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Herron School of Art and Design

Graduate

Degree Programs
Master of Design
Admission
Herron's Master of Design (M.Des.) degree program prepares you to accelerate change in a leadership role with businesses, organizations, institutions, and communities. With the M.Des. degree program's genuinely interdisciplinary philosophy, we welcome students from a wide range of academic and professional backgrounds to facilitate meaningful, people-centered solutions. We consider each applicant's potential contribution to the student cohort, along with their academic achievements and professional accomplishments.
Applicants for the M.Des.degree program should have achieved a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale and completion of a bachelor's degree.

Students entering the M.Des.degree program are not required to have an established background in design or art. The nature of your portfolio depends on the nature of your experiences. Suppose your academic or professional expertise is in the field of design. In that case, your portfolio will most likely represent the best of your visual works.

Concentrate as much communication as possible on showing your design processes. Do not create a portfolio containing only designed products. Your portfolio should also show how you think and solve problems. Include design "briefs" that define the problem or opportunity statements and communication objectives and the audience and context for each project so that your work can be evaluated meaningfully.

If your academic or professional experience is not in the field of design, submit projects that reflect your educational and past professional experience. Include a description of each project that clearly articulates the significance and outcomes. Collaborative work should be identified, including your role in the project.

Approach the portfolio as a design project, considering what projects form the portfolio and how the body of work is constructed. Use these design criteria as your guiding principles:

  • The portfolio should represent your abilities as a strategic problem solver.

  • The portfolio should represent your abilities as an information organizer.

  • The portfolio should represent your ability to structure communications appropriately in order to demonstrate your interest in collaborative innovation.

Submit 3 to 5 projects online at herron.slideroom.com.