Certificate in Digital Media + Design

Design

Introduction to principles, elements, and processes or graphic design and typography, which are the building blocks of visual communication. The emphasis of this course is to provide students with an awareness of design principles, compositional, and typographic strategies applicable to the broader creative processes related to graphic design. Industry-standard technical skills related to digital software such as Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign are developed within this course.

Drawing + Digital Media

Introduction to drawing and digital processes related to photography, moving image, and concept design. Course content is designed to offer students an understanding of drawing practices as part of the graphic design workflow. Major projects for this course include digital photography and imaging, motion graphics, storyboarding, concept design, and drawing for comics. In parallel to developing an in-depth understanding of conceptualisation sequence, and professional practice, industry-standard technical skills related to digital software such as Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe After Effects are developed within this course.

Graphic Illustration

This is an introduction to illustration processes and techniques with a focus on the study of creative approaches to digital production and graphical styles. Students will select and experiment from a range of illustrative media and contemporary themes to develop technical skills related to rendering both analogue and digital.

Publication Design

This is an introduction to principles and processes of publication design with a focus on a specific audience. Students will develop an understanding of functionality in graphic design and compositional strategies related to page layout.

Workshops

Visual Research Workshop

A one-week block course with a focus on fundamental methods of visual recording, critical analysis, and experimental work-making. Students will explore and learn creative processes related to accessing and recording of information from various sources to build a visual reference bank which is an integral part of their art-making process.

Contextual Studies Workshop

A one-week block course with a focus on critical studies and collaborative work-making related to contextual themes. Students will have the opportunity to explore with the generation of creative concepts from a body of research that translates into a collaborative art and design project developed with their peers.

Portfolio Techniques Workshop

A one-week block course with a focus on portfolio design and exhibition practices. The course aims to provide students with an opportunity to bring together all creative works generated from the Certificate in Digital Media and Design programme to be collated into a conclusive showcase of their work.

NZ Government key information link for students, that provides more information to support your decision making for this programme

Domestic Student Entry Requirements:

• Completed application form
• Minimum Age: Students must turn 17 within their first year of study at Whitecliffe
• No portfolio required

International Student Entry Requirements:

• Completed application form
• Passport copy
• Minimum Age: Students must turn 18 within their first year of study at Whitecliffe
• IELTS Academic overall score of 5.5 with no band less than 5.0 or equivalent
• An interview may be required - this can be arranged via telephone or online
• No portfolio required

BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) Requirements:

Recently we have found ourselves working remotely due to COVID-19, we recommend that you have your own device to support your studies. The following specifications are intended to help you make the best choice of laptop, desktop or tablet for the job.

Recommended IT Specifications:

Minimum Hardware requirements 

• Mac - Intel processor with 64-bit support; 2 GHz or faster processor with SSE 4.2 or later
  OR 
• MacBook Air with M1 Chip 
  OR 
• Intel® or AMD processor with 64-bit support; 2 GHz or faster processor with SSE 4.2 or later 
• 8 GB RAM (Recommended 16 GB)   
• 250 GB SSD or higher hard drive with 10GB free space minimum    
• Wireless capability 802.11n dual-band    
• Up-to-date antivirus software    

Minimum Operating System     

• Windows 10 (64-bit) version 1809 or later; LTSC versions are not supported
  OR     
• Apple macOS Mojave (version 10.14) or later 
  AND Recommend
• A Wacom Intuos - small (USB drawing tablet needed for projects)
• May use Apple iPad Pro and pencil.

• Internet and data plan.    

Not Supported:    

• Chromebooks    
• Windows X or Windows S OS    
• Tablets (except Windows Surface Pro or iPad Pro) 

Israa Barghash, who was born and raised in Syria, enrolled in the Certificate in Digital Media & Design in July 2017 and is now a recent graduate, having completed the 18-week programme with high marks and a strong portfolio. She tells us about her background and her student learning experience at Whitecliffe.

Israa, whose home country is well-known for its architecture, food and the ancient cities of Palmyra and Mari says “I didn't integrate my culture with my studies at Whitecliffe. Instead, I took the opportunity to explore a lot of other cultures and social issues in my research and studies. For example, in the first workshop project, I explored the Tā moko tattoos of Māori. For another workshop about activism, I chose the topic of suicide and the effect it has on people and society.”

She chose the Certificate in Digital Design & Media because she wanted to learn new skills as well as digital design techniques - “Whitecliffe encouraged me to research and develop creative and interesting projects, to develop my critical-thinking and design practice, and to build my portfolio step-by-step.” She continues, “what I really enjoyed about the learning environment was how the students were interested in similar things and were all taught methods for thinking creatively and as individuals. The supportive environment gave us all the confidence to show our work.”

Whitecliffe “is an inspiring place, which gives students the resources to build on their own ideas and excel in their area of study. Completing the programme with this skill level has opened a lot of doors for me professionally already - I have been asked to design websites and design café menus. It is such a huge thing for me that gives me great pleasure and I am very grateful to Whitecliffe.”

As for the future, Israa will continue to practice and develop her skills and keep up with her research of designs and designers. She hopes to build her knowledge towards studying architecture.