UAL Extended Diploma in Graphic & Digital Design students had the exciting opportunity to speak with alumni and Graphic Artist Mia Angioy! First year students attended a progression talk and had 1:1 tutorial with the artist to get feedback and guidance. Since graduating from BA (Hons) Graphic Design and MA Design Practice Mia has worked with international clients  like Converse and England’s Lionesses. Mia also created an original art work which featured on this years prospectus cover.

Student Jenna Thomas said “for the session with Mia, we were taken through her journey as a freelancer in digital collage where we looked at examples of her work. She also gave us some advice for when we go out into industry ourselves, for example she told us about the importance of reaching out to other designers and working collaboratively which I personally found really helpful advice. I found my 1:1 session with Mia extremely helpful, she gave me her opinions on my previous zine project as well as my  concept ideas for my app and the branding I will apply to it. She gave me some good ideas on how I can work my illustrations into animations for loading pages which I found very effective and something I will experiment with. I found her feedback really endearing, it made me want to push a lot of my ideas further as she gave me ideas on how to do that effectively.“

“My main takeaway from this session was that I shouldn’t be scared to reach out to artists I like, and that if I have a potential idea for something that could work in a project I should always experiment and develop those ideas.”

Graphics Student Jess Sweet said “During the industry talk, Mia showed us a detailed presentation about how she got to where she is today. She was really honest which to me made listening to her experience feel more in touch. My session with Mia was really helpful into giving me a better insight as to what the industry would expect. I felt as if I could openly ask questions as she was really interested in my work so gave me amazing feedback to develop within the project but also with my own personal projects.”

Student Adam Cadman commented, “In the session Mia came around to various students to see their work and I personally asked more about opinions of what I had done at the point she came in. I found the interaction between me and Mia to be beneficial and enjoyable since it allowed me to get a more external view on the quality of my work. My main takeaway from the session was that it matters more about who you know rather than what you know. And so far I’m enjoying my diploma since its what I want to do and allows me to pursue what I’m interested in.”

Speaking of what she took from the session Jess Sweet reflected “what I took away from the session was when she told us about her university experience and how she ended up changing her initial choice because of social and academic reasons. This really resonated with me and even made me re-consider my own decisions so far. However it will help me to make my final decision in year two.”

Speaking of her time on the Diploma Jess said “So far I am really enjoying my diploma everything I’m doing is solidifying that this was the right decision for me. I have especially liked all of the industry talks and trips as it has given me a better understanding for the industry and helped me to better prepare for where it is I want to go after college.” 

Fellow student Jenna said she was enjoying her time on the course has been “working on creating an app focussed on supporting young people through the cost-of-living crisis. I personally find the branding sections of these projects the most interesting as I enjoy building a brand and experimenting with logo ideas and colour schemes. Overall, I think this course is really good and I feel as though I’m being properly set up for going into the digital design industry.”

Speaking of working with the students Mia commented, “I was so impressed by the level of work the students were producing. Their work was really strong, and they were open and receptive to feedback. It was a pleasure to share my experiences with them and I have no doubt they all have bright futures ahead!”

If you are a school leaver looking to study graphics or digital design at college-level make sure you check out our UAL Graphic & Digital Design diploma at our Ofsted outstanding rated Middlesbrough campus. This course offers students a career focused programme of study lead by industry professionals. Students learn the theory and strategy behind design, including how to use the design process successfully to explore and generate professional and contemporary responses covering specialist areas such as advertising, branding, editorial, typography, UX/UI, image making and motion graphics, through appropriate use of traditional and digital methods. Find out more here.