Graphic Design and Illustration
The program Graphic Design and Illustration is for those who want to work with illustration, graphic design, animation, games or visual communication. Here you lay the foundation for a creative profession where image, storytelling and ideas are at the center.
You work both analogically and digitally with drawing, painting, collage, typography and layout. The teaching begins with basic courses in illustration, graphic design and typography, and continues with projects where you develop your visual idea, your process and your personal expression. You also receive an introduction to professional image and design programs, such as Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and simpler animation tools.
The work takes the form of assignments, tutorials, briefings and presentations, with a strong focus on the artistic process – from idea to finished result. You practice sketching, experimenting, discussing and reflecting on your work.
During the year you meet guest teachers who are professional illustrators, designers and animators, and you make study visits to agencies, studios and galleries. The education concludes with larger projects where different elements are woven together and where you develop works that can become part of your portfolio for further studies.
Subjects
Illustration – 10.4 weeks
Drawing and painting – 6 weeks
Graphic design – 10.6 weeks
Photography with digital photo editing – 3 weeks
Material studies – 3 weeks
Final project – 4.4 weeks
Lectures in art and design – 0.8 weeks
Group dynamics – 0.8 weeks
FAQ
- Do I need to have prior knowledge of digital programs in order to study Graphic Design and Illustration?
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You do not need to have prior knowledge of these or other digital tools. We have Adobe Creative Cloud and train the students in image and graphic design in Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator in particular.
Likewise, the extra mandatory work sample task does not have to be done with digital tools.
- What eligibility do I need to have in order to apply for your programs?
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We have no formal eligibility requirements for grades. Our supervisory authority Swedish National Agency for Higher Vocational Education leaves this matter of eligibility requirements very open. We have formulated ourselves fairly openly based on the interpretation of the authority’s directive: In order to apply for course entrance at Nyckelviksskolan, the applicant must have upper secondary school qualifications (high school education), equivalent education or have gained a certain amount of work experience.
- Are your courses eligible for student aid?
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Study funds are granted for the one-year programs at what CSN calls post-upper secondary level. Our educations are categorized as Arts and Culture courses by CSN. The quota for study funds for studies at so-called post-upper secondary level is a total of two years (80 weeks) if you have a three-year upper secondary education or the equivalent previously.
The total number of weeks you have to apply for student funding applies to both grants and student loans. This means that even if you do not take out a loan for all the weeks, but only take the grant, the weeks are counted as used.
For studies at university level, the maximum period for study support is 240 weeks. This quota applies to those who apply to the two-year Specialist Craft Tutor program. The Specialist Craft Tutor program is also categorized as Arts and Culture course though.
For the academic year 2026-27, if you who are a student and born in 2007 or later, you can choose for yourself whether you want to take study aid (right now it is a small grant – SEK 1,250/month) or whether you want to apply for study funds with grants and loans. If you take study aid, you can also apply for extra supplements and / or boarding supplements via CSN.
- Do you have accommodation at the school, boarding school?
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The school does not have boarding, but we receive many offers on available rooms and apartments, especially on Lidingö, and are happy to pass them on to interested students. We send out housing ads and give tips on how our students can most easily find somewhere to live.
Nyckelviksskolan’s student union is connected to Stockholm’s students’ central organization (SSCO) and you can get help arranging accommodation through SSCO. All students are connected to Nyckelviksskolan’s student union. This gives them the right to live in student apartments that Stockholm Student Housing (SSSB) has. Read more: www.sssb.se/en
Akademisk kvart is a housing portal that directly addresses students. Academic quarter strives to provide live-in and second-hand solutions that have a reasonable rent level in relation to students’ general finances. Read more: https://www.akademiskkvart.se/en/
Everyone who studies in art and culture education has the right to live in Kista Studentbostäder, which is mediated by Stockholms Bostadsförmedling (The Stockholm Housing Agency). However, some other student housing managers do not approve our type of education to live there.
- Do you have to pay tuition fees or semester fees for your programs?
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Many Arts and Culture courses are only partially financed by state grants. The student must pay tuition fees (or semester fees).
The semester fee for the academic year 2026-27 is SEK 19,950, i.e. SEK 39,900 for the entire academic year. The sum includes, among other things, the material that you work with in the training. The fee is paid semesterly.
If you are applying for student financing, you may also apply for an additional cost loan for the tuition fee if necessary.
- How are your programs categorized?
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We are between high school and university. Nyckelviksskolan provides one-year university preparation programs (40 weeks) in art, crafts, architecture and design as well as a two-year vocational Art and Craft Pedagogy program (80 weeks). Our programs are formally called Arts and Culture courses (Konst- och kulturutbildningar) and we are under the supervision of the Swedish National Agency for Higher Vocational Education.
Please note that the vocational Art and Craft Pedagogy program is not a higher vocational education (YH), but an Arts and Culture course (Konst- och kulturutbildning).
- When do your programs start? When do the take place?
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We have the start of the academic year once a year, in mid-August. Next time we start on August 17, 2026.
The programs are full-time and the compulsory teaching takes place Monday to Friday at 9.00-15.45. In addition, there is time for self-study.
The academic year 2026-27 is August 17, 2026 to May 28, 2027. An academic year is 40 study weeks with 180 teaching days and 20 self-study days.
- Can you start working after these studies?
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Our one-year programs are university preparatory Art and culture programs (Konst- och kulturutbildningar). You are not finished after such an education with us. The educational paths are quite long in this area – art, craft, architecture and design. You get the necessary skills to be able to continue at a design school, art school or architecture school and three or five more years of study.
If you have architectural dreams, we have programs where you get the skills to enter an architectural bachelor program via Arkitektprovet (the Architect test).
We don’t just want to emphasize that our students go on to design, art and architecture university programs. In recent years, we have noticed that many higher education programs that our students are interested in lie in a borderland between creativity, design and technology. Examples of such are educations for game, web and digital application development as well as design engineering educations.
On the other hand, we have an Art and Craft Pedagogy program that leads to jobs, even if it is also an Art and Culture course (Konst- och kulturutbildning) and not a higher vocational education (YH). The Art and Craft Pedagogy program also does not give a teacher’s license if you want to work as an art or crafts teacher in school.