BA in Textile Design

Our BA (Hons) Textile Design degree course nurtures fresh thinking and industry-ready creatives through a dynamic and carefully structured three-year programme.

Studying with us will provide you with the skills, insights and experiences required to succeed in a broad scope of professional textile-related roles. By the end of your degree, you will have a clear vision of where you fit in the industry and a tailored professional portfolio to take with you.

Our brand new hub for the arts in the thriving Eastside of the city has been purpose-built to stimulate creative minds within an open-access, contemporary studio environment. You will become a part of our lively and close-knit student community and be guided by an experienced and passionate team of staff who value the importance of getting to know you as an individual.

What's covered in this course?

The programme reflects the diversity of contemporary textile practice. We pride ourselves not only on the quality of our graduates but also on the diversity of their work. We want you to be you!

Find your direction

With creativity at the heart of learning, you will develop the core design and technical skills while gaining vital professional and industry awareness. The course is brimming with choice points to help you focus your experience as you clarify your personal interests.

You will be introduced to wide-ranging textile processes within the core technical areas of print, weave, knit and embroidery and embrace both digital technologies and traditional craft skills. The exciting potential of cross-disciplinary practice is supported and encouraged, giving you the option to either specialise or combine disciplines to take forward as your means of expression.

Career-focused teaching and industry involvement is designed to support you in identifying professional aspirations from the breadth of opportunity within the textile design and help you to further tailor your learning and portfolio towards them.

Having developed a distinctive and career-focused portfolio through the course, our unique Next Step module at the end of the final year bridges the gap between study and industry, allowing you time to put relevant strategies in place to help you achieve your ambitions with the support of the university network.

Professional placement year

This course offers a professional placement year. This allows you to spend a whole year with an employer, between the second and third years of your degree and is a great way to find out more about your chosen career. Some students even return to the same employers after completing their studies.

The University will draw on its extensive network of local, regional and national employers to support you in finding a suitable placement to complement your chosen area of study. If you do not find a suitable placement, you will be automatically transferred back to the standard, non-placement version of the course.

Please note that fees are payable during your placement year, equivalent to 20% of the total full-time course fee for that year (£1,850 for UK students).

Why choose us?

You are supported every step of the way! Our friendly academic and technical teams will encourage your creative individuality. Personal tutorials ensure you can regularly discuss your progress and career aspirations. Our cutting-edge facilities comprise industry-standard technology and equipment to ensure you are developing professionally relevant skills and awareness. Our experienced and award-winning lecturers have extensive and wide-ranging insights to share with you, gained from key roles in the industry or their experience working as practitioners. Live briefs expose you to leaders in the design field and help you develop important collaborative skills and industry networks. We support you in entering key national competitions such as the Bradford Textile Society Design Competition, Hand & Lock Prize for Embroidery and IDOTT to get your CV looking sharp. We invite esteemed and influential guest speakers from broad areas of the industry to inspire you. Module timescales are aligned with the industry pace, to ensure you are fully prepared to step into the world of work.

With around 29,000 students from 100 countries, (HESA Student Record 2020/21 © Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited) Birmingham City University is a large and diverse place to study. We put students at the heart of everything we do, giving them the best opportunities for future success.

The University for Birmingham

We put £270 million into the regional economy and support thousands of jobs in the area. We're investing £340 million in our estate, including a major expansion of our city-centre campus at Eastside, providing students with an enviable range of facilities.

Social responsibility

At Birmingham City University we are committed to transforming students’ lives and enhancing opportunity through education and advancement. We play a key role in supporting the economy and public sector in Birmingham and the West Midlands, as the University for the city of Birmingham.

Whether developing research to enable people to lead healthier lives, decrease bullying in schools or help talented children in South Africa reach their musical potential, Birmingham City University undertakes a wide variety of work to ensure that we operate as a socially responsible University.

On Monday 17 September 2018, we announced that staff had voted for Acorn’s Children’s Hospice and Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid to be the University’s Chosen Charities.