About UIC Design
Design practice in the twenty-first century brings together traditional formal skills, new materials and digital technologies, and critical leadership. It is a diverse set of activities that create new ways of relating to the world around us.
Through the guided creation of objects and communications, and systems and services, the UIC School of Design prepares future leaders for the expanding field of design.
UIC Design Approach
Grounded in studio culture and deeply attentive to the human experience, UIC Design programs are led by a faculty of renowned professional designers who push developments in their fields. Through conversation and critique, students and faculty collectively explore problems and learn from one another.
UIC Design students are introduced to contexts of culture and meaning as they develop the formal, conceptual, and technical skills necessary to confidently enter a professional setting. Advanced students have opportunities to work collaboratively in interdisciplinary teams, often with community or industry partners.
Chicago is a global design center. Through involvement in Chicago chapters of national design associations, internships, and critical exposure to design practices and exhibitions, our students become active in the professional world of design as they pursue their degree.
UIC Design Mission
Design is a discipline of rigorous inquiry: questioning what is and what could be.
The designer plays a pivotal role in forming and advocating for ideas. Design reveals and navigates problems, empowering action through a deep engagement with human culture. The result is important, but the process—care, imagination, understanding and being understood—is key.
Chicago, one of the world’s great cities, is an ideal environment for the sharp-eyed, proactive designer-citizen.
