Proximity to London helps drive success for UK’s only graphic design course in world’s top ten

“Being 25-minutes by train from the world’s creative capital means we’re easy to get to for industry and visiting lecturers – who play pivotal roles in our students’ success,” explains Rich Mitchell, senior lecturer on the Graphic Design BA (Hons) programme at the University of Hertfordshire.

Herts has just had its graphic design programme ranked not just the best in the UK -again – but fifth overall in the world. It has some 4,000 students based in London.

The World Brand Design Society Awards received hundreds of entries, shortlisting 109 of them. Herts was ranked fifth across all global entries in the Global Design Education category.

Herts was the only UK entry to make it into the global top 10, which features three US entries, two Russian, and three other European institutions. San Diego City College is first in the rankings.

The University’s student have won over 30 prestigious awards in the last three years in this discipline – is no stranger to success in graphic design, having previously been ranked first in the UK in the World Brand Design Society, Student Design Awards for the past two years.

The Daily Mail University Guide, 2025 ranks Herts ninth in the UK for art.

Rich Mitchell is a senior lecturer on the Graphic Design BA (Hons) programme, who has worked as an art director in the advertising industry for accounts such as Fosters Lager, The Guardian and Pizza Express, and as a designer for some of the world’s biggest record labels including Universal, Virgin-EMI, SONY Entertainment and Mercury.

He said:

“We’re increasingly known as a course that produces graduates who not only have killer craft skills, but who understand how to generate brilliant and relevant ideas based on in-depth research and clever strategy, and it’s what helps us attract an envious portfolio of recent collaborators including Design Studio, Droga 5, Turner Duckworth, PRADA and Yale University.

“We’re thrilled to be recognised again this year in the World Brand Design Society Awards, and our ongoing success means that more and more we’re able to attract visiting lecturers and course collaborators who are pioneers in the field. They work alongside our full-time staff and play a crucial role in helping to mentor and motivate our students to produce brilliant work.

“As well as the world-class facilities our students have access to, they’re part of a course that is constantly being reimagined to stay at the forefront of graphic design, branding and advertising practices. From briefs, to technology, to ways-of-working; we make it our goal to produce graduates who have the skills, professionalism and emotional intelligence to be able to thrive at the highest levels of industry”

Alumni of the University of Hertfordshire’s School of Creative Arts are gaining recognition in the most prestigious creative arenas around the world.

Three graduates from its Model Design programme played a key role in the creation of the Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl film. The film was the second most-watched TV event on Christmas Day 2024, with nearly 10 million viewers and has since been nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Feature.

Herts alumnus Hamid Ibrahim, who graduated in 3D Animation and Visual Effects in 2017, worked on Disney’s The Lion King, and helped create the Disney+ series Iwájú. Hamid is now becoming a Herts’ Entrepreneur in Residence (EiR), meaning he will return to support students, alumni, and staff by mentoring university start-ups.

The School of Creative Arts at Hertfordshire has become a beacon of success with one of the UK’s very few courses in Music Composition and Sound for Film and Games, for example. It is also launching Propeller Stage One, a cutting-edge film studio designed to deliver top-tier training in creative and technical skills for the booming film and TV industry.

The university’s Dean of the School of Creative Arts, Stephen Partridge, added:

“The University of Hertfordshire is a world-ranked leader in many disciplines, yet some will be surprised by our ranking: they absolutely should not be. Our success is well-established.

“Our graduates enter into a multitude of careers and industries due to our courses providing them with a wide variety of transferable skills and experiences. They have an excellent record of gaining employment.

“We’ve ensured our programmes are relevant to the world of work through active links with regional employers across a range of industries and professions.

“The global success of our graduates exemplifies how creative arts education enables amazing careers, impacting people’s lives broadly and deeply.

“Art keeps us alive. Colleagues throughout the School are immensely proud of our students and our graduates.”

The University of Hertfordshire is ranked first for overall student positivity in the East of England in the National Student Survey (NSS) 2024 and top five overall in the in the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) 2024, both for the second year running.