About Our Programs

The School of Design | Undergraduate Programs | Graduate Programs


The School of Design

In the School of Design, undergraduates can concentrate on either communication design where they learn effective presentation of ideas and information by means of type and image or industrial design where they concentrate on producing products, devices and designs that support and enhance human interactions.

Graduate students can earn a degree in interaction design, studying the way people use and interact with technology, or communication planning and design, a joint program with the Department of English that explores the verbal and visual aspects of communication design.

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Undergraduate Programs

BFA Communication Design
We define communication design as the effective presentation of ideas and information by means of type and image, whether print or digital. We emphasize a problem-solving approach to effective and expressive communication informed by an understanding of the social and cultural dimensions of communication.

BFA Industrial Design
The Industrial Design program equips designers with the ability to produce products, devices, and designs that support and enhance human interactions. We emphasize a design process composed of user testing, observation, and modeling, while preserving the richness of the visual and formal traditions in the field.

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Graduate Programs

MDes Interaction Design
Interaction design concerns itself with the way people use and interact with technology: in software, appliances, new media, and information spaces. We emphasize a collaborative design process that incorporates the skills of communication design, industrial design, cognitive psychology, and computer science, among others.

MDes Communication Planning & Information Design
Communication planning and information design, a joint program with the Department of English, explores both the verbal and the visual aspects of communication design. With an emphasis on strategic planning, the program prepares designers to offer clients strategies and artifacts most appropriate for both their needs and those of their audience.

PhD Programs in Design
A new set of doctoral programs has been developed for advanced study of critical issues of and research into design theory, interaction design, typography and information design, and new product development.

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