Co-op/
Internship Encouraged
Salary and Career Info
Medical Illustration BFA
In RIT’s medical illustration degree, you’ll take complex scientific and medical information and distill it into stunning visual images.
Program skills
Art and science are equally important elements of medical illustration, a specialized form of artistry that combines drawing with biomedical training. Students may take advantage of courses throughout the College of Imaging Arts and Sciences, studying photography, multimedia presentations, drawing, and medical sciences. Illustration projects are designed for use in print, broadcast media, and distribution via the web and mobile devices. The opportunity to observe doctors at work helps the student to comprehend, simplify, organize and communicate medical procedures. Medical illustration students gain an understanding of composition, design, and layout as well as extensive experience in technical and mechanical lettering. By senior year, students are able to combine original images with typography to develop multi-screen slide shows with script, music, and titles and will have prepared a portfolio for prospective clients.
Software: Illustrator, Photoshop, ActionScript, Fireworks, Dreamweaver, Maya, 3ds Max, Flash
Program facilities equipment
Several art production studios and digital labs. The computer lab facilities offer the latest equipment, software and support devices. Juniors and Seniors have access to individual studio spaces. Comprehensive education includes viewing operating room procedures, the study of gross anatomy at the nearby University of Rochester School of Medicine and the dissection of a cadaver. Lab sessions scheduled in operating room facilities (jointly sponsored by RIT and the University of Rochester).
Program job titles
Multimedia Artist; Medical Illustrator; Exhibitor; Freelance Medical Illustrator; 2D/3D Medical Animator; 3D Computer Modeler/Animator; Medical Interactive/Interface Designer; Medical Web Designer; Medical-Legal Illustrator/Litigation Support Specialist; Medical Book/Texts Illustrator; Information Graphics Illustrator; Medical Editorial Illustrator; Medical Model Designer; Prosthesis Designer/Anaplastologist; Forensics Illustrator; Ophthalmologic Illustrator; Medical Illustration Educator
Program significant points
- This major is one of the very few undergraduate medical illustration majors offered in the country that prepare students to join the medical team as an allied health professional.
- RIT’s graduate program in medical illustration is one of only five such programs in North America and the only program in the northeastern U.S.
Select program hiring partners
Second Avenue Learning, UUU Art Collective
100%
Outcome Rates for Medical Illustration BFA
Total percentage of graduates who have entered the workforce, enrolled in full-time graduate study, or are pursuing alternative plans (military service, volunteering, etc.).
64.29%
Knowledge Rate
Total percentage of graduates for whom RIT has verifiable data, compared to national average knowledge rate of 41% per NACE.
| Outcome | % of Students |
|---|---|
| Employed | 100.00% |
| Full-time Graduate Study | 0% |
| Alternative Plans | 0% |
Experiential Learning
Cooperative Education and Internships
What’s different about an RIT education? It’s the career experience you gain by completing cooperative education and internships with top companies in every single industry. You’ll earn more than a degree. You’ll gain real-world career experience that sets you apart. It’s exposure–early and often–to a variety of professional work environments, career paths, and industries.
Co-ops and internships take your knowledge and turn it into know-how. An art and design co-op provides hands-on experience that enables you to apply your artistic capabilities in dynamic professional settings while you make valuable connections between classwork and real-world applications.
Cooperative education, internships, and other experiential learning opportunities are encouraged for students in the BFA in medical illustration.
Creative Industry Day
RIT’s Office of Career Services and Cooperative Education hosts Creative Industry Day, which connects students majoring in art, design, film and animation, photography, and select computing majors with companies, organizations, creative agencies, design firms, and more. You'll be able to network with company representatives and interview directly for open co-op and permanent employment positions.