The design profession is constantly evolving, and design education must keep pace. Frequently, as the standard criticism underscores, design schools fail to prepare students for careers in the real world. Some leading companies, in fact, are no longer hiring recent graduates. Instead, these companies require new hires to possess at least three years of professional experience, explaining that recent graduates are generally not ready to perform from the outset and too often need training before they can be productive.
Typically, industry progresses faster than academic curriculums. As a result, a student’s base of knowledge and set of skills are outdated by the time he or she graduates. For decades schools have been asking industry what it expects from new design hires, adjusting their curriculums accordingly in an effort to produce graduates that meet those expectations. This approach exposes two significant flaws of design education: first, students graduate with learning and skills that are four years removed from the current demands of industry; second, industry is developing the new knowledge that moves the profession forward, rather than universities, which by definition is one of their primary roles.
The SCAD School of Design, however, has changed that dynamic. We are reversing the equation by recalibrating the relationship between the design industry and design education.
In other more traditional fields, be it medicine, engineering or economics, universities are the driving forces behind substantial progress. For example, medical colleges are key in developing new surgical procedures; these new processes and technologies are then transferred to doctors, who adapt them to their own practices. We seek to be that engine of innovation for the design industry, and the SCAD School of Design has shifted into high gear as a result, guided by two vital objectives: prepare students who are ready and able to be productive on the first day of their jobs, and become the center of new knowledge development for the design profession.
The foundation of this blueprint is the SCAD School of Design’s unsurpassed sponsored projects program. In the last year alone, we have collaborated with top global corporations and organizations on 37 initiatives. This symbiotic partnership with industry provides companies with innovative design work that generates strategic advantages for them. And students are exposed to the most current models of business, gaining invaluable practical experience. The projects force students to focus their creativity to meet the goals of the brands and bring various constituents—engineers, marketers, merchandisers, graphic designers, executives—into the classroom.
In addition to its collaborative heart, the SCAD School of Design has rewired its brain. Our philosophy is at once simple and revolutionary: We define good design as a product, system, service or idea that generates a memorable, valuable and positive experience for the customer. And our facilities and curriculum mirror this mindset, emphasizing strategic thinking and echoing similar priority shifts in the design profession.
Simulating experiences is no match for actually participating in real-world industry projects and working in environments that reflect corporate settings. SCAD School of Design graduates, therefore, are prepared to contribute from the very first day on the job and continue to succeed throughout their careers. By partnering with the leaders of the design industry on a regular and repetitive basis, we are building the next generation of knowledge to propel all of us into the future.
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Victor Ermoli,
M.Des., IDSA Dean, School of Design
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