Industrial Design is the practice of envisioning and creating solutions to complex problems, in the context of human experience. Industrial Designers apply research and creativity to identify opportunities for creating new products, services or systems with a focus on human factors, aesthetic value and user input.
The Industrial design program will prepare students to generate creative solutions to complex problems and increase their capacity to be creative thinkers. Through coursework focused on human centered design, students learn to design objects, environments, systems and experiences that are formulated in the context of real world challenges. By developing resourcefulness and adaptability, students learn to identify and analyze problems and objectively evaluate information to form actionable design solutions.
Students begin by building visual communication skills from hand drawing to finished presentation images and 3D computer models. Students will develop material awareness and sensitivity with hands-on skill training in prototyping and fabrication techniques. With their coursework and campus resources, students will develop design skills and digital literacy by working on computer models and exploring a variety of digital production methods. Students will also focus on developing presentation skills through professional development opportunities, and learn to collaborate across disciplines with team projects that promote communication skills and leadership development. The Industrial Design program will help students to develop the capacity to articulate their ideas with precision and clarity in an evolving professional environment.
Students will learn design principles and methods by working independently and collaboratively on project-based assignments to envision strategies for creating solutions framed in real-world challenges. This approach facilitates strategic thinking, time management and leadership skills, and creates a framework for advancing design research, life-cycle analysis and user interaction.
A core objective in the industrial design program focuses on helping students develop a design practice based on ethically sound principles that recognize and value the social impact of design, and create environmentally responsible solutions.
The current courses that make up the Industrial Design Minor are: ART 3705 Industrial Design: Form, Structure, and Space, ART 3710 Industrial Design: Drawing and Modeling for Design, ART 3720 Industrial Design:Process and Practice, and ART 3730 Digital Fabrication.
Please contact Chris Sancomb (christopher.sancomb@uconn.edu) in the Department of Art and Art History for questions regarding the minor, independent study or an Individualized Concentration.