Michele Thompson
Michele has been teaching for over 20 years and has a first-class Honours degree in Interior Design. Her dissertation focused on rooms vs spaces and it's an area that still fascinates her.
In addition to being the Higher Education Academic Lead for the faculty, Michele is also programme leader for our FdA and BA Design programmes, which focus on the reality of the design industry.
Michele draws on an incredible 23 years of teaching experience in her role as our current programme leader for the FdA/BA Design programmes. A UCBB Fellow, she is dedicated to helping students forge their creative careers.
Michele is a UCBB alumnus, gaining her Level 3 in Art & Design qualification before going on to achieve a 1st class degree in Interior Design. She returned to the college to train for her PGCE, which she worked towards alongside her teaching.
Her career in education started as a part-time evening lecturer in Interior Design alongside working in the industry as an Interior Design assistant. Enjoying the experience, Michele went on to deliver daytime classes at the college, whilst also providing tutorial support for the first year Interior Design degree students at the University of Lincoln & Humberside.
Later, Michele made the move to become a full-time lecturer and programme leader, delivering sessions on Interior Design, specialising in Bathroom and Kitchen planning. She travelled up and down the country delivering sessions to students in the industry. Michele worked her way up to become the current programme leader for the FdA/BA Design programmes, and is also the HE Academic Lead for the creative programmes and teacher training provision at the college.
In addition to her extensive work inside the college, Michele also contributes to a range of outreach projects, including co-ordinating community seminar sessions at UCBB.
Boasting incredible industry experience, Michele managed several hotel interior design projects out in Ireland, including a large-scale hotel complex in County Sligo. Her time working as a professional designer has been invaluable for her students.
Teaching FdA and BA Design programmes are challenging, inspiring, and have a clear focus on real-world application.
“The FdA/BA Design programme focusses on the reality of the design industry,” Michele explains, “it’s about making space work. This means taking into account the spatial requirements for the activities that will be carried out in the space, working to a client brief, and making design theory work in practice.
I teach how to include the correct choice of materials and work within industry regulations, whilst still creating something unique and individual for the client. There are so many different aspects of the design industry, so there is a cross over between spatial design and graphic visual communication. The Design degree programmes allow you to develop skills which are relevant to industry and allow you to build a portfolio of work to demonstrate who you are as a designer.”