Graphic Design
BFA, MFA

Design School Site [1]

As the design of visual environments plays an increasingly important role in today's culture, the Program in Graphic Design prepares students for a wide range of professional options-from Web design and motion graphics to editorial design and environmental graphics, from film title and broadcast design to exhibitions and careers in education. The program emphasizes both practical and conceptual skills and enables each designer to integrate a command of visual language with imagination, theory and new technology.

The highly structured BFA curriculum begins with an intensive sequence of courses covering basic design principles, imagemaking, typography and history/theory. These are followed by more specialized classes in areas such as interactive design, motion graphics, type design and publication design as each year in residence builds on the experiences of the last. BFA students are required to pass faculty reviews at the end of every academic year.

The MFA curriculum, dedicated to the advanced exploration of theory, methodology and practice, helps designers develop a personal direction within the wider context of design practice. The curriculum consists of a two-year sequence of weekly seminars where studio projects are critiqued. Courses focus on subjects such as type design, motion graphics, theory, writing and Web design. A third year in residence may be required for students with non-design backgrounds. During the final year in residence, MFA candidates must present a major final project and pass a faculty review of this work.