Communication Design Major - Bachelor of Design

Communication design focuses on developing and visually communicating ideas and messages.

Study communication design at AUT and examine historical and modern concepts of visual langage and design. You work on a diverse range of projects that respond to societal, environmental, design industry and commercially relevant issues.

Within this major you can focus on an area of communication design by selecting a specialised studio programme in your second year.

This is part of the Bachelor of Design.

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How to apply

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What you study
Studio programmes
Career opportunities
Related programmes

You need to complete 120 points each year and 360 points for the entire degree. You study core papers each year that cover design solutions, critical thinking, research practices, user experience, creative processes, information management, prototyping, market/cultural/industry case studies.

Throughout the major you’re supported by lecturers and professional designers, as you work independently and collaboratively on speculative and real-life design projects.

All students are offered a choice of a minor in Semester 2.

List of minors

Start in July 2020 (includes studying during Summer School) - City Campus only

If you’re starting in July 2020, your study will include Summer School in your first year, which means you need to complete some papers over the summer; from November 2020 to February 2021.

From your second year on, you then attend AUT for Semester 1 and Semester 2 classes (from late February to early November). You shouldn’t have to attend Summer School in your second and third year.

Year 1

Semester 2, 2020 (July – November 2020)

You also study one paper from your chosen minor.

Summer School (November 2020 – February 2021)

Year 2

You study the following papers

You also study two papers from your chosen minor.

Year 3

You study the following papers

You also study one paper from your chosen minor.

Start in 2021

Year 1

You study the following papers

You also study one paper from your chosen minor.

Year 2

You study the following papers

You also study two papers from your chosen minor.

Year 3

You study the following papers

You also study one paper from your chosen minor.

More details about papers in this programme

Detailed programme structure and paper outlines (Blackboard)

Search for a paper (Arion)

Email artbox@aut.ac.nz

Enrolment in papers is subject to meeting all requirements and availability of papers.

In Year 2 you choose a specialised studio programme - a specific area of communication design you want to focus on. Some studio programmes may have a limited number of places.

Depending on your chosen studio programme, you study either at the City or South Campus.

South Campus studio programme

Communication Design

This unique inter-disciplinary studio-based programme gives you the opportunity to work across a range of visual communication practices including graphic design, advertising and branding, digital interactivity and moving image. Our students can work on real-life projects and engage in social awareness campaigns, explore personal and social narratives and work directly with communities to research and produce communication design solutions.

You'll work in designated design studio spaces, learning and using the latest technology, including augmented reality/virtual reality, smart phone applications and 360 degree photography. Project work includes social campaigns, information and environmental graphics, print publications, e-publishing, visual identity and brand development, digital animations, music videos and title sequencing.

City Campus studio programmes

Graphic Design, Advertising and Branding

Our advertising and branding students are known for their fresh creative minds and strong affinity for new media technologies.

You’re involved in idea generation, campaign design, strategy, social media marketing, identity and systems design. Employing design thinking methodologies and user experience research, you initiate projects and create solutions tailored for diverse markets and audiences.

Working across print and digital media processes, you develop individual projects underpinned by research practice including commercial contexts, social/environmental concerns and speculative design. Throughout your studies you develop robust and individual processes responsive to the craft of graphic communication and the world of visual culture.

Graphic Design and Image Making

In the age of the image, illustration, photography and handauthored, mechanical and digital media are at the centre of communication arts.

You become skilled in concept development, content generation, image making and type relationships to communicate messages and meaning. Working across print and digital media processes, you create individual projects underpinned by research practice, including commercial contexts, social/ environmental concerns and speculative design.

A range of publishing contexts guide your individual and professional practice, driven by a desire to connect with audiences to inform, persuade and entertain. You develop robust and individual processes responsive to the craft of graphic communication and the world of visual culture.

Design and strategy

Advertising and brand creative
Online and social media manager
Creative or account director

Image-making

Photographer and videographer
Content and narrative illustrator
Printmaking

Graphic design and typography

Communication or graphic designer
Publication design and magazine art director
Print and packaging designer
Information designer

Find out more about industry trends, job descriptions and what employers may be looking for.

Communication Design Careers

Other majors in the Bachelor of Design

Key features

Covers a range of tools, technologies and materials for print, digital and interactive project work and media
Offered at the City and South Campus
Students entering the first year of the Communication Design and Interaction Design majors share a common first-year programme

See yourself as

A visualiser and brand aware
Interested in advertising and packaging
Having strong drawing skills and story-telling skills

Great graduatesAnzac TaskerDesign Director, Designworks LtdBachelor of Art and Design (Honours)
Bachelor of DesignWhat he loves most about being a designer is the constant pursuit of the idea, says communication design alumnus Anzac Tasker who now works at Designworks.What he loves most about being a designer is the constant pursuit of the idea, says communication design alumnus Anzac Tasker who is now a design director at Designworks. Anzac first joined Designworks straight out of university, and he has since worked at Designworks’ Auckland and Melbourne offices, with a stint at Frost*collective in Sydney in between.

Great graduatesTola ThachBachelor of DesignDesign was something he always wanted to do, says Tola Thach who is currently in the final year of his Bachelor of Design in Communication Design at AUT.Design was something he always wanted to do, says Tola Thach who is currently in the final year of his Bachelor of Design in Communication Design at AUT. He would highly recommend the Bachelor of Design to others, says Tola who received a Woolf Fisher First-in-Family AUT Scholarship to support his studies.

Great graduatesNina Van LierArt Director Intern, FCB West, San FranciscoBachelor of DesignMake the most of your time at AUT, says Nina Van Lier who completed a Bachelor of Design in Communication Design and is now interning in San Francisco.Make the most of your time at AUT, says Nina Van Lier who completed a Bachelor of Design in Communication Design and is now interning in San Francisco. A creative career was always on the cards for Nina who specialised in photography and illustration as part of her communication design degree.

Great graduatesSiobhon JoeBrand Designer, Red Antler, New YorkBachelor of DesignThe reputation of the School of Art and Design first attracted her to AUT, says Siobhon Joe who completed a Bachelor of Design in Communication Design.The reputation of the School of Art and Design first attracted her to AUT, says Siobhon Joe who completed a Bachelor of Design in Communication Design. After graduating at the end of last year, Siobhon is now working as a brand designer for Red Antler in New York. She got this sought-after internship through the AUT Internz International Scholarship Programme.

Great graduatesAimée PrestonManaging Director, The Draft, AUTBachelor of DesignShe was always the creative kid at school, says AUT alumna Aimée Preston who is now the managing director of student-led design studio and community The Draft.She was always the creative kid at school, says Aimée Preston. For Aimée, volunteering to project manage the art and design graduate exhibition was one of the highlights of her time at AUT. After graduating at the end of 2018, she was offered a position at AUT as the managing director of The Draft, a new student-led design studio and community that aims to give AUT design students a richer university experience.

The information on this page was correct at time of publication. For a comprehensive overview of AUT qualifications, please refer to the Academic Calendar.