| Program start date | Application deadline |
| 2023-09-01 | - |
| 2024-03-01 | - |
Program Overview
The Illustration programme at the University of Europe for Applied Sciences (UE) combines the classic arts such as painting, drawing and graphic art with the fascination of current design with the help of modern, digital techniques. Illustrations visualize complex content in newspapers, magazines, infographics, advertisements, posters, websites, and apps. They tell stories in picture books and comics and create entire films or virtual worlds in storyboards and concept arts.
Program Outline
They study and deepen the art of drawing not only as a professional foundation but also as an elementary cultural technique for communication and idea generation. In a creative atmosphere, you will learn artistic and application-oriented, experimental and classical, analog and digital working methods of painting, drawing and printmaking and how to apply them professionally. As an illustration student, you will tell stories, illustrate books or create entire films in comics and storyboards.
Your lecturers and professors are internationally working illustrators and artists who will share their experiences from their professional practice with you. Illustration is a young, growing programme of studies, which with its lecturers from the practice, the integrated semester abroad or practical semester and a variety of elective modules as well as interdisciplinary seminars will give you the best possible start into the profession of an artist.
We have cooperations with e.g. Reporters without Borders, Botanical Museum Berlin, Bioeconomy Council of the Federal Government, Charité Berlin, Theater an der Parkaue and many more. And also offers creative guest lectures and workshops with artists like Cannaday Chapman and Oliver Kugler.
The bachelor's degree in Illustration
-
Due to the development of digital media, working methods, requirements, technical workflows and application ranges are also subject to constant change. Nevertheless, the art of drawing is indispensable as a technical basis; and as an elementary cultural technique for communication and brainstorming. To illustrate means to invent pictures, to develop your own visual language, experiment, think visually and work. But it also means translating texts into graphic ideas, researching a wide variety of topics, finding adequate solutions and always staying curious.
In the bachelor's degree in Illustration at our university, you will learn exclusively from renowned lecturers from the creative industry and you can use the professional equipment of the UE for analog and digital technologies for your study projects. The focus of our teaching is your individual development in small study groups and a friendly, familiar and creative atmosphere. Through our interdisciplinary selection of subjects, a large number of practical projects and a semester abroad or internships; you can actively shape your studies and your career path.
Career options with a degree in Illustration
Illustrators see themselves as artistic partners of editorial offices, advertising agencies, design offices, publishing houses, museums, and game and film productions. They are not only in demand as service providers but also contribute their ideas, experience and creative attitude in an advisory capacity. They usually work as freelancers. The language of images is universal - that's why the world is open to illustrators.
Depending on specialization and inclination, the range of tasks ranges from children's book illustrations, from magazine pages to advertising campaigns, infographics to scientific illustration, and from packaging design to concept art for computer games. Especially in comics, graphic novels, animation films and other, artistically freer projects, illustrators appear as independent authors.
Possible salary in Germany after studying Illustration
If you work as an illustrator after studying illustration, your salary depends on various factors. For example, it makes a difference whether you have completed creative training or a special degree, whether you work as an employee or freelancer and, above all, in which industry you work and what experience you have gained so far.
In the advertising industry, salaries are generally higher than in the press and publishing industries. As a starting salary in a permanent position, you can expect to earn around 2,000 to 2,300 euros gross per month after graduation. According to StepStone, experienced illustrators in Germany earn an average of around 2,700 euros, while gehalt.de speaks of 3,000 euros per month.
Freelance illustrators receive an hourly wage of around 50-150 euros, depending on the industry and experience, although the Association of Illustrators (IO) recommends a wage of at least 60 euros per hour.