Ask the Dean …
The Department of
Industrial Design FAQ

What is the philosophy of the Industrial Design Department at CCAD?
Simply stated, our focus is to prepare our students for long-term professional careers in industrial design. Our program strives for balance by exposing our students to the conceptual methods fundamental to creativity and discovery, in conjunction with the necessary skills fundamental to a designer’s toolbox. We pride ourselves in our work ethic and creative problem solving and have learned from our alumni that retaining this particular value has greatly contributed to their success.

Many students enter our program with the desire to create, but with little knowledge of many design careers available to them. Therefore, our program is geared to more than just teaching the fundamentals inherent to product design, we also strive to expose our students to a variety of design career options, e.g. toy, furniture, interiors, exhibit, display, transportation environmental graphics, retail design, etc. CCAD offers a multitude of creative venues outside of industrial design. Opportunities for exposure to animation, fashion design, interior design, advertising, graphic design, illustration and fine arts allows for a truly diverse design education.

Industrial design is a perpetually expanding field driven by a technological and conceptual engine; a haven for careers yet to be discovered. With this in mind, we make it a priority to emphasize the “design process”, which prepares the individual for an ever-changing design future. Our aim is to teach our students how to see and respond to the world as a designer.

What kind of location is Columbus, Ohio for an industrial design education?
Columbus, Ohio is rich with an assortment of design offices, some of which are Internationally known. This makes Columbus a perfect location, not only for keeping abreast of what is current in the design fields, but also with an opportunity for our students to develop an affiliation with the professional design community. We have an intimate relationship with the Central Ohio Chapter of the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) and have had a student chapter of IDSA for over 25 years. Classroom critiques by design professionals and company-sponsored projects are commonplace events.

What is the placement like for CCAD industrial design graduates?
Due to our unique program the great majority of our graduates find positions in both traditional and non-traditional design situations. Our alumni work at many major corporations; design consulting firms, small and medium manufacturing companies, while others have their own design offices and staff. From toys to computers, athletic wear to exhibits, motorcycles to displays, software to camping equipment, luxury boats to exercise equipment, professional model shops to retail design offices, automotive accessories to animation, advertising firms to ceiling fans, packaging to surgical and hospital equipment etc. is just a short list of the variety of design venues you’ll find our alumni practicing their art.
Does industrial design require an internship?
All ID majors are required to have an internship to graduate. We have a network of professional contacts originating from both our Career Services department and our faculty to support students in finding an internship position.  More recently many students have been finding internships over the Web www.coroflot.com, and through personal contacts they’ve made on their own.

Many students take their internship during the course of the academic year, while others make contacts in or near their hometown so they can experience their internship over the summer. Only 120 contact hours of internship experience are required for graduation.

How many instructors teach industrial design at CCAD and what are their backgrounds?
We currently have four full time industrial design faculty and ten adjuncts that together teach both industrial design and interior courses in the Division. All our adjuncts are professionally active in the subjects they teach. Many of our fulltime faculty have free- lance businesses and are keenly engaged in design areas of their interest. We do not have a tenure program, rather we offer one and three year contracts to our fulltime faculty. Check out the faculty bios on our website www.ccad.edu and discover the wide range of experiences they bring to the program.

Academic investigation is encouraged at the College without demanding faculty to “publish or perish”, which is commonplace in many university programs. Rather, we expect our faculty to be actively engaged in an aspect of the design field of their interest and remain in tune with what is current in the industry. This may be professionally focused, academically focused or both. Simply put, our faculty is concerned and focused upon student learning and all that it implies

What kind of reputation does the industrial design department have in the professional design community?
If you want to know more about our reputation ask the professional design community and/or those individuals who have hired our alumni. Also inquire as to the number of national and international design competitions our students have placed in over the years. We believe the” proof in is the pudding”, By the way, our industrial design program is accredited by the National Association of Art and Design (NASAD).

Please feel free to e-mail me (cgarant(at)ccad.edu) Dean, Division of Industrial and Interior Design, or Professor Tom Kier, (tkier(at)ccad.edu) Chair, Department of Industrial Design if you have any other questions about the Industrial Design program here at the Columbus College of Art and Design.