This is the preliminary (or launch) version of the 2024-2025 VCU Bulletin. Courses that expose students to cutting-edge content and transformative learning may be added and notification of additional program approvals may be received prior to finalization. General education program content is also subject to change. The final edition and full PDF version will include these updates and will be available in August prior to the beginning of the fall semester.
The sophomore year in the graphic design program is focused on orientation to, and experimentation within, design practice. Students develop processes of making, meaning-building and critical engagement with ideas related to form, medium, materials and tools. This year provides a critical framework to develop a vocabulary allowing them to begin to discuss ideas around information hierarchies and meaning-making as well as legibility and translation.
The junior year is focused on experimentation with, and construction of, narrative structures, argument, advocacy and rhetoric (text, text and image, sequence). The underlying social, political and pluralistic demands of graphic design are emphasized. It situates the student and their work/practice within a context and community and introduces methods to facilitate collaboration with those directly and indirectly impacted by the end results of the design process
The senior year is focused on deepening, refining and situating individuated experiences; formulating and synthesizing learning by teaching others through participatory engagement; and building a situated design practice, while understanding that design is inseparable from the culture at large. The student experience in the program culminates in a capstone project that demonstrates their readiness and capacity to engage responsibly and creatively in the field and is presented in a public exhibition.
Admission
Students who have successfully completed the Art Foundation Program are eligible to apply for admission to the B.F.A. program in the Department of Graphic Design.
Students who wish to transfer into the graphic design program must first apply to the Art Foundation Program for evaluation. A transfer student must demonstrate equivalent preparation at other institutions and submit a portfolio of work for review by graphic design faculty. Transfer students admitted into the graphic design program must complete all major requirements determined to be missing from their academic design experience. Transfer students should expect to spend a minimum of five semesters in the graphic design program in order to qualify for a B.F.A.
Due to the sequence of the required graphic design courses, students are admitted only for the fall semester.
Standards of graphic design
Students must complete the required pre- and corequisites of the graphic design program in the order presented in the curriculum outline. This structure enables students to develop knowledge and skills based in graphic design that will prepare them for upper-level studio courses and successful entry into the graphic design profession.
Students must earn a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 to be accepted to the graphic design program. Once accepted, students must maintain a minimum 2.5 GPA in GDES courses to continue in the program.
Students are required to meet regularly with the department undergraduate academic adviser each semester on scheduled advising dates to make sure they are completing courses as required.
A portfolio review of graphic design course work takes place at the end of the third semester. The student’s portfolio, presentation, GPA and individual course assessments are evaluated holistically during this review to determine if the student may continue in the program. Additionally, the following courses must be successfully completed by the end of the third semester to be eligible for participation in the review:
| Course | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| GDES 220 | Design Practices | 4 |
| GDES 221 | Core Studio I | 4 |
| GDES 231 | Theory Inquiry | 3 |
| GDES 222 | Core Studio II | 4 |
| GDES 321 | Core Studio III | 4 |
| GDES 331 | Precedents Inquiry | 3 |
| GDES 380 | Multi Studio I | 4 |
| GDES 398 | Dialogues | 1 |
| GDES elective (300-500 level) | ||
Learning outcomes
Upon completing this program, students will know and know how to do the following:
- Prioritize making as a primary mode of investigation and exchange: Students will engage with labor as a physical and emotional activity that is fundamental to the design process. They will understand and practice design as a process that is not driven by assumptions, presumptions or preconceptions.
- Understand that research is an essential component of the design process: Students will employ research as a critical lens to understand context and to validate the relevance of design decisions and processes.
- Develop capacity to design in collaboration with others: Students will become equipped to participate in broad and diverse exchanges that expand the range and depth of design processes that are oriented to nonhierarchical learning and making.
- Develop cultural literacy: Students will be cognizant of forces that affect the formation and reinforcement of meaning and value. These forces define who we are and how the decisions we make can cultivate the dignity of individuals and communities.
Special requirements
Once accepted, students must maintain a minimum 2.5 GPA in GDES courses to continue in the program. Student GDES course work GPA is monitored at the end of fall and spring semesters. A student with GDES course work GPA that falls below 2.5 by the end of any semester is placed on departmental probation for the next semester. Students placed on GDES GPA probation must bring their GDES course work GPA to a minimum of 2.5 by the end of the following semester. Students failing to bring their GDES course work GPA to a minimum of 2.5 by the end of that semester are no longer permitted to continue in the program.
Degree requirements for Bachelor of Fine Arts, Graphic Design (B.F.A.)
| Course | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General education | ||
| Select 30 credits of general education courses in consultation with an adviser. | 30 | |
| Major requirements | ||
| • Major core requirements | ||
| GDES 220 | Design Practices | 4 |
| GDES 221 | Core Studio I | 4 |
| GDES 222 | Core Studio II | 4 |
| GDES 231 | Theory Inquiry | 3 |
| GDES 321 | Core Studio III | 4 |
| GDES 322 | Core Studio IV | 4 |
| GDES 331 | Precedents Inquiry | 3 |
| GDES 380 | Multi Studio I (taken twice) | 8 |
| GDES 398 | Dialogues (taken six semesters) | 6 |
| GDES 431 | Critical Inquiry | 4 |
| GDES 440 | Synthesis | 6 |
| GDES 480 | Multi Studio II | 2 |
| Ancillary requirements | ||
| Art Foundation Program | ||
| ARTF 131 | Drawing Studio | 3 |
| ARTF 132 | Surface Research | 3 |
| ARTF 133 | Space Research | 3 |
| ARTF 134 | Time Studio | 3 |
| ARTF 139 | Project Studio | 2 |
| or ARTF 138 | Project Seminar | |
| ARTH 103 & ARTH 104 | Survey of Art I and Survey of Art II | 6 |
| Additional requirements | ||
| GDES electives (300 to 500 level) | 8 | |
| Open electives | ||
| Select any course. | 12 | |
| Total Hours | 122 | |
The minimum number of credit hours required for this degree is 122.
Electives
| Course | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| GDES 301 | Letterpress | 4 |
| GDES 302 | Book Arts | 4 |
| GDES 308 | Web Design | 4 |
| GDES 356 | Studio Management | 4 |
| GDES 391 | Lecture Topics in Design | 1-4 |
| GDES 392 | Research/Individual Study | 1-4 |
| GDES 401 | Experimental Letterpress | 4 |
| GDES 403 | Design Activism | 4 |
| GDES 404 | Typeface Design | 4 |
| GDES 412 | Typographic Systems | 4 |
| GDES 414 | Exhibition and Environmental Graphic Design | 4 |
| GDES 418 | Design Center | 3-9 |
| GDES 481 | Practicum | 4 |
| GDES 491 | Studio Topics in Design | 1-6 |
What follows is a sample plan that meets the prescribed requirements within a four-year course of study at VCU. Please contact your adviser before beginning course work toward a degree.
| Freshman year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall semester | Hours | |
| ARTF 131 | Drawing Studio | 3 |
| ARTF 132 | Surface Research | 3 |
| ARTF 139 or ARTF 138 | Project Studio or Project Seminar | 1 |
| ARTH 103 | Survey of Art I | 3 |
UNIV 111  Play course video for Focused Inquiry I | Focused Inquiry I (satisfies general education UNIV foundations) | 3 |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 16 | |
| Spring semester | ||
| ARTF 133 | Space Research | 3 |
| ARTF 134 | Time Studio | 3 |
| ARTF 139 or ARTF 138 | Project Studio or Project Seminar | 1 |
| ARTH 104 | Survey of Art II | 3 |
| UNIV 112 Play course video for Focused Inquiry II | Focused Inquiry II (satisfies general education UNIV foundations) | 3 |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 16 | |
| Sophomore year | ||
| Fall semester | ||
| GDES 220 | Design Practices | 4 |
| GDES 221 | Core Studio I | 4 |
| GDES 231 | Theory Inquiry | 3 |
| GDES 398 | Dialogues | 1 |
| UNIV 200 | Advanced Focused Inquiry: Literacies, Research and Communication (satisfies general education UNIV foundations) | 3 |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Spring semester | ||
| GDES 222 | Core Studio II | 4 |
| GDES 380 | Multi Studio I | 4 |
| GDES 398 | Dialogues | 1 |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Open elective | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Junior year | ||
| Fall semester | ||
| GDES 321 | Core Studio III | 4 |
| GDES 331 | Precedents Inquiry | 3 |
| GDES 398 | Dialogues | 1 |
| GDES elective | 4 | |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Spring semester | ||
| GDES 322 | Core Studio IV | 4 |
| GDES 380 | Multi Studio I | 4 |
| GDES 398 | Dialogues | 1 |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Open elective | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Senior year | ||
| Fall semester | ||
| GDES 398 | Dialogues | 1 |
| GDES 431 | Critical Inquiry | 4 |
| GDES elective | 4 | |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Open elective | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Spring semester | ||
| GDES 398 | Dialogues | 1 |
| GDES 440 | Synthesis | 6 |
| GDES 480 | Multi Studio II | 2 |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Open elective | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Total Hours: | 122 | |
The minimum number of credit hours required for this degree is 122.