Art and Design master’s programmes

Liverpool School of Art and Design is the oldest art school in England outside of London, opened in 1825. Since then, we have continued to deliver innovative world-class education and facilities for students.  

We offer a suite of masters programmes that combine theoretical and practical education with industry-specific professional development opportunities, utilising extensive relationships with external regional, national and international organisations. Delivered by specialist teaching staff and internationally recognised visiting practitioners, leading interdisciplinary research informs the curricula of each programme to provide a unique student learning experience.  

Applications are still open for programmes commencing in September 2023: 

Art in Science brings artists and scientists who are interested in the creative possibilities and speculative futures of the intersection of these two cultures together, to collaborate and explore art-science practice-based research opportunities. The programme cultivates specialist, transferable skills, and facilitates transdisciplinary learning opportunities that are not often available to those singly defined as ‘artists’ or “scientists”.

Exhibition Studies explores in practical and theoretical terms what constitutes an exhibition in the 21st century, stemming from exhibition histories and developments from the 19th century onwards. It considers the history and practice of exhibition culture, and mediation of practice in contexts such as galleries, museums, periodic exhibitions, and expanded spaces for art. It has working relationships with regional and international organisations and the university’s own Exhibition Research Lab, enriching student learning and development for future career progression.

Fashion Innovation & Realisation provides exciting opportunities to collaborate and explore the boundaries of Fashion. The programme recruits students who are ready to challenge the fashion industry socially, culturally and politically, forming individual project proposals which define existing practice and broaden its scope and ambition by addressing real-world issues which extend beyond graduation. A sequence of self-initiated projects provides opportunities for advancements, critical creativity, and encourages students to produce research and practice that may have a real-world benefit to society. 

Fine Art focuses on supporting students in developing their artistic practice, as a singular artistic voice. We grapple with key questions of art practice and its social and cultural contexts. Through a dynamic rhythm of experimenting, testing and presenting we unpack relationships between experience, ideas and artistic forms. Our students often work with visiting artists of our cultural partners. We have a rolling programme of visiting artists, curators and other art world figures to keep our students informed of current debates and practices. 

Graphic Design & Illustration is centred on the exploration of the cultural spaces within and around the constantly evolving professional industry. It has been specially designed to examine the individual relationship between research and practice, alongside the use of various craft, technology and production tools. Students explore the role of independent visual practice within the context of an increasingly post-disciplinary profession, and where to locate their own practice within diverse creative communities regionally, nationally and internationally.

Urban Design challenges students to create spaces that solve modern problems. In a world of rapidly rising and migrating populations, there is a palpable need for smarter approaches to city planning, adaptation and spatial design. The programme equips students to do this through the University’s burgeoning research in Urbanism—including close association with the University’s European Institute for Urban Affairs—alongside specialist teaching staff and a curriculum with creative place-making at its core.

MArch is a truly interdisciplinary and project-oriented programme of architectural study, balanced to address the creative and technical demands of the profession. Taught principally through a studio environment that is underpinned and informed by lectures and workshops, the over-arching ambition of the programme is to create graduates with artistic flair, who are technically skilled and grounded in the demands of the professional role of an architect; developing independent thinkers, adept at resolving problems with creativity and originality.

Masters in Architecture (MArch) is validated by the Royal Institute for British Architects.