Diploma in Professional Studies
The Diploma in Professional Studies (DPS) is an optional year-long experiential learning opportunity, allowing you to undertake a variety of internships and professional experiences for a whole academic year in Year 3, as part of a four-year degree.
Professional practice and experiential learning
The Diploma in Professional Studies, in LCC's Design School, has been designed to allow you to learn in the most exciting and dynamic manner, alongside established industry practitioners in live situations in studios, galleries and on collaborative projects both in the UK and abroad.
You will be supported to develop a variety of national and international professional opportunities, allowing you to experiment with future career possibilities and to develop a clearer understanding of professional practice.
Your work-based learning will occur in a huge variety of ways and forms. Most commonly your practice will take place in studios across the world but you will also be encouraged to be enterprising and take on freelance briefs, self-initiated projects, set up exhibitions and volunteer your skills to world charities.
Students from the Diploma in Professional Studies have worked with organisations such as:
- Apple Headquarters (California, USA)
- Adidas Headquarters (Germany)
- Research Studios (London, Barcelona, and Berlin)
- Channel 4
- Museum of Modern Art, NYC
- Tate Publishing
- KesselsKramer (Amsterdam)
- Pentagram (London, Berlin, and NYC)
- Selfridges Design Department
- Thomas Matthews
- Landor Associates (Shanghai and Beijing)
- IDEO (San Francisco)
- Airside Nippon (Tokyo)
DPS student stories
Krafty – German Kraft Brewery
A new business start-up from a trio of LCC's Design in Professional Studies students has emerged as part of Mercarto Metropolitano, the Milan-style street food market at Elephant & Castle.
Isle of Dogs
LCC student Caitlin Jedski worked as Assistant Graphic Designer on Wes Anderson's Isle of Dogs during her Diploma in Professional Studies (DPS) year at LCC.
Global Design Awards
BA (Hons) Graphic and Media Design and DPS alumna Shaz Madani was nominated for a Global Design Award at the Design Museum for her creative direction of Riposte Magazine, 2015
DPS students at Pentagram
We hear from BA (Hons) Graphic and Media Design students Marion and Miguel about their DPS year interning at the design consultancy Pentagram.
Which courses offer DPS?
The Diploma in Professional Studies is offered on the following courses within the Design School:
- BA (Hons) Design for Art Direction
- BA (Hons) Design for Branded Spaces
- BA (Hons) Design Management
- BA (Hons) Graphic Branding and Identity
- BA (Hons) Graphic and Media Design
- BA (Hons) Illustration and Visual Media
- BA (Hons) Interaction Design Arts
- BA (Hons) User Experience Design
Selection criteria
The stand-alone Diploma is optional and designed to complement your University-based education and provide a contrast to academic study.
This programme is offered after two years of study in the third year prior to completing the fourth and final year of an undergraduate degree. Students are selected for the course as course numbers are capped. Student achievement and past performance are taken into consideration.
DPS alumni
Shana Lohrey
Alumni, BA (Hons) Illustration and Visual Media
Peter Roden
Alumni, BA (Hons) Graphic and Media Design
Corin Kennington
Alumni, BA (Hons) Graphic Media Design
Simon Phan
Alumni, BA (Hons) Illustration and Visual Media
Aydin Mustafa
Alumni, BA (Hons) Graphic and Media Design
Rebecca McCray
Alumni, BA (Hons) Interaction Design Arts
Marion Bisserier
Alumni, BA (Hons) Graphic and Media Design
Tomas Clarkson
Alumni, BA (Hons) Graphic and Media Design
Gallery
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Verity Lee co-launched InFocus, a social impact consultancy firm in 2018 during her internship year with Jasper Wilkins. http://www.infocusorg.com -
DPS students regularly attend design conferences in India, South Africa and all over Europe during their year of professional practice. Kyoorius Design in India is attended annually by DPS students. -
DPS student Beth Johnson took part in a United Nations (UN) convention to combat desertification in China, after being involved in the Great Green Wall project. Beth was employed by the UN, to work on the identity of the project: https://www.unccd.int/actions/great-green-wall-initiative -
DPS student Beth Johnson was employed by the United Nations to work on the identity for their Great Green Wall project. -
Calum Copley set up the Registration Summer School in Deptford after taking part in European typographic summer schools during DPS. Callum won a UAL Creative Enterprise award for his work. -
Ricky Knowles experimented with an interactive road crossing during his DPS year. A year later he set up studio Mortar Pestle. -
DPS student Oli East worked closely with Chris Chapman, design director at Droga5 during the summer of 2017 to produce the iconic and award-winning Coal Drops Yard visual identity. -
Alba Gomez Urquia undertook a paid LCC DPS technical traineeship for a term during her DPS year, developing her printmaking and teaching skills in the LCC Printmaking and Book Arts Workshops. -
Peter Roden created a typographic bar of chocolate which secured him a range of internships during his internship year, from Why Not Associates to a studio in Sao Paulo. -
DPS illustrator Omar Hernandez Del Canto initiated and curated an exhibition of illustrations and sounds at LCC entitled “Beyond 2001: New Horizons” to mark the 50th anniversary of Kubrick’s 2001 Space Odyssey. -
DPS illustrator Matteo Salomoni interning at Paint Freaks and collaborating with a series of other graffiti and mural artists at a skate park. -
DPS Designer Tom Baber was commissioned by Its Nice that / Lecture in Progress to design the front cover of a newspaper which explored the single most important attribute that a designer can have: Perseverance. -
DPS illustrator Shana Pagano-Lohrey working on an animation in the Calais Jungle in summer of 2017.
Staff
Sarah Temple
Course Leader, Diploma in Professional Studies
Christopher Lutterodt-Quarcoo
Associate Lecturer, BA (Hons) Design Management
Laura Vent
Lecturer, Diploma in Professional Studies
Maureen Salmon
Senior Lecturer, Design School
DPS projects
Coal Drops Yard
DPS student Oli East worked closely with Chris Chapman, design director at Droga5 during the summer of 2017 to produce the iconic and award-winning Coal Drops Yard visual identity.