In Search of a Major (Industrial Design / Entrepreneurship / Game Design / More)

College Search & Selection
1

Hi all!

I am looking for a major to apply for, but I’m kind of lost in the process. I don’t want to apply to CS or Business Admin, even though those are the only two (common) programs I have a some-what interest in. With that said, I think I would love a more unique, specialized major. Stuff like entrepreneurship, game design, product design, innovation, or something like that.

I ask, for the sole purpose of actually finding an interest, that you disregard exclusivity! Any school from Yale to a community college is fine :slight_smile:

Here are some programs that I am really interested in. Please let me know if you think of anything that I might like! If there are any schools with majors that are listed here, feel free to list them! I’d love to check out more options for a single major.

Northeastern’s Architecture and Graphic and Information Design:
https://camd.northeastern.edu/program/architecture-and-graphic-and-information-design-bs/

Northeastern’s Games
https://camd.northeastern.edu/program/games/#_ga=2.156603323.1892376149.1557028108-1827675936.1553128312

U San Fran’s Business Administration, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation
https://www.usfca.edu/management/undergraduate-programs/entrepreneurship-and-innovation

UDub’s Industrial Design
https://art.washington.edu/design/industrial-design-bdes

Waterloo’s Global Business and Digital Arts (And their Master of Digital Experience Innovation; although I’m not looking for a grad program)
https://uwaterloo.ca/stratford-school-of-interaction-design-and-business/undergraduate/what-gbda

Colorado University: Colorado Springs Bachelor of Innovation
https://innovation.uccs.edu/

Stanford’s Management Science and Engineering
https://majors.stanford.edu/management-science-and-engineering/mse

Stanford’s Product Design
https://majors.stanford.edu/product-design

Thanks everyone!

2

One of the best entrepreneurial programs and focus in the world is a smaller school outside of Boston called Babson. They have a unique program that’s right in your wheelhouse. It’s in partnership with the Uber elite engineering school called Olin.

“TECHNOLOGY, ENTREPRENEURSHIP, AND DESIGN
The Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Design (TED) concentration offers students a cross-disciplinary, experiential opportunity to explore innovation in products and organizations from a number of different vantage points. The concentration also offers the opportunity to work closely with students from engineering and design schools.

To fulfill the requirements of the concentration, students take 16 credits in the following pattern: First, students must take one core course in technological entrepreneurship (either EPS 3503 New Technology Ventures or EPS 3501 Entrepreneurship and Opportunity, but not both). Second, students must take one core course that introduces them to customer-focused design thinking (either User-oriented Collaborative Design at Olin College or EPS 4527 Social Entrepreneurship by Design). Finally, students select 8 credits from a list of courses that comprise various aspects of innovation, technology, and design. The list encompasses courses from Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Operations, Law, Economics, and Engineering.”

3

Check out Lehigh’s Baker Institute for Entrepreneurship: https://www.lehighbakerinstitute.com/whoweare

You can minor in entrepreneurship while majoring in anything you’d like.

4

Check out the Industrial Design majors at Rochester Institute of Technology, Art Center (in Pasadena) and Syracuse University’s School of Design. Wentworth in Boston has a co-op Design major.

For public schools, the UC Davis Design BA program integrates design thinking, which is one of the more forward facing iterations of design today.
Western Washington U, utilizes a curriculum that emphasizes the process of problem solving, and encourages students to make connections between culture and user-centered design.
Two other programs of note are the BS at Arizona State U, and the studio-based BA at U Oregon.

Internationally, Simon Fraser in Vancouver, BC has a unique School of Interactive Arts & Technology, which has some really interesting offerings. The other Canadian school with a great design program is Carleton University in Ontario.

Happy searching.

5

@privatebanker

Looks incredible! Added to my list. Thanks!

@momofsenior1 Looks like a great school, but I’m still hesitant to go into a small-knit group school that has a really specific purpose. I would be more comfortable at a bigger school with more diversity (not racial, to clarify). Thanks for the suggestion!

@hop

Wow! Thanks for all the suggestions. I’ll put some notes here for each school.

RIT- Looks good all around! Added.

Art Center- Looks great. Both the Product Design and Interaction Design programs look amazing. Not sure how I feel about going to a full-on Art school, though. I would like to have some diversity in people’s interests, rather than a bunch of art students together. However, the programs are so awesome-- I added it to my list!

Wentworth- Looks great again. Nothing really to say other than it seems like a great school for me. Added.

UC Davis- I’d love to go to a UC, but my online science classes aren’t accepted, so it’d take a long shot to get in (tons of testing and stuff). Still looks like a great option for me if I can apply!

WWU- The location is absolutely perfect for me-- just gorgeous and still close to Canada. That, alongside the ID program and high acceptance rate, makes it a perfect safety school for me. Thanks for mentioning it.

U Oregon- Really expensive and it seems like there is a big focus on sustainability (which I don’t have an interest in). Don’t think I’ll add it to my list.

ASU- Arizona is a lot different than what I am used to here in Canada, but I have been there a lot and the school looks awesome. Added as a safety.

Simon Fraser- Looks incredible as well. I love the idea of having a Canadian Industrial Design school on my list, so I appreciate you mentioning it!

Carleton-- I don’t really like Ontario and nothing appealed to me too much, so I didn’t add it to my list.

Thanks!

6

Bumping as I have more schools here to check, and I don’t think making another one of these threads is allowed (?)

Here are some of the awesome majors I’ve found so far. Any more that you guys can think of?
Princeton (Operations Research and Financial Engineering)
Northwestern (Manufacturing and Design Engineering)

Babson (Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Design; Quantitative Methods; or Entrepreneurship) (27%)
Northeastern x3 (Entrepreneurship and Innovation; Graphic and Information Design and Mathematics; Architecture and Graphic and Information Design; CS and Design; CS and Business Administration; Business Design; etc… I love Northeastern’s programs)

Waterloo (Global Business and Digital Arts)
U Washington (Industrial Design)

Colorado University: Colorado Springs (Bachelor of Innovation in ??)
Simon Fraser (Interactive Arts and Technology and Business – Joint) (Business and Psych)
The University of San Francisco (Business Admin, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation)
Columbia College (Design Management or Interaction Design or Game)
Western Washington University (Industrial Design)

EDIT: I don’t have a portfolio!

7

Second Babson. I know someone there currently and loves the program.

You mentioned operational research and some schools might have that under Industrial engineering… Same with financial engineering but usually graduate level. You can combine that with Innovation etc since it’s really business engineering… Just a FYI

https://ioe.engin.umich.edu/

8

Is there a major that covers everything from app development to manufacturing to entrepreneurship? I have so many awesome ideas but to create them I would need to have knowledge in all of these areas.

@Knowsstuff Thanks for the help. I’ll widen my search to include financial/industrial engineering.
Babson is definitely a front runner! Looks amazing.

9

@FakeName1332 Honestly. When I read your post I thought the babson program was designed specifically for you. Lol.

10

Just met a person who studied at UMass Amherst CS undergrad then worked, then MBA also at umass Amherst. Very successful game developer and had a great experience in both programs.

11

@privatebanker hahaha. I knew it was going to be a frontrunner when I read “Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Design.” Literally my three biggest interests all together in a top school in the nation.

@Lynnski Not sure how I feel about Game Development yet, but that’s definitely good to know! I think I’ll apply to one or two game design schools, so I’ll put a reminder to check out umass.

Thanks!

12

The University of Utah has majors in Entrepreneurship (https://advising.utah.edu/majors/quick-look/entrepreneurship.php), Games (https://games.utah.edu/prospective-students/bs-in-games/) and Design (https://advising.utah.edu/majors/quick-look/design.php)