Diploma of Graphic Design

What You'll Learn

• Branding and identity design
• Print Design
• Online design
• Digital image-making
• User-centred design
• Project design

A graphic designer creates visual designs for a variety of mediums including web, print and digital media. Day-to-day, they might create flyers, brochures, banners, logos, icons, infographics and so much more.

Specialisations within graphic design include typography, user experience (UX) design, user interface (UI) design, print design, advertising and more. Graphic designers work across all industries, designing graphics for small businesses to large corporations in retail, healthcare, technology, education, finance, recruitment - you name it! Your career opportunities as a graphic designer are endless.

Absolutely! A diploma in graphic design prepares you for entry-level positions in the graphic design industry.

While not as comprehensive as our associate or bachelors degrees, a diploma in graphic design from SAE is a fast-tracked course that provides the foundational skills and knowledge needed to kickstart a career in graphic design.

Like all SAE courses, our graphic design courses are designed to challenge you and push your creative limits. Our expert lecturers are working industry professionals, ready to guide you through your studies and provide real-world insight into graphic design. They'll work alongside you as you learn the ins-and-outs of design and what it takes to succeed in the industry.

While some workplaces may accept employees with no formal graphic design qualifications, you'll find more employment opportunities when you have a graphic design diploma, associate degree or bachelors degree under your belt.

To get started in the design industry, it's recommended that you complete formal graphic design studies. This ensures you have a firm understanding of the principles of graphic design and guarantees that you've developed key skills such as project management, teamwork and communication.

For a short-and-sweet course that'll get you into the industry faster, our graphic design diploma online is your best option. This ensures you'll build the fundamental skills needed for entry level roles in the industry while maintaining flexibility thanks to the course being offered 100% online.

For more comprehensive learning, explore our Associate Degree of Design & Visual Communication or the Bachelor of Design & Visual Communication.

• Graphic Designer
• Digital Designer
• Typographer
• Graphic Design Production Assistant
• Digital Illustrator
• UX or UI Designer

The Diploma of Graphic Design is stage one of the three stages of a Bachelor of Design and Visual Communication.

• Develop the essential technical design skills and the knowledge required to collaborate with other creative media students and professionals.
• Credit points: 10 In this unit, you will learn about the ideas and concepts of design. You will discover the art of presenting and defending a point of view in a convincing and effective way by referring to valid and trustworthy sources of information. Thinking about and referencing the work of others helps you to develop critical thinking skills. By using tools on the internet and working with others you will expand what you alone can achieve. In your projects, you will delve into the history and language of the design industry in order to develop an understanding of your place and purpose within it.
• Credit points: 10 In this unit you will learn about the principles of design through creating vector graphics in the form of motifs, pictorial marks and logos using Adobe Illustrator and other tools. Project briefs and activities in this unit introduce the principles of design; these are visual rules that can be applied in the creation of any image to enhance their impact, attractiveness and ability to communicate. The principles of design are useful and essential to your ongoing design practice.
• Credit points: 10 In this unit you will learn about illustration and the creative and technical production of digital images using photoshop and other tools. Working by hand and digitally you will explore a range of drawing techniques and tools including processes of iteration and refinement. You will investigate visual storytelling through the development of a series of images. Storytelling through your creative practice is essential to your ongoing design practice.
• Credit points: 10 In this unit you will learn about designing page layouts for print through the combination of images and type. Your work will include the design of posters, brochures and flyers. You will investigate historical design styles; analysing, adapting and applying these styles in your work. You will explore the typographic art of arranging letters and words to make copy easy to read, visually appealing, and stylistically appropriate. Knowing how to use typography and layout effectively is essential to your ongoing design practice.
• Credit points: 10 This unit explores the concepts of entrepreneurship, innovation and project design. You will develop approaches to identify promising opportunities and actionable strategies to transform them into tangible successes. Through exposure to developing new ideas, processes and ways of working - both individually and in entrepreneurial teams - you will hone skills to put creative ideas into practice and achieve real-world impact. As Alan Kay explained, "The best way to predict the future is to create it", so let's get at it!
• Credit points: 10 In this unit, you will learn to understand the user or target audience as part of your design process through exploring UX (user experience) and UI (user interface) design. By applying UX design tools such as personas and user journeys and UI design such as prototyping, iterating and testing, you will explore creating websites or apps that provide an ideal user experience. Knowing how to do user research and design digital interfaces effectively is essential for a contemporary designer.
• Credit points: 20 This unit will simulate being in a real-world studio. Your designs will respond to larger project briefs with multiple deliverables, and you will engage in teamwork. This means time management, communication and scheduling will be crucial. You will learn to consider projects strategically in terms of your client's brand or identity, and how these can be communicated visually and through associated text and structures. You are encouraged to explore and seek out new contemporary methods and tools for design and communication. In this studio setting your facilitator will act as your project manager, producer, mentor and colleague. This unit will be holistically assessed based on the criteria outlined in the unit guide. Teamwork, collaborative skills, and engagement with specific feedback processes are emphasised in this unit, as you further refine and reflect on a set of Transferable Skills.

Full units description

Australian Qualifications Framework

AQF Level: 5 FULLY ACCREDITED BY TEQSA