Vocal Students Place at NATS Student Audition
College of the Arts

Last month, vocal students from the Glauser School of Music performed in the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) competition, placing in multiple categories. NATS is a national organization dedicated to students and teachers of singing. Each fall, NATS holds an audition for the state of Ohio at different universities across Ohio. This year, Kent State University sent nine students to compete at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, with five students placing in their respective categories: Drew Russell, 2nd place in Advanced Category Gabe Hunyor, 1st pla...

Visual Communication Design - B.F.A.

Focused on an intensive studio arts experience, this Visual Communication Design major is the “professional degree” that will take your design skills to the next level. You’ll hone your craft solving communication challenges, while building a strong professional portfolio as a visual communicator and storyteller, preparing you for a successful career in a range of design industries. Read more...

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Program Information

Program Description

Full Description

The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Visual Communication Design prepares students for design and illustration professions. Students develop technical proficiency and design expertise in the organization of imagery and typography to communicate information in two-dimensional and three-dimensional forms using interactive media, environments and motion design. Students produce work for print, video, screen and interactive experiences, as well as package design, exhibition design and environmental wayfinding.

This major leads to a professional degree and focuses on intensive work in the visual arts. The B.F.A. degree consists of approximately two-thirds of the coursework in the creation and study of the visual arts, with the remainder in liberal/general studies. Because of the greater emphasis on upper-level studio courses, the B.F.A. degree allows students an opportunity to dedicate more time to developing their portfolios. The B.F.A. degree is for students planning to pursue a career in visual communication design and graphic design.

Students may apply early to the following master's degree programs and double count 9 credit hours of graduate courses toward both degree programs. See the Combined Bachelor's/Master's Degree Program Policy in the University Catalog for more information.

There are many study abroad/away opportunities. For more information contact the Office of Global Education or coordinator of the college's International Study Programs.

Admissions

Admission Requirements

The university affirmatively strives to provide educational opportunities and access to students with varied backgrounds, those with special talents and adult students who graduated from high school three or more years ago.

First-Year Students on the Kent Campus: First-year admission policy on the Kent Campus is selective. Admission decisions are based upon cumulative grade point average, strength of high school college preparatory curriculum and grade trends. Students not admissible to the Kent Campus may be administratively referred to one of the seven regional campuses to begin their college coursework. For more information, visit the admissions website for first-year students.

First-Year Students on the Regional Campuses: First-year admission to Kent State’s campuses at Ashtabula, East Liverpool, Geauga, Salem, Stark, Trumbull and Tuscarawas, as well as the Twinsburg Academic Center, is open to anyone with a high school diploma or its equivalent. For more information on admissions, contact the Regional Campuses admissions offices.

International Students: All international students must provide proof of English language proficiency unless they meet specific exceptions. For more information, visit the admissions website for international students.

Transfer Students: Students who have attended any other educational institution after graduating from high school must apply as undergraduate transfer students. For more information, visit the admissions website for transfer students.

Former Students: Former Kent State students or graduates who have not attended another college or university since Kent State may complete the reenrollment or reinstatement form on the University Registrar’s website.

Admission policies for undergraduate students may be found in the University Catalog.

Some programs may require that students meet certain requirements before progressing through the program. For programs with progression requirements, the information is shown on the Coursework tab.

Learning Outcomes

Program Learning Outcomes

Graduates of this program will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate an understanding of the ethics (and legal issues) closely associated with fields of visual communication.
  2. Demonstrate an understanding of traditional hands-on skills relative to craftsmanship.
  3. Demonstrate an understanding of the basic use of digital technologies as they relate to their areas of study.
  4. Demonstrate an ability to create visual response to communication problems, including understanding of hierarchy, typography, aesthetics, composition and construction of meaningful images.
Coursework
On This Page

Program Requirements

Major Requirements (courses count in major GPA)
CCI 12001PHOTOGRAPHY 3
VCD 13000VISUAL DESIGN THINKING 3
VCD 13001INTRODUCTION TO VISUAL COMMUNICATION DESIGN STUDIO (min B- grade)3
VCD 20010INTRODUCTION TO DESIGN RESEARCH 3
VCD 22000DESIGN/ILLUSTRATION TECHNIQUES I 3
VCD 22001DESIGN/ILLUSTRATION TECHNIQUES II 3
VCD 23001TYPOGRAPHY I (min B- grade)3
VCD 25000DESIGN HISTORY AND THEORY 3
VCD 33000GRAPHIC DESIGN I 3
VCD 33001GRAPHIC DESIGN II 3
VCD 33101INTERACTION DESIGN I 3
VCD 34004VISUAL ETHICS 3
VCD 34005INTRODUCTION TO 3D GRAPHIC DESIGN 3
VCD 40035PROFESSIONAL PORTFOLIO BFA DESIGN 3
VCD 40182INTERNSHIP PREPARATION: DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION AND PHOTOGRAPHY 2
VCD 40192INTERNSHIP: DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION AND PHOTOGRAPHY (ELR) 11
VCD 44006MOTION DESIGN I 3
VCD 43002TYPOGRAPHY II 3
VCD 43003IDENTITY SYSTEMS 3
VCD 49198RESEARCH PAPERS AND PROPOSALS FOR DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION AND PHOTOGRAPHY (ELR) (WIC) 22
VCD Specialization Electives, choose from the following:12
VCD 40053
GLYPHIX RESEARCH LABORATORY
VCD 40089
GRAPHIC DESIGN-TRAVEL AND FIELD EXPERIENCE (ELR)
VCD 40095
SPECIAL TOPICS IN DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION AND PHOTOGRAPHY
VCD 42002
EDITORIAL ILLUSTRATION
VCD 42003
ADVERTISING ILLUSTRATION
VCD 42005
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT AND DESIGN: THE HUMAN FIGURE
VCD 42006
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT AND DESIGN: ANIMALS AND ENVIRONMENTS
VCD 42007
GRAPHIC NARRATIVE
VCD 43005
PACKAGING AND PROMOTION
VCD 43006
ENVIRONMENTAL GRAPHIC DESIGN
VCD 43007
INFORMATION DESIGN
VCD 43060
TYPEFACE DESIGN
VCD 43101
INTERACTION DESIGN II
VCD 46002
RESPONSIVE WEB DESIGN
VCD 46003
TYPOGRAPHY III
VCD 49199
CAPSTONE PROJECT (ELR)
VCD Additional Electives, choose from the following: 36
VCD 18002
PHOTOGRAPHY II
VCD 21000
INTRODUCTION TO WEB DESIGN
VCD 28003
DIGITAL IMAGING I
VCD 32000
ILLUSTRATION I
VCD 32001
ILLUSTRATION II
VCD 38004
ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHY
VCD 40053
GLYPHIX RESEARCH LABORATORY
VCD 40089
GRAPHIC DESIGN-TRAVEL AND FIELD EXPERIENCE (ELR)
VCD 40095
SPECIAL TOPICS IN DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION AND PHOTOGRAPHY
VCD 40195
SELECTED TOPICS IN DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION AND PHOTOGRAPHY
VCD 42002
EDITORIAL ILLUSTRATION
VCD 42003
ADVERTISING ILLUSTRATION
VCD 42005
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT AND DESIGN: THE HUMAN FIGURE
VCD 42006
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT AND DESIGN: ANIMALS AND ENVIRONMENTS
VCD 42007
GRAPHIC NARRATIVE
VCD 43000
STUDIO PRODUCTION
VCD 43005
PACKAGING AND PROMOTION
VCD 43006
ENVIRONMENTAL GRAPHIC DESIGN
VCD 43051
TYPE HIGH PRESS 4
VCD 43060
TYPEFACE DESIGN
VCD 43101
INTERACTION DESIGN II
VCD 46002
RESPONSIVE WEB DESIGN
VCD 46003
TYPOGRAPHY III
VCD 49199
CAPSTONE PROJECT (ELR)
Additional Requirements (courses do not count in major GPA)
COMM 15000INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN COMMUNICATION (KADL) 3
or MDJ 20001 MEDIA, POWER AND CULTURE (DIVD) (KSS)
UC 10001FLASHES 101 1
College of Communication and Information Core Electives6
CCI 10095
SPECIAL TOPICS IN COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION
CCI 40089
BRANDING AND SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIES FOR ITALIAN LIFESTYLE (ELR)
CCI 40095
SPECIAL TOPICS IN COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION
CCI 40189
ITALIAN POP CULTURE
CCI 40289
ITALIAN CINEMA (ELR)
CCI 40389
DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKING (ELR)
CCI 40489
MULTIMEDIA EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING (ELR)
CCI 45089
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE IN THE COLLEGE OF COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION (ELR)
CCI 46089
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE IN THE COLLEGE OF COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION (ELR)
COMM 15000
INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN COMMUNICATION (KADL) 5
COMM 35852
INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION (DIVG)
EMAT 25310
CREATIVE CODING
EMAT 33310
HUMAN-COMPUTER INTERACTION
LIS 30010
INFORMATION FLUENCY IN THE WORKPLACE AND BEYOND
MDJ 20001
MEDIA, POWER AND CULTURE (DIVD) (KSS) 5
MDJ 21008
SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIES
UXD 20001
INTRODUCTION TO USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN
Kent Core Composition6
Kent Core Mathematics and Critical Reasoning3
Kent Core Humanities9
Kent Core Social Sciences (must be from two disciplines) 66
Kent Core Basic Sciences (must include one laboratory)6-7
Kent Core Additional 53
General Electives (total credit hours depends on earning 120 credits hour, including 39 upper-division credit hours) 73
Minimum Total Credit Hours:120
1

Minimum 1 credit hour of VCD 40192 is required for the program. However, students can apply maximum 4 credit hours of the course toward their degree program.

2

A minimum C grade must be earned to fulfill the writing-intensive requirement.

3

Courses taken as VCD Specialization Electives may not also count toward VCD Additional Electives.

4

Maximum 6 credit hours of VCD 43051 may be applied toward the VCD Additional Electives.

5

Students can apply COMM 15000 or MDJ 20001 toward College of Communication and Information Core Electives if NOT already taken toward Additional Requirements.

6

If MDJ 20001 is completed, then 3 credit hours of Kent Core Social Sciences and 6 credit hours of Kent Core Additional is required. If COMM 15000 is completed, then 6 credit hours of Kent Core Social Sciences and 3 credit hours of Kent Core Additional is required.

7

A maximum of 4 credit hours of Physical Activity, Wellness and Sport (PWS) courses may be applied toward the degree program.

Progression Requirements

  • Students must earn a minimum B- grade in VCD 13001 before enrolling in VCD 23001. VCD 13001 may be taken a maximum three times until a minimum B- grade is achieved.
  • Students must earn a minimum B- grade in VCD 23001 before enrolling in VCD 33000.
  • Students must maintain a 2.700 major GPA in order to continue taking VCD courses. Failure to do so at the end of one semester will result in a written warning with the option of repeating certain VCD courses in order to meet minimum grade and GPA requirements to continue. Failure to do so at the end of two consecutive semesters will result in not being permitted to enroll in VCD courses. Students in this situation will be contacted by an academic advisor to create an alternative plan of study with a new major.

Graduation Requirements

Minimum Major GPA Minimum Overall GPA
2.700 2.000
  • A minimum B- grade may be required in some courses.
Roadmap

Roadmap

This roadmap is a recommended semester-by-semester plan of study for this major. However, courses designated as critical (!) must be completed in the semester listed to ensure a timely graduation.

Plan of Study Grid
Semester OneCredits
!VCD 13000 VISUAL DESIGN THINKING 3
!VCD 13001 INTRODUCTION TO VISUAL COMMUNICATION DESIGN STUDIO 3
UC 10001 FLASHES 101 1
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours16
Semester Two
COMM 15000
or MDJ 20001
 INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN COMMUNICATION (KADL)
or MEDIA, POWER AND CULTURE (DIVD) (KSS)
3
!VCD 22000 DESIGN/ILLUSTRATION TECHNIQUES I 3
!VCD 23001 TYPOGRAPHY I 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours15
Semester Three
!VCD 20010 INTRODUCTION TO DESIGN RESEARCH 3
!VCD 22001 DESIGN/ILLUSTRATION TECHNIQUES II 3
VCD 25000 DESIGN HISTORY AND THEORY 3
!VCD 33000 GRAPHIC DESIGN I 3
CCI Core Elective 3
 Credit Hours15
Semester Four
VCD 33001 GRAPHIC DESIGN II 3
!VCD 34005 INTRODUCTION TO 3D GRAPHIC DESIGN 3
VCD 44006 MOTION DESIGN I 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours15
Semester Five
VCD 33101 INTERACTION DESIGN I 3
VCD 34004 VISUAL ETHICS 3
VCD 43002 TYPOGRAPHY II 3
VCD Specialization Elective 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours15
Semester Six
CCI 12001 PHOTOGRAPHY 3
VCD 43003 IDENTITY SYSTEMS 3
VCD 40182 INTERNSHIP PREPARATION: DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION AND PHOTOGRAPHY 2
VCD Specialization Electives 6
 Credit Hours14
Third Summer Term
VCD 40192 INTERNSHIP: DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION AND PHOTOGRAPHY (ELR) 1
 Credit Hours1
Semester Seven
VCD 49198 RESEARCH PAPERS AND PROPOSALS FOR DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION AND PHOTOGRAPHY (ELR) (WIC) 2
CCI Core Elective 3
VCD Additional Elective 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
 Credit Hours14
Semester Eight
VCD 40035 PROFESSIONAL PORTFOLIO BFA DESIGN 3
VCD Specialization Elective 3
VCD Additional Elective 3
Kent Core Requirement 3
General Elective 3
 Credit Hours15
 Minimum Total Credit Hours:120
Program Delivery
  • Delivery:
    • In person
  • Location:
    • Kent Campus
Accreditation

National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD)

Examples of Possible Careers and Salaries

Examples of Possible Careers
  • Graphic Designer
  • Art/Creative Director
  • UI/UX Designer
  • Motion Designer/Animator
  • Illustrator
  • Exhibit/Wayfinding Designer
  • Package Designer

Glyphix

Glyphix Research Laboratory

Glyphix began as a full studio experience for students, and the student staffed studio was one of the first such programs in the U.S. and the prototype for many student work-study design groups now existing on university campuses. Now Glyphix is a Research Laboratory in the School of VCD. Students gain studio experience as they conduct research, develop concepts and produce design materials for clients and other stakeholders. 

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Student Media

STUDENT MEDIA

In Student Media, students create content for our six print partners (five magazines and one newspaper) as well as for TV, radio, websites and social media. Together, they reach thousands of people every day, delivering original reporting, information, entertainment and advertising. 

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