Digital + Material
Innovation + Engagement
Combine cutting-edge digital practices with internationally-renowned art and craft studio disciplines in the Bachelor of Design.
Design students will benefit from deep immersion in digital, manual and theoretical studies and a wide overview of creative practices. From coding, to making, to manufacture, students apply hands-on design to digital and physical materials. Students delve into web design, data visualisation, and interaction design, and experiment in studios to develop expertise in the latest digital form and fabrication processes.
This degree prepares students with transferable knowledge and skills required to make their mark on a rapidly changing world.
The Bachelor of Visual Arts at ANU is a practical degree which offers you the opportunity to develop and refine high-level technical and creative skills and knowledge for working with the forms, materials and technologies of a chosen studio discipline.
You can choose a major from the following range of studio disciplines: animation and video, ceramics, furniture, glass, hybrid art practice, jewellery and object, painting, photomedia, printmedia and drawing, sculpture and spatial practice, or textiles. You will have the opportunity to deepen your study through elective courses drawn from the School of Art & Design and the wider university.
Career Options
Graduates from ANU have been rated as Australia's most employable graduates and among the most sought after by employers worldwide.
The latest Global Employability University Ranking, published by the Times Higher Education, rated ANU as Australia's top university for getting a job for the fourth year in a row.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the skills and knowledge to:
1. Demonstrate skills and knowledge of the practices, languages, forms, materials and technologies in their relevant discipline.
2. Research, develop and evaluate design concepts and processes by thinking creatively, critically and reflectively.
3. Apply skills and knowledge to the creation, visualisation and production of design projects.
4. Work independently and collaboratively on design projects and respond to project demands.
5. Interpret, communicate and present ideas, problems and arguments in modes suited to a range of audiences.
6. Recognise and reflect on social, cultural technological, environmental and ethical issues of creative practice and design considering local and international perspectives.
Upon successful completion of a Bachelor of Visual Arts, graduates will be able to:
- Apply technical skills and specialist knowledge to realise works, artefacts and forms of creative expression.
- Demonstrate skills and knowledge of the practices, languages, forms, materials, technologies and techniques in the visual arts.
- Recognise and reflect on social, cultural and ethical issues, and apply historical and theoretical perspectives to practice in the visual arts.
- Develop and evaluate ideas, concepts and processes by thinking creatively, critically and reflectively.
- Interpret, communicate and present ideas, problems and arguments in modes suited to a range of audiences
- Work independently and collaboratively in response to project demands.
Admission Requirements
Prerequisites
Entry into the Bachelor of Design is based on ACT or NSW HSC equivalent and interview and portfolio. Australian and New Zealand applicants apply through the Universities Admissions Centre (UAC) and international applicants lodge an application directly with ANU. Once an application has been lodged, applicants are required to register for an interview and upload a portfolio on the ANU School of Art & Design website at: soa.anu.edu.au/how-apply/undergraduate-applications.
Adjustment Factors
ANU offers rank adjustments for a number of adjustment factors, including for high achievement in nationally strategic senior secondary subjects and for recognition of difficult circumstances that students face in their studies. Rank adjustments are applied to Bachelor degree applicants with an ATAR at or above 70. Points are awarded in accordance with the approved schedules, and no more than 15 points (maximum 5 subject/performance-based adjustments, maximum 10 equity-based adjustments and maximum 5 Elite Athlete adjustments) will be awarded. Subject and performance-based adjustments do not apply to programs with a minimum selection rank of 98 or higher. Visit the ANU Adjustment Factors website for further information.
Indicative fees
Bachelor of Design - Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP)
Bachelor of Visual Arts - Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP)
For more information see: http://www.anu.edu.au/students/program-administration/costs-fees
- Annual indicative fee for international students
- $36,480.00
Scholarships
ANU offers a wide range of scholarships to students to assist with the cost of their studies.
Eligibility to apply for ANU scholarships varies depending on the specifics of the scholarship and can be categorised by the type of student you are. Specific scholarship application process information is included in the relevant scholarship listing.
For further information see the Scholarships website.
Program Requirements
The Bachelor of Design flexible double degree component requires completion of 96 units, of which:
A maximum of 42 units may come from completion of 1000-level courses
The 96 units must include:
12 units from completion of the following compulsory courses:
DESN1002 Visual Communication: Design and Production
DESN1003 Contemporary Design in Context
12 units from completion of DESN3010 Design Practice: Engagement, Internship and Entrepreneurship, which must be completed twice with a different topic each time
A minimum of 12 units from completion of foundation courses from the following list:
ARTV1020 Figure & Life
ARTV1021 Image and Object
ARTV1033 Hold Everything: Studio Foundation
DESA1021 Precise Drawing and Model Making
12 units from completion of theory courses from the following list:
ANTH2005 Traditional Australian Indigenous Cultures, Societies and Environment
ARTH1006 Art and Design Histories: Form and Space
ARTH1007 Art and Design Histories: Making and Meaning
ARTH2043 Modernism and Postmodernism in Art and Design: 1850-2000
ARTH2162 Cyberculture
ARTH2164 Theories of the Object
ARTH2165 Theories of the Image
ARTH2167 Issues in Contemporary Craft and Design
ARTH2172 Costume, Fashion and Visual Culture
ENVS1001 Environment and Society: Geography of Sustainability
ENVS1008 Sustainable Development
GEND1001 Sex, Gender and Identity: An Introduction to Gender Studies
GEND1002 Reading Popular Culture: An Introduction to Cultural Studies
GEND2023 Gender, Sex and Sexuality: An Introduction to Feminist Theory
HUMN1001 Digital Culture: Being Human in the Information Age
HUMN2001 Digital Humanities: Theories and Projects
INDG1001 Indigenous Peoples, Populations and Communities
PHIL1004 Fundamental Ideas in Philosophy: An Introduction
PHIL1005 Logic and Critical Thinking
PHIL1007 What is Humanity?
PHIL1008 Introduction to Ethics
PSYC1003 Psychology 1: Understanding Mind, Brain and Behaviour
PSYC1004 Psychology 2: Understanding People in Context
SOCY1002 Self and Society
SOCY1004 Analysing the Social World: An Introduction to Social Psychology
A minimum of 12 units from completion of design courses from the following list:
DESN1001 Making Online: Context & Presence
DESN2002 Foundations of Creative Code
DESN2003 Creative Data Visualisation: Representing Data in Visual and Material Form
DESN2004 Dynamic Design and Generative Systems
DESN2006 Front-End Web: Crafting Online Experience
DESN2001 Digital Form and Fabrication
DESN2005 Form and Fabrication in Context
DESN2007 Design Fiction: Speculative and Critical Design
DESN2008 Design Thinking: Human-Centred Design Methodologies
DESN2009 Typography in Context: digital typographic design
DESN2012 The Ethics of Making: Design for Reuse and Repair
A minimum of 18 units from completion of studio courses from the following list:
ARTV1101 Ceramics: Materials & Technology
ARTV1102 Ceramics: Throwing & Surface Decoration
ARTV1103 Animation and Video: The Digital Workspace
ARTV1104 Animation and Video: Digital Equipment and Studios
ARTV1201 Furniture: Shape/Structure
ARTV1202 Furniture: Elevate/Surface
ARTV1301 Glass Introduction
ARTV1302 Glass: Processes and Methods
ARTV1403 Jewellery & Object: Introduction to Precise Miniature Construction
ARTV1404 Jewellery & Object: Maker, Wearer, Viewer, User
ARTV1501 Painting: Introducing Painting
ARTV1502 Painting: Composition and Space
ARTV1601 Photomedia: Foundations of photography, printing and camera skills
ARTV1602 Photomedia: Colour Photography and Digital Skills
ARTV1803 Sculpture: Introduction to Conceptual Practices and Construction Methods (Metal)
ARTV1804 Sculpture: Introduction to Temporal Practices and Construction Methods (Wood)
ARTV1901 Textiles: Dye and Surface Manipulation
ARTV1902 Textiles: Print and Surface Design
ARTV2038 Workshop Atelier
ARTV2039 Craft and Design Practice-led Research
ARTV2057 Hands On: Material Language
ARTV2060 Contexts of Making: Globalisation and Change
ARTV2061 Contexts of Making: Materiality and Value
ARTV2117 Ceramics: Glaze & Colour Development
ARTV2119 Ceramics: Experimental Methods and Meanings
ARTV2120 Ceramics: Designing for the Table and Home
ARTV2124 Ceramics: Surface, Form and Connectivity
ARTV2125 Ceramics: Moulding, Casting & Digital Technologies
ARTV2206 Furniture: Bend/Curve
ARTV2207 Furniture: Support/Body
ARTV2208 Furniture: Contain/Display
ARTV2209 Furniture: Collect/Treasure
ARTV2313 Glass: Kiln Casting
ARTV2314 Glass: Blowing and Finishing Techniques in context
ARTV2315 Glass: Kiln Forming
ARTV2316 Glass: Advanced Hot and Cold Glass Working Process
ARTV2401 Jewellery & Object: Making with machines
ARTV2402 Jewellery & Object: Utility as Context
ARTV2410 Jewellery & Object: Experimenting with process
ARTV2421 Jewellery & Object: Hollow Construction
ARTV2506 Painting: Approaches to Abstraction
ARTV2507 Painting: Painting in the Photo Digital Age
ARTV2508 Painting: Taking Your Own Direction
ARTV2509 Painting: Approaches to Composition and Colour
ARTV2511 Painting: Concepts, Materials, Processes
ARTV2605 Photomedia: Advanced Principles in Exposure and Printing
ARTV2606 Photomedia: Digital Photography and Studio Lighting
ARTV2607 Photomedia: Large Format Photography
ARTV2608 Photomedia: Experimental Processes
ARTV2609 Animation and Video: Visual Storytelling
ARTV2610 Animation and Video: Character development
ARTV2613 Animation and Video: Landscape and Environment
ARTV2614 Animation and Video: Non-linear Forms
ARTV2615 Animation: Creative Possibilities
ARTV2617 Video: Creative Possibilities
ARTV2706 Printmedia and Drawing: Experimental Drawing
ARTV2707 Printmedia and Drawing: Advanced Etching/Relief
ARTV2708 Printmedia and Drawing: Project Drawing
ARTV2715 Printmedia and Drawing: Typography
ARTV2717 Printmedia and Drawing: Book Design
ARTV2723 Printmedia and Drawing: Screen Printing
ARTV2727 Printmedia and Drawing: Lithography
ARTV2808 Sculpture: Space and Shape Investigations with Soft Sculpture, Pattern Making and Armature
ARTV2801 Socially Engaged Art Practice: Authorship, Dialogue and Community
ARTV2802 Politics of Memory: Video Installation, Sculpture, Documentary and Monuments
ARTV2810 Politics of Bodies: Sculpture, Figure Modelling, Performance and Choreography
ARTV2820 Politics of Spaces: Installation, Sculpture and Spatial Practice
ARTV2821 Posthuman Sculpture Practice with Active Materials: Bronze Casting, 3D Modelling and Bio Art
ARTV2906 Textiles: Approaches to Drawing for Craft and Design
ARTV2907 Textiles: Embroidery and Hand Stitch
ARTV2908 Textiles: Constructed Textiles
ARTV2909 Textiles: Maker to Market
ARTV2911 Textiles: Experimental Practices
ARTV2921 Environment Studio: field based research and studio practice in visual arts
Unless otherwise stated, a course used to satisfy the requirements of one list may not be double counted towards satisfying the requirements of another list.
For Bachelor of Engineering (Honours)/Bachelor of Design
12 units from completion of courses from the following list required for the Bachelor of Design contribute towards the Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) component of this double degree:
DESN2005 Form and Fabrication in Context
DESN2008 Design Thinking: Human-Centred Design Methodologies
The Bachelor of Visual Arts flexible double degree component requires completion of 96 units, of which:
A maximum of 48 units may come from completion of 1000-level courses
The 96 units must include:
12 units from completion of foundation courses from the following list:
ARTV1020 Figure & Life
ARTV1021 Image and Object
ARTV1033 Hold Everything: Studio Foundation
DESA1021 Precise Drawing and Model Making
DESN1001 Making Online: Context & Presence
DESN1002 Visual Communication: Design and Production
COMP1720 Art and Interaction in New Media
6 units from completion of an introductory art and design history course from the following list:
ARTH1006 Art and Design Histories: Form and Space
ARTH1007 Art and Design Histories: Making and Meaning
18 units from completion of art history and theory courses from the following list:
ARTH2043 Modernism and Postmodernism in Art and Design: 1850-2000
ARTH2044 Art and Its Context: Materials, Techniques, Display
ARTH2045 Curatorship Theory and Practice
ARTH2050 Photography and Art
ARTH2052 Art of the Modern Print
ARTH2056 Art and Architecture of Southeast Asia: Tradition and Transformation
ARTH2059 Art and Architecture of Asia: Histories and Traditions
ARTH2061 Postmodern Sublime
ARTH2080 Art and Visual Culture of the Long Eighteenth Century, 1660-1815
ARTH2081 Art of the European Courts, 1500-1815
ARTH2082 Art, War and Conflict
ARTH2093 Post-Colonial Discourses in Australian Art
ARTH2097 Victorian and Edwardian Art: Australia and Europe 1837-1914
ARTH2098 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art
ARTH2104 Asian Art In-Country
ARTH2160 Cartographies: Art Exploration and Knowledge
ARTH2161 Contemporary Australian Art
ARTH2162 Cyberculture
ARTH2163 Memory
ARTH2164 Theories of the Object
ARTH2165 Theories of the Image
ARTH2166 Individual Research Unit
ARTH2167 Issues in Contemporary Craft and Design
ARTH2168 Renaissance and Baroque Art
ARTH2169 Introducing Asian Modernisms
ARTH2170 Contemporary Asian Art
ARTH2171 Australian Art: The Modern Period
ARTH2172 Costume, Fashion and Visual Culture
12 units from completion of engagement courses from the following list:
ARTV2027 Professional Practices
ARTV2028 Professional Practices Internship
ARTV2921 Environment Studio: field based research and studio practice in visual arts
ARTV3031 Making Research for a Studio Practice in the Visual Arts
ARTV3032 Demonstrating research methods for a studio practice in the visual arts
48 units from the completion of one of the following workshop majors:
Animation and Video
Ceramics
Furniture
Glass
Hybrid Art Practice
Jewellery and Object
Painting
Photomedia
Printmedia and Drawing
Sculpture and Spatial Practice
Textiles
Majors
Bachelor of Visual Arts Majors
Minors
Bachelor of Visual Arts Minors
Bachelor of Design Minors
Honours
For information about honours in visual arts, please see Bachelor of Visual Arts (Honours)
Single degree
This following information is to be read in conjunction with the program rules that are outlined on the “Study” tab. Please always make sure that you refer to the program rules for the year that you commenced your program.
Bachelor of Visual Arts consists of 144 units. Most courses are worth 6 units each, with 48 units (8 courses) per year being the standard full-time load.
A course (usually 6 units) can only be counted towards one list such as in a major or minor or designated list. For example, you are not permitted to count ARTH1006 towards the Art History and Theory major and the BVARTS designated list.
For the Bachelor of Visual Arts you will need to complete:
- One compulsory course (6 units)
- Two introductory courses from the designated list (12 units)
- One introductory art and design history course from the designated list (6 units)
- Three art history and theory courses from the designated list (18 units)
- One engagement course from the designated list (6 units)
- One workshop major from the designated list (48 units)
- Eight electives from across the ANU (48 units)
Please note that you are only permitted to count ten 1000-level courses (60 units) towards your program.
You are advised to complete a Program Plan for the Bachelor of Visual Arts. This will help you seek advice on your course choices, ensure you meet the program requirements and give you a plan that you can refer to for the duration of your program.
Double degree
This following information is to be read in conjunction with the program rules that are outlined on the “Study” tab. Please always make sure that you refer to the program rules for the year that you commenced your program.
Bachelor of Visual Arts Double Degree program consists of 96 units. Most courses are worth 6 units each, with 48 units (8 courses) per year being the standard full-time load. During each semester you are likely to take two courses from your Bachelor of Visual Arts degree and another two courses from the other half of your double degree – making up a total of four courses per semester.
A course (usually 6 units) can only be counted towards one list such as in a major or minor or designated list. For example, you are not permitted to count ARTH1006 towards the Art History and Theory major and the BVARTS designated list.
You will need to complete:
- One compulsory course (6 units)
- Two introductory courses from the designated list (12 units)
- One introductory art and design history course from the designated list (6 units)
- Three art history and theory courses from the designated list (18 units)
- One engagement course from the designated list (6 units)
- One workshop major from the designated list (48 units)
Please note that you are only permitted to count eight 1000-level courses (48 units) towards your degree.
You are advised to complete a Program Plan for the Bachelor of Visual Arts. This will help you seek advice on your course choices, ensure you meet the program requirements and give you a plan that you can refer to for the duration of your program.
Enrolment Status
While it is possible for domestic students to enrol in fewer than four courses per semester, which is called studying part-time, it will take you longer to finish your program and get your degree. If you are an international student you must always be full-time.
First year students are not permitted to study more than four courses (24 units) per semester.
If you are beginning your program in Semester 1, you should enrol for all your courses for both Semester 1 and Semester 2 (8 courses for full time), so that you can plan your study year.
Important things to keep in mind when choosing your 1000-level courses
When you enrol for the first time you will study ‘1000-level’ courses. These courses have ‘1’ as the first number in their course code, such as ARTS1234. Whilst it is important to take 1000-level courses in your first year (so that you can meet the pre-requisites for later year courses) they also can be taken later in your program.
You can only count a maximum of ten 1000-level courses (60 units) towards your single degree or eight 1000-level courses (48 units) towards your Bachelor of Visual Arts half of the double degree.
In your first year you need to enrol in:
- 1000-level Introductory courses
- 1000-level art and design history courses
- 1000-level workshop major courses
- ARTV2819
- Elective courses for students undertaking the single degree.
Electives
For students in the single degree, your electives (48 units from completion of elective courses offered by ANU) can be additional courses from your discipline (including the option of a major or minor) or courses from another ANU College. If you have an interest in another discipline such as management, psychology or mathematics, then you should explore first year courses in these areas. In particular look at the majors and minors in these areas. These will give you an idea of the first year courses you can study.
If you are interested in undertaking a language and have
prior knowledge/experience with that language you may need to undertake a
placement test – you should check with the relevant language area for further
details by searching for “language placement test” on ANUs website.
Study Options
Study Plan
Please refer to the "Study" tab.Study Options
| Year 1 48 units | - | - | - | - |
| - | - | - | - |
Study Plan
Please refer to the "Study" tab.Study Options
| Year 1 48 units | - | - | - | - |
| - | - | - | - |