The graphic design program focuses on the development of a cohesive, investigative body of work, also known as the student’s thesis. At Yale, the graphic design thesis is conceived as a loose framework within which each student’s visual method is deployed across many diverse projects during the two-year course of study. While every thesis project is unique, there are several common features: a focus on methodology, the application of a visual method to studio work, and the organization of the work in a thoughtfully argued written document and a “thesis book.”
The individual collection of graphic design work by each student is supported on several levels simultaneously: studio work led by faculty meeting weekly; small six-person thesis groups meeting biweekly; individual sessions with writing and editing tutors; and lectures, presentations, and workshops.
Although the School of Art provides digital lab facilities, all graphic design students are expected to have their own personal computer. Each student has a designated work space in the design studio loft and has access to equipment including bookbinding materials, wide-format printers, a RISO duplicator, Vandercook letterpress, and work spaces in the School of Art buildings. More resources supporting interdisciplinary projects including motion capture and VR are available at the nearby Center for Collaborative Arts and Media. In addition, students draw on the extraordinary resources of Yale University courses, conferences, films, lectures, and museums, and especially the extensive research and rare book collections of Sterling, Haas, and Beinecke libraries.
Each year, up to twelve students are admitted into the two-year graphic design program, and up to seven students are admitted into the preliminary-year program. Two-year-program students are expected to have substantial and distinguished experience in visual studies and related professional experience. Students applying to the preliminary-year program typically have relevant experience in a field of study outside design and demonstrate evidence of visual acuity. After successful completion of the preliminary year, these students automatically continue on in the two-year M.F.A. program.
Credit Requirements
Students are required to successfully complete 48 credits in their area of concentration, including ART 9149, and 12 additional credits, including a minimum of 3 academic credits in courses outside the School of Art.
Typical Plan of Study
| ART 3769 | Interactive Design and the Internet: Software for People | 1 |
| ART 7001 | Preliminary Studio: Graphic Design | 6 |
| ART 7341 | Individual Criticism: Graphic Design | 3 |
| 3 |
| ART 7110 | First-Year Graduate Studio: Graphic Design | 3 |
| ART 7342 | Individual Criticism: Graphic Design | 3 |
| ART 9149 | Critical & Professional Practices | 3 |
| 3 |
| 3 |
| ART 7111 | First-Year Graduate Studio: Graphic Design | 3 |
| ART 7123 | Writing as Visual Practice | 3 |
| ART 7343 | Individual Criticism: Graphic Design | 3 |
| 3 |
| 3 |
| ART 7220 | Second-Year Graduate Studio: Graphic Design | 6 |
| ART 7344 | Individual Criticism: Graphic Design | 3 |
| 3 |
| 3 |
| ART 7221 | Second-Year Graduate Studio: Graphic Design | 6 |
| ART 7345 | Individual Criticism: Graphic Design | 3 |
| 3 |
| 3 |