Program Overview

International Foundation Year in Arts and Media

Our International Foundation Year in Arts and Media is designed to equip you with the essential creative and English language skills needed to excel in an undergraduate degree related to creative arts or media at Teesside University.

Why Study Arts and Media at Teesside University?

Benefits include:

• Practical creative skills. Gain hands-on experience in drawing, digital art, and media production, alongside essential academic English skills.
• Dynamic learning environment. Foster your creativity in a collaborative, artistic setting with opportunities to engage in cultural and artistic activities.
• Industry connections. Learn from professionals featured in world-renowned institutions like the Tate and the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, while joining a vibrant, inclusive community.
• Exclusive access to Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (MIMA). Enhance your creativity with access to MIMA, our on-campus art gallery, preparing you to graduate as industry-ready talent.
• The MIMA Great Create. Showcase your talents in this competition by submitting original art or media for a chance to be featured in a pop-up exhibition at MIMA and win exciting prizes.
• State-of-the-art facilities. Upon progressing to Teesside University, access cutting-edge film and audio studios, broadcast TV systems, and fully equipped workshops in wood, metal, print, photography, and fabric, with expert support to bring your creative visions to life.

Leading to: Illustration BA (Hons)

Whether you're drawn to book cover illustration, children’s book illustration, editorial illustration, comics and graphic novels, printmaking, or vibrant poster design, this course at Teesside University is designed to bring your creative ideas to life.

Guided by industry professionals with experience in book illustration, comics, motion design, and editorial work, you gain the practical skills needed to succeed in today’s competitive creative industries. With career-focused modules, you explore the diverse fields of illustration, learning how they operate, who drives them, and how to thrive in them.

Throughout the course, you work on live briefs that mirror industry challenges, whether that’s creating illustrations for online or printed publication briefs, designing striking posters, developing characters for comics or games, and much more.

We encourage you to experiment, innovate, and define your own unique identity as a visual storyteller, setting the stage for a fulfilling career as a contemporary illustrator.

You develop your portfolio through live briefs and international competitions, helping you become adaptable by responding to editorial, fashion, children’s books, social media, advertising, packaging, exhibition and corporate commissions. You receive feedback from clients, ensuring you know how to amend and flex in professional environments.