Designers are creative problem solvers who are detail-oriented and able to listen to the needs of their clients. They translate their client’s needs into products and services. There are opportunities to explore design all over MIT. For example, you can take a class on user interface design, complete a UROP related to game design, study mechanical engineering with a focus on product design, complete a social impact internship focused on data visualization, or complete a design studio. If you’re interested in design and engineering consider careers as a design engineer, product designer, or mechanical engineer. Product designers develop journey maps, wireframes, and prototypes. Other common careers for designers at MIT are in User Experience (UX) and User Interface (UI) design. UX designers focus on the interaction between clients and the products or services they use.
Education
At MIT there are many opportunities to pursue a career in design and develop the skills needed for the area of design you choose to pursue. If you’re an undergraduate student, you can choose Course 4B which offers a Bachelor of Science in Art and Design, minor in design, or select a HASS concentration in Art, Architecture and Design. Or if you’re more interested in engineering then you might consider Course 2A, Mechanical Engineering and select concentrations in Industrial Design and Product Development. Graduate students pursuing careers in design might be within the School of Architecture pursuing a SMarchS in Computation, Ph.D. in Design & Computation, or completing a degree within the Media Arts & Science (Media Lab). Or they might be in programs such as Integrated Design & Management or System Design & Management which are interdisciplinary between the School of Engineering and the Sloan School of Business.
