Program Overview

BA/BSc (Hons) International Digital Arts Top-Up

The BA/BSc (Hons) International Digital Arts Top-Up is a one-year course designed for students with prior learning experience. It allows students to join the School of Digital Arts (SODA) as a final year undergraduate student on the Digital Arts degree.

Course Overview

This course offers specialist routes in filmmaking, animation, photography, games art, games design, and web and user experience design. It aims to help students think creatively and respond to global innovations in the digital arts. The course expands and enhances critical and conceptual thinking, develops creative approaches, and helps students generate a deeper understanding of their own subject discipline and the wider global and creative professional digital arts sectors.

Course Information

As a student on this course, you will be based at the School of Digital Arts (SODA), a recent £35 million investment at Manchester Met. SODA aims to train the next generation of digital storytellers. The course features thematic module Co-Labs, which provide opportunities to work with other students from across the SODA community on industry-driven projects.

Features and Benefits

• Developing global perspectives and opportunities
• Active engagement of employers and industry partners
• Providing the skills and talent required for a dynamic set of sectors characterized by a fast and often disruptive pace of change

Accreditations, Awards, and Endorsements

The course has received an overall gold status in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF), meaning it is rated as an outstanding university for student experience.

Year 1

Core Modules

• Global Digital Arts: Cultures, Contexts & Methods
• International Digital Arts Creative Project

Option Modules

• Creative Methodologies (Animation)
• Creative Methodologies (Filmmaking)
• Creative Methodologies (Games Art)
• Creative Methodologies (Games Design)
• Creative Methodologies (Photography)
• Creative Methodologies (Web and User Experience Design)
• Major Film Project
• What is Work in a Digital World?
• Indie Game Development
• Games for Good
• Final Project
• Creative Practice Collaborative Project
• Creative Collaborations
• Applied Practice 2
• Applied Research Project 2
• Collaborative Games Studio Practice
• Collaborative Project
• Community and Industry Research Project

Study and Assessment

• Year 1: 40% lectures, seminars, or similar; 60% independent study
• Year 1: 100% coursework

Additional Information

The SODA curriculum is designed to provide the skills and talent required for a dynamic set of sectors characterized by a fast and often disruptive pace of change.

Entry Requirements

Portfolio

A portfolio of creative work is required as part of the application.

UK Students

• 240 credits earned through recent completion of a Foundation Degree, Advanced Diploma, HND (merit or above), the first two years of a Degree, or equivalent
• An online interview with a portfolio is normally requested as part of the application process

International Students

• International students will be required to achieve an IELTS score of 6.0 with no component less than 5.5, or an equivalent accepted English language qualification
• Country-specific entry requirements apply

Fees and Funding

Tuition fees for the 2026/27 academic year are still being finalized. Information on 2025/26 standard undergraduate fees for UK/Channel Islands and EU/Non-EU international students is available.

Careers Support and Prospects

• 88.7% of UK-domiciled, full-time, first-degree graduates are employed or in further study 15 months after graduation
• The course is designed to provide students with the highest graduate prospects through engagement with industry partners and external activities
• Career aspirations include immersive experience designers, artists, visual interaction designers, creative technologists, extended reality designers, design strategists, user experience researchers, design managers, creative directors, brand managers, and technology consultants

Your City, Your Community, Your Campus

Life in Manchester offers an inspiring and welcoming setting for studies, with a history of driving progress and a diverse community of bold creatives, sport obsessives, and pioneers in science, engineering, health, education, business, and law.

Related Courses

• BA (Hons) Animation
• BA (Hons) Photography
• BA (Hons) Games Art
• BSc (Hons) Games Design

Disclaimers

• The program undergoes an annual review and major review (normally at 6-year intervals) to ensure an up-to-date curriculum supported by the latest online learning technology
• The Manchester Metropolitan University is regulated by the Office for Students (OfS)