- Multiple annual workshops focused on community engagement and collaboration – including EUREKA!, which allows students to use their skills to initiate social change, and PUSH, a multi-day event captained by an industry designer.
- Courses you'll study include typography, branding and identity systems, designing for space and environment, interactivity and UX/UI, motion graphics, packaging design, publication design, design thinking, history and research.
- Students and alumni are employed by top design firms, advertising agencies, and corporations such as Adobe, Apple, ESPN, Fisher-Price, the NHL, Sesame Street, Sports Illustrated, Vogue Italia, and Walt Disney Company.
- Faculty regularly facilitate collaborative class projects with industry, exposing students to a range of networking opportunities and practical experiences. Course partners have included Kraft, Milwaukee Tool, Mondelez, Precision Botanicals, Roomba, Starbucks, Unilever, and Wegmans.
A graphic design degree is perfect for students who eat, breathe, and sleep design, and would like to apply their skills in a hands-on way. In the graphic design major, we have a balance of design thinking, history, theory, conceptual explorations, problem-solving approaches and strategies, applied projects, and technical development. It all enables our students to create innovative and effective design solutions.
Graphic design is used in everything from branding and identity, books and magazines, advertising, packaging, web and interface design, motion graphics, and just about everything in between.
As an RIT graphic design student, you are exposed to a full range of design topics, including information design, editorial design, environmental design, wayfinding, motion, branding, signage, packaging, interactivity, and UX/UI. We offer collaborative experiences in and out of class that will fully prepare you for internships and co-ops during your studies, and for full-time permanent positions after you graduate. Alumni have worked for companies such as American Girl, Dick's Sporting Goods, Disney, ESPN, Google, L.L. Bean, Mattel, Nickelodeon, Nike, Procter & Gamble, and Sports Illustrated, just to name a few.
Our program excels in digital creation but also maintains a large foothold and mastery of typographic principles and print. Being adept at both digital and print design is highly marketable, preparing you for a large range of jobs in the graphic media industry that represent digital, print, or both, while also having the capacity to see comprehensive design solutions and consistency across multiple media.
Alumni and guest speakers, along with opportunities for internships, co-ops, and freelance experiences, further enhance the program. Additionally, interdisciplinary and collaborative projects within RIT and with outside organizations result in innovative and meaningful hands-on projects that encourage you to explore the social, ethical, and environmental impact of design. You will be well-prepared to pursue positions within design firms, advertising agencies, corporations, and technology companies around the world.
You will also have access to RIT's world-renowned Vignelli Center for Design Studies, the Cary Graphic Design Archive, and the Cary Graphic Arts Collection which enables you to further enhance your learning and inquiry.
Combined Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Degrees
Today's careers require advanced degrees grounded in real-world experience. RIT's Combined Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Degrees enable you to earn both a bachelor's and a master's degree in as little as five years of study, all while gaining the valuable hands-on experience that comes from co-ops, internships, research, study abroad, and more.
+1 MBA: Students who enroll in a qualifying undergraduate degree have the opportunity to add an MBA to their bachelor's degree after their first year of study, depending on their program. Learn how the +1 MBA can accelerate your learning and position you for success.