Art and Design

The fully online Design and Strategy Systems Certificate program is tailored for mid-career professionals with a bachelor’s degree in art, design, engineering, marketing, communications, or other relevant work experience. This program provides a deep understanding of design for strategy and systems, enabling graduates to address complex challenges, grasp creative processes, and maintain competitiveness in various industries, such as marketing, branding, communication design, and more. Courses in this certificate focus on the critical practices of creative strategy, design systems, and analysis/methods, to measure the success of design solutions. A student completing this certificate has the potential to enter into career advancement in the growing creative economy. Designed to be accessible to the fully employed student and the mid-career professional, the course load is 6 units in the first semester and 4 units in the second semester.

A. Requirements for Admission to the Program

All successful applicants must meet the following requirements before they can enroll. Please note that in some cases the department requirements for admission are more stringent than the University requirements. The department will determine whether a student meets the additional requirements needed for admittance into Design Strategy and Systems.

1. A bachelor’s degree from an accredited university or college with a major in art, design, engineering, marketing, or communication with an overall GPA of 2.5 or above. Bachelor’s degrees with other majors will be considered with relevant work experience in other creative industries.
2. Samples of creative individual or collaborative work (2-3 projects).
3. One-page written statement by the applicant indicating career objectives.
4. Resume or curriculum vitae.
5. Two letters of recommendation from individuals who can evaluate the applicant’s potential for success in graduate studies.
6. Approval by the coordinator of the M.A. in Design and Innovation (MDI) program, who will review the application to determine if the student shows high promise of success in the program.

Note: Upon completing all three certificates (Design Strategy and Systems, Design Experiences and Interactions, Design Leadership and Impact) and finishing the graduate project ART 698DI, students will earn their master’s degree in Design and Innovation.

B. Program Requirements

Students must complete 6 units of approved coursework and 4 units in the cumulative experience. Specific required coursework consists of:

Required Courses (10 units)

ART 562 Design Systems (3)
ART 564 Design Strategy (3)
ART 645 Design Strategy and Systems Practicum (4)

Note: ART 562 and ART 564 are prerequisites for ART 645.

Total Units Required for the Certificate: 10