Course overview

This Master's degree provides a new learning opportunity for those wishing to develop highly-focused skills in the creative technologies. It is a project-based programme that allows you to define the work and the themes that you want to focus on, whilst we provide the expertise and support to help you realise your own potential. Emphasis is placed on implementation, evaluation and reflecting on subject-related issues, whilst building technological expertise. You will also individually negotiate your project programme with our highly knowledgeable and enthusiastic staff, who are drawn from both academia and industry.

At the University of Portsmouth you will enjoy a supportive and friendly atmosphere allowing you to settle quickly into your studies. Help and guidance are readily available through a strong system of subject tutors. The University has a long and distinguished record of running successful degree courses and prides itself on working at the leading edge of technology.

School of Creative Technologies

The School of Creative Technologies was formed in 2002 as a focus for developing courses for industries where a wide range of innovative technologies have an increasing impact. The aim of the department is to promote critical awareness of the integration and application of these technologies to produce innovative digital products to a professional standard, using a wide range of industry-standard software.

Is this the right course for me?

This course should be of interest to those who wish to develop the academic and professional skills required to pursue a career in computer animation industries. As well as animation graduates, the course is designed for those who have a computing background or a degree (or equivalent) in the arts and who have sufficient computing experience. Applicants with experience in the animation field, who wish to gain formal qualifications, may also find the course suitable.

Course content

The course itself consists of five units, spread over three phases.

• Primary Empirical Techniques for Original Research (taught) covers research methods.
• Professional Development (taught) looks at planning and managing development projects.
• Project Definition (self-directed) covers specifying the project's scope and plan.
• Project Research Development (self-directed) critical review of existing work.
• Project Resolution (self-directed) enables you to develop and evaluate a project artefact.

The taught core units underpin the principles of conducting research, as well as organising and managing projects, whilst you simultaneously negotiate with a supervisor to define your self-directed project plan and deliverables. This is followed by a project research and prototyping phase, in which you establish the viability of your approach before the final project resolution. In the latter phase, you complete your significant artefact and write a research or technical report to a publishable standard.

Teaching and assessment

You can choose to study this course on a full or part-time basis. The full-time programme is one calendar year in length – typically early October to mid September. Taught units (where appropriate) are studied in the period from October until February and the period February to September is when all Master's students undertake the final two phases of their project work.

Studying on the taught part-time mode will typically take two years. Attendance for the taught part of the programme in the first period of the first year is required for at least one day per week. Attendance for the project-based units (year one, period two onwards) will be less intensive and therefore determined by you in conjunction with your project supervisor and project unit coordinator, who may specify other events that require attendance.

Attendance days will depend on your stage of study and access to other taught resources. However, it is not always possible to arrange assessments (e.g. presentations) on the normal attendance day and so you may, on occasion, be required to attend at times other than your normal times.

Career prospects

Graduates are well positioned to pursue careers in the entertainment industries, such as animation, visual effects in television/film and gaming, as well as careers in industries requiring visual simulation expertise, such as scientific exploration and historical or military case scenario representations.

Facilities and features

By coming to Portsmouth you will experience a lively and modern learning environment with lectures, tutorials and web-based learning sessions. During your Master's degree you will participate in a range of technical and creative activities, whilst having access to a large-scale immersive 3D virtual reality system, games research laboratories, analogue and digital sound studios, a surround sound studio, as well as industry-standard multimedia, video-editing and post-production hardware and software.

You will also have access to our recently extended library. Open from 8am until midnight every day during term-time, it provides a variety of information to help with study and research. It has also invested heavily in the purchase of electronic resources. There are thousands of electronic journals available, together with over 43,000 ebooks, which can be accessed across campus, from home or wherever there is an internet connection.

Entry requirements

The entry requirements for MSc Computer Animation are shown above, for more detailed information please contact:

Department: School of Creative Technologies (CT)
Tel: +44 (0)23 9284 2421
Email: create.admissions@port.ac.uk