School of Design
School of
Design
Overview
The School of Design is ranked among the best, with Business Week naming it one of the top 10 design schools in the country. Effective design combined with creativity and professionalism are the school’s tenets. Using both technological and theoretical approaches to find solutions to design problems, students work with award-winning faculty who are creatives, critical thinkers, and innovative problem-solvers. Students have access to state-of-the art laboratories and computer facilities as well as the Cary Graphic Arts Collection and the entire archive of renowned designers Massimo and Lella Vignelli, housed in RIT’s Vignelli Center for Design Studies.
6
Number of designs from the industrial design program’s Metaproject senior studio that are currently in production through various companies.
12
Our Fab Lab is equipped with 12 3D printers - in addition to laser cutting and CNC routing technology - to complete submitted projects by students, faculty, and staff.
20
Faculty are professional members or affiliates of more than 20 national, international, and local organizations.
Latest News
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July 9, 2020
![Professor Josh Owens sitting on sofa.]()
Josh Owen named director of RIT’s Vignelli Center for Design Studies
Josh Owen, an internationally renowned designer, author and faculty-researcher who has led RIT’s industrial design program to national prominence since coming to the university a decade ago, has been named the new director of the Vignelli Center for Design Studies and the Massimo and Lella Vignelli Distinguished Professor of Design.
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June 30, 2020
![series of three man wearing cooling vest and putting on a shirt over it.]()
Local "ThermApparel" inventors hope to keep people cool amid COVID-19
FOX Rochester talks to Kurtis Kracke ’15 (industrial design), co-founder of ThermApparel, which created a cooling vest to help those who are sensitive to the heat.
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June 25, 2020
![Sue Butler and Tracy Till]()
RIT’s Saunders College of Business names Butler/Till co-founders recipients of 2020 Vanden Brul Award
Two visionaries in the fields of advertising, marketing and communications have been named co-recipients of the 2020 Herbert W. Vanden Brul Entrepreneurial Award, presented by RIT’s Saunders College of Business. Sue Butler and Tracy Till are the first joint female recipients in the award’s 35-year history.
Featured Work
Designing a Product Showcase
RIT’s Interior Design Exhibition and Merchandising studio course was invited by WantedDesign and partner manufacturers to curate the WantedDesign Interiors exhibition as part of New York Design Week...
Townimals
Cynthia Muniz
Patient Pug
Ethan Constant
new drink
Undergraduate Programs
Innovative and creative design solutions that enrich the ways in which people live, work, and play is the emphasis of the school’s undergraduate programs. The school offers BFA programs in 3D digital design, graphic design, industrial design, interior design, and new media design.
Graduate Programs
The School of Design offers two MFA programs — one in visual communication design and another in industrial design. The MFA in visual communication design focuses on all areas of design, including graphic design, user experience/interaction design, design studies, motion graphics, and 3D digital design. The MFA in industrial design includes seminar courses in design history and research and studio courses focusing on sustainability and design process.
Minors and Immersions
Student Resources
For internal College of Art and Design resources such as academic information, forms, FAQs and more, visit inside.cad.rit.edu. For information about academic advising, visit here.