skills and understanding to your job role. Should you undertake a placement, you will make your own industry contacts and enhance your CV by gaining industry experience.

We have a dedicated placement team with over three decades of experience sourcing and securing outstanding placement opportunities. They will provide you with extensive support and advice prior to and during your industry placement.

Placement opportunities are available both in the UK and internationally, with students previously working in countries such as Austria, Germany, Norway, Hong Kong SAR, Sri Lanka and the USA.

MA Architecture and Adaptive Reuse is a programme about existing buildings, situations and places, and how over time these structures and locations can be encouraged to evolve, sustain new uses, and accommodate new users. Students on the course will investigate strategies for adaptive reuse - strategies that are not applied as a reaction to current conditions, but in anticipation of future changes.

Adaptation is now at the forefront of architectural practice; two of the most pressing challenges in the 21st century are climate change and urbanisation. Given that already more than half of the global population live in urban environments, and by 2050, it is projected that over 70% of the world population will live in cities, all societies need to be able to accommodate growth while at the same time, reducing consumption. The existing building stock needs to become both more efficient and more resilient.

Students will investigate the four main aspects of sustainable reuse - environmental, societal, inhabitation and economic – while also exploring heritage, history, memory, community, and the influence these factors have on remodelling activities. They will look at the impact that context and the environment have upon projects, while developing an understanding of some of the technical issues including construction, environmental control, and materials in order to make creative and appropriate proposals for new users of buildings. Students will also examine specific examples of adaptive reuse, theories of reuse and explore strategies for the conservation and adaptation of the existing environment.­­

The specialist workshops within Manchester School of Art and the University of Manchester will provide students with opportunities to explore materiality, fabrication, and the realisation of ideas. Studio teaching is research-informed and underpinned by design research methodologies and engagement with industry.

To survive, thrive and succeed in business, it’s not only about managing people, developing strategies and driving performance within the organisation. It’s also about understanding and engaging the market – identifying your position in the competitive landscape, developing an offering that meets demand and communicating with your target audience effectively.

With this business and marketing degree, you’ll delve into business operations, looking at how some of the world’s most successful organisations manage finances, lead staff and harness technology, as well as learning about the key issues in business today – from sustainable development to ethics in a global environment.

It’s a course that’s designed to help you prepare for the workplace, so we don’t limit your learning to the classroom or lecture theatre. Once you’ve discovered and discussed the theories in lectures and seminars, you’ll have the chance to turn ideas into action. We run various business and enterprise competitions that provide skill-building, CV-boosting experience. You will also have the option of spending a year on a placement, building on your skills in a professional environment.

As such, you’ll leave us with a blend of business understanding and marketing intellect. It’s a powerful mix. Whether you see yourself running a start-up, getting onto the fast-track to senior management or making waves in an agency environment, our BA (Hons) Business and Marketing can help you pave the way.

Placement options
Our BA (Hons) Business and Marketing degree offers the chance to spend a year getting a taste of professional life. It not only gives you the opportunity to develop your core skills and learn about how a business really operates in your industry, but also shows employers that you’re ready to get to work.

Right from the start, our product design engineering degree is all about developing your creativity and problem-solving skills. Even the introduction is a team-based design-and-build challenge – reflecting the kind of project-based, hands-on approach to learning you’ll experience throughout your time with us.

It’s a degree that provides the specialist knowledge and expertise required for a career in commercial product design, introducing you to industry-relevant methodologies, materials and production methods. You’ll also look at the influence on the design of history, culture, markets, materials and lifestyles. And in our specialist laboratories, you’ll get to grips with some of the latest technologies, such as 3D printing and rapid prototyping.

More generally, you’ll learn to look at the world around you through the eyes of a designer, as you establish the fundamentals of design and technology, together with the relationship that products have with their users and their environment.

Study product design engineering with us and in your final year you’ll be ready to put these skills into practice in a new product design challenge and an individual project. You’ll then have the chance to showcase your work in front of industry representatives at the department’s degree show as you look to kick-start your career in this challenging and rewarding field.

Placement options

All of our degrees offer the chance to spend a year getting a taste of professional life. If you choose to go down this route, your degree will take one year longer, with the third year spent working in industry. These optional placements not only give you the opportunity to develop your core skills and learn about how a business really operates in your industry, but also shows employers that you’re ready to get to work. We offer a range of services to help you find the right placement, including employer presentations, advice and placement fairs.

Smart technology is the future. Machines that talk to each other, learn from their surroundings and respond accordingly – think autonomous robots – are the shape of things to come. On this MSc Engineering Smart Systems course, you’ll put yourself at the centre of these exciting technological developments, working at the forefront of Industry 4.0.

Our new interdisciplinary master's course focuses on applied skills. It will give you the ability to manage forward-thinking technical strategies, and the skills to deploy the latest digital technologies across the engineering sector.

You’ll study a range of core units, exploring the key technological and manufacturing foundations of Industry 4.0. You’ll also develop professional skills with two project management units, where you will learn the principles behind delivering innovation to industry.

In our high-tech facilities, you’ll learn to use the tools and equipment you’ll come across in the workplace. Throughout it all, you’ll have the support of our experienced teaching and research staff, who will ensure that what you learn is 100% relevant to industry. And, with technical, real-world thinking and project management skills, you will have a proven ability, ready to play a constructive role in shaping our technological future.

Placement options

The optional industry placement provides you with the opportunity to apply your academic knowledge in the workplace. Through this, you’ll gain additional specialist expertise and transferable skills through responsibilities and contributions to the employer’s business.

Following completion of the taught elements of your MSc course, you can gain additional practice credits by working for a minimum of 36 weeks and maximum 42 weeks in an industrial setting, relevant to your course.

It’s your responsibility to search and apply for advertised placement opportunities, but you’ll be supported by academic staff and the University’s Careers and Employability Service to find a placement that is suited to you and your career ambitions.

All placements are approved and monitored in accordance with the University’s Institutional Code of Practice for Placement and Work?Based Learning, including additional checks for international students on study visas.

Our biomedical science integrated masters degree offers an advanced-level understanding of biomedical science practice. You’ll gain a deeper knowledge of the biological principles that relate to the workings of the human body, as well as the characteristics and diagnosis of disease leading to possible therapeutic interventions.

As you progress through the degree, you’ll move on to more specialist and advanced topics. That could include anything from cell and molecular biology, physiological systems and research skills, to blood science, cellular science and immunology – to name but a few. You’ll spend your final year focusing on a major independent research project in the area of your choice.

Our creative writing courses are taught by internationally-renowned writers from The Manchester Writing School; one of the most successful of its kind in the UK, with more than 95 graduates and MA students who’ve gone on to become published writers. But skilled writers must also be well-developed readers and this course offers the best of both worlds, allowing you to combine Creative Writing and English as part of a joint degree.

While studying and practising creative writing, you’ll take a range of options from the English degree, including American literature, film, television and cultural studies. As you progress, you’ll have the chance to take part in creative writing workshops, focussing on two options from the selection of: prose, poetry and script. Our placement route offers you the opportunity to spend your third year on an industry placement, allowing you to apply university-based knowledge, skills and understanding to the world of work, and giving you an advantage when you begin looking for your first job after graduation. Or you may have the chance to spend a year expanding your horizons, studying with one of our partner universities overseas. In your final year, you’ll be ready to undertake an all-important independent creative project.

By the time you leave us, you’ll have an excellent understanding of the critical and cultural contexts in which you’re writing, together with the skills and experience to excel in the creative journey from original idea to finished work.