Good design is at the heart of effective communication, especially in today’s distraction-laden world. As a Media Design major, you’ll learn to express your creativity through graphic design, text, photography, video, digital illustration and animation — and how to integrate these elements into impressive multimedia communication that captures attention and engages users. This exciting field is ideal for inventive, tech-savvy women who love to communicate through digital and traditional media.
This flexible interdisciplinary major allows you to blend courses in media design, art, art history, creative arts and communication, and there’s room to customize further based upon your career interests. For example, you might use your 12 credits of electives for a minor in business to work in e-marketing or content development, or in history or art history if you want to work with museums, or in political science if you want to get involved in political campaigns or math if you plan to focus on infographics.
You’ll master the fundamentals of design and learn how to make beautiful, technically sophisticated digital media using creative tools from the Adobe Creative Cloud and other applications. You will expand your media design skills and cultural literacy through courses in digital and traditional arts, communication, art history, exhibition design and planning community events. Courses in self-employment, grant writing, internship and portfolio assessments advance your professional presentation skills.
As a media design major you will develop an expansive portfolio and the communication skills to present your wide range of media expertise. Because this major is rooted in interdisciplinary creative strategies you will develop confidence and fluency in the expression of your style and viewpoint across media. Your knowledge of design and communication theory will help you work in team settings to understand your audience and create useful media to meet the needs of diverse clients.
This versatile major prepares you for a variety of career paths. Depending on your area of interest, you might develop websites, create web content, design media in commercial spaces, theaters, museums or galleries, work on a video production team, plan or document special events though multi-media design or photography or run a social media campaign. Some of our graduates work for advertising agencies or marketing and communication departments of major companies and not for profit organizations, while others freelance in illustration or graphic design for a variety of clients.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Core Requirements | ||
| A-121 | Analytic Drawing | 3 |
| A-140G | Glass Forming | 1 |
| or A-140S | Special Projects | |
| A-146 | Self Employment in the Arts | 1 |
| A-147 | Grant Writing for Artists & Educators | 1 |
| A-189S | Form and Space | 4 |
| or FA-112 | Intro to the Arts: Digital Art | |
| A-364 | Digital Photography | 3 |
| A-384 | Art Gallery Mgt & Social Media | 1 |
| AHS-251 | Pages Through Time: Art of the Book | 4 |
| AHS-409 | Modern & Contemporary Art | 3 |
| MDIA-130 | Aesthetic Engagement Ext Assessmnt Lev 1 | 0 |
| MDIA-134 | 2-D Design | 3 |
| MDIA-193C | MDIA in the Professions | 2 |
| MDIA-230 | Aesthetic Engagement Ext Assessmnt Lev 2 | 0 |
| MDIA-234 | 3-D Design | 3 |
| MDIA-262 | Graphic Designs & Illustration | 3 |
| MDIA-330 | Aesthetic Engagement Ext Assessmnt Lev 3 | 0 |
| MDIA-359 | Digital Art for MDIA Majors | 3 |
| MDIA-381 | Content Development Media Design | 3 |
| MDIA-395 | Ext Assessmnt Aesthetic Engagement Lev 4 | 0 |
| MDIA-399 | Formal Introduction to Advanced Work | 0 |
| MDIA-400 | Ext Assessmnt Aesthetic Engagement Lev 5 | 0 |
| MDIA-401 | New Media | 3 |
| MDIA-450 | Ext Assessmnt Aesthetic Engagement Lev 6 | 0 |
| MDIA-482 | Ext Assmnt of Effective Citzenship Lvl 4 | 0 |
| MDIA-491 | Media Design Senior Art Semina | 1 |
| Elective Requirements | ||
| COMM Electives | Take 9 credits from COMM options, excluding: COMM-230, COMM-380, COMM-490 | 9 |
| MDIA Elective | Choice of Media Electives | 5 |
| A Elective | Art (A) Elective, 300 or 400 level | 3-4 |
| Additional Assessment/Courses | ||
| A-100 | Community Art/Design Midsemester (Take A-100 each semester for total of 8X) | 0 |
| INTERN-383 | Internship Seminar | 2 |
| ELECTIVE | Choose Electives to enhance your degree, or declare a Minor | 12-18 |
| Total Credits | 73-80 | |