Visual communications and design are my passions, so I'm looking for colleges that are known for their programs in these areas. Which schools should I be looking at?
Starting from the East Coast, you may want to consider Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), which is highly regarded in the field of visual communications and design. Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania also boasts a strong design program with specific tracks for Communication Design.
In the Midwestern region of the U.S., you have the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC). SAIC provides a platform for interdisciplinary study and encourages a visual communications major to take courses in other departments to ensure a well-rounded design education.
On the West Coast, California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) has a program in Graphic Design that intertwines with media arts. The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has a respected Design Media Arts program that provides a broad base in design theory and technique.
Remember to evaluate each program by not just its ranking, but its course offerings, faculty, location, internship opportunities, and post-graduate job placement rates. Most of these programs will allow you to specialize or choose tracks that interest you the most, such as user interface design, graphic design, or advertising design, just to name a few possibilities.
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