Packaging Science
Department of
Packaging Science
Overview
RIT’s packaging science program, established in 1972, is one of the most unique and respected in the country. One of only a handful in the nation to offer the program, the discipline provides students exposure to laboratory experience and real-life problem solving. Embedded into the program is the required full-time co-op with a company, and RIT is the only institute in the country that requires all packaging science students to experience this opportunity. This allows students to develop their professional skills, expand their real-world experience, and, most importantly, broaden their industry contacts. RIT's relationship with industry leaders and the skills students obtain in development, sales, and purchasing results in professional careers within this multi-billion dollar industry. This relationship, along with the faculty being packaging professionals, ensures that students acquire the most current technological knowledge base.
200+
Real industry student projects each year
8+
Possible focus areas: sustainable packaging, packaging design, biopolymers, shock and vibration, pharmaceutical, medical products, and food packaging
1
International Safe Transit Association Certified Packaging Dynamics and Research Lab
Latest News
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June 24, 2021
![a smily face and a frown face made out of ketchup squirts.]()
Why Are Ketchup Bottles So Hard to Use?
The Atlantic talks to Daniel Johnson, chair of the Department of Packaging Science, about the research that goes into package design.
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April 28, 2021
![City of Rochester skyline.]()
Rochester Rising: RIT is helping make Rochester a next-generation technology hub
Move over, Silicon Valley. Rochester, N.Y., can be the next great American technology hub.
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April 9, 2021
![side-by-side images of Dan Johnson, Ian Mortimer, and Steven Carnovale.]()
Podcast: Preparing Students for the New Economy
Intersections: The RIT Podcast, Ep. 46: Anticipating rapid changes in the workplace—further accelerated by lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic—RIT is seizing on the opportunity to guide students to new economy majors that are multidisciplinary, transformative, and future-focused. Dan Johnson, professor of packaging science; Ian Mortimer, vice president for Enrollment Management; and Steven Carnovale, assistant professor of supply chain management, discuss the importance of offering majors that ensure successful outcomes while meeting the ever-changing needs of a new, and evolving, economy.
Featured Work
Excellence in Design
RIT student team
Four of eight student design teams from RIT that were entered in the national Paperboard Packaging Alliance competition were awarded top placements for excellence in design. The Misfit Burst took...
Collaborative design
Karen Proctor
Karen Proctor, professor of packaging science, worked with faculty from graphic design and industrial design to provide students with a unique opportunity for collaborative design. Through these three...
Undergraduate Programs
With a faculty committed to excellence, our undergraduate program provides a significant theoretical background coupled with extensive design and project experiences throughout the curriculum. Cooperative educational work is the hallmark of an RIT education, and the packaging science undergraduate program includes at least two of these experiences combined with faculty research opportunities.
Mathematics and the physical sciences are introduced in a just-in-time fashion while technical courses are incorporated every semester. Students are introduced to the multidimensional packaging field each semester. Progressing through the curriculum, projects become larger and design experiences more intense. By the final year of the program, students participate in realistic project-based design challenges as they ready themselves to be self-sufficient in the workplace.
Graduate Programs
The Master of Science degree in packaging science is designed to educate packaging professionals to become experts in the packaging development process. Students learn how to select raw materials, design, and create packaging to withstand environmental hazards during transportation, and to create aesthetically pleasing packages to pique consumer interest. Through a combination of theoretical and application-focused learning experiences, students gain comprehensive knowledge related to packaging design, package testing, product marketing, project management, and quality control.
Minors and Immersions
Student Resources
The Packaging Science Department offers a variety of resources for our students such as:
- Academic Advisors
- Student Clubs and Organizations
- Technical Information and Support
- Software Help
Visit our Student Resources page for more information.