I would like to know who has better internships for Industrial design CMU, RISD, Pratt it Georgia institute of Technology, Atlanta! Internships are important for future employment!
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First off, have you contacted the program directors/admissions counselors/professors at the schools? Because they will probably give you a better answer than most individuals on CC.
I think that Pratt will be a great choice for NYC-based internships, especially those focused on design. RISD is the top design school in the country (not that Pratt is lacking), and I also think that they’ll place students into excellent Boston and NYC internships.
CMU and Georgia Tech will have a little more focus on the STEM of Industrial Design (well, historically they have). Pittsburgh and Atlanta are great cities for internships, but those two schools would also likely place you into some of the best ID internships in the country—CMU might have connections with Ford, Chevrolet, Ram, GM; GTech might have connections with big tech.
Just my two cents. All are great choices.
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Thanks for the advice, I hope someone that attend one of those colleges could let me know about their experience.
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Despite its reputation as the best fine arts school in the country (thanks, @schoolstruggles!), I consistently found the mythical job/internship fair to be dominated by employers based in New England, mainly in Providence and Boston. Not that this is a bad thing, but for a school with RISD’s reputation, you would think there would be more of a national representation. Frankly, I am not sure that other top fine arts schools are so different. All this means, however, is that it requires greater proactivity from the student and you hold the bonus chip - RISD! Every internship through my first job, I got on my own. That said, holding the RISD card was a big advantage at every employer with whom I interviewed. Short answer - RISD is not going to hand it to you. Realistic answer - Work hard, do your due diligence, and a RISD education will pay off big time. Good luck!
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@BrooklynRye - i have a grad student there now risd. thank you for your thoughts. kid has nothing planned yet for the summer; i know its very heavily portfolio - but also Personally - based. Kid is quite introverted, and that’s all part of the equation. we are praying it pays off for kiddo as it’s quite pricey. But, loving the school.
Without over-stereotyping, this is a problem for many art students. Their unabashed creativity and progressiveness translates well while in school. Blue hair, piercings, tatoos, and broad social fluidity are the norm. But as much as the jobs for which they apply are “creative” in nature, the corporate environment is not always so flexible. I was a bit isolated while at RISD, exactly because I was NOT the art school norm (recall once dyeing the tips of my hair blue, but that’s about the extent of it). I remember one particular employer exclaiming, “I can actually invite you back to our corporate office to meet our team!” A bit off-putting, but I got the point. For what comfort it may provide, most of my RISD peers were a bit outside social norms, including a large segment of introverts. I think that art can lend itself to an introverted personality when so much of the creative process is solitary and focused. My strongest piece of advice is to take away everything your student can from the school. It is an amazing place with some phenomenal professors. Learn, learn, learn, and develop your skills and your portfolio.
Thanks so much, it is hard to pay so much money and universities not to help students with an internship. It should start even in the second or third year of college. Also I believe some colleges have Summer programs out of USA like Georgia Tech.
Thanks for the advice one more time! My daughter will apply this fall and we need to pay out of state tuition around $ 50.000 to 60.000 for industrial design undergraduate degree! Please someone tell me if’ it’s going to be worthy?
Well, that’s a bit of a loaded question. It depends on what you all can afford, what school your child attends, online salary and career research, etc.
In general, I would say that $50-60K per year is pushing it. But if your household is earning over $200K a year, then $50-60K might be OK.
Generally, if you have to dip into life savings/mortgage payments, or if your child will be graduating with over $60-70K of debt, then it’s not worth it (IMO).
Your child should look into UI/UX Design. More career openings and higher salaries (usually).