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Bachelor of Arts

In Aurora University’s graphic design program, students will develop a sense of design, an ability to communicate visually, and proficiency with digital design tools, all of which are necessary to succeed in the professions of creative design and production. Students will be prepared to pursue a number of careers after graduation: graphic illustrators, multimedia artists, commercial designers, photographers, web developers, user experience (UX) specialist, and more. 

The program covers the essentials of modern design, which includes coursework in color, typography, and layout, but also incorporates a foundation in the basics of drawing and art. Coursework is built around challenging design activities and emphasizes critical thinking and creative problem solving. The classes are presented in both studio and computer labs to develop an understanding of design and the transference of this knowledge to the user experience. Students work with industry standard software on both the macOS and Windows platforms enabling graduates agility and adaptiveness to the specific software and platform used in their specific workplace environment. The Graphic Design program also requires students to complete a graphic design internship as part of their degree requirements. Upper-level courses provide numerous experiential opportunities to apply theories and principles of graphic design to real and simulated design challenges. As a culminating capstone experience intended to support a graduate’s successful career launch, students will produce a comprehensive portfolio of their work that demonstrates the development of their design skills.

Program Requirements

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Required Courses
ART-1210	Two-Dimensional Design	4
ART-2100	Introduction to Drawing	4
ART-2670	Introduction to Digital Photography	4
GRD-2100	Introduction to Graphic Design	4
GRD-2650	Intermediate Graphic Design	4
GRD-3100	Advanced Graphic Design	4
GRD-3400	Intro to UI/IUX Design	4
GRD-4940	Graphic Design Internship	4
GRD-4990	Digital Portfolio Capstone	4
Selected Courses
Select 4 semester hours of the following:		4
ART-1020	80 Masterpieces
ART-2540	Art and Power
ART-2620	Art and Death
Total Credits		40

Undergraduate Degree Requirements

A student who graduates from Aurora University with a baccalaureate degree will have met the following requirements:

1. Completion of all requirements for an approved major (with no grades lower than “C”).
2. Overall completion of at least 120 semester hours of coursework with a GPA of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 scale (a course may be utilized only once in application toward a degree requirement, unless otherwise noted in the academic regulations). The 120 semester hours of coursework must include:
   • At least 52 semester hours completed at a senior college.
   • Residency Requirement - At least 30 semester hours completed at Aurora University, including the last 24 semester hours in the degree, and including at least 18 semester hours in the major. (Portfolio assessment credit, life and vocational experience credit, off-campus experience credit, examination credit, participation credit, and block credit, shall not count toward the residency requirement).
   • Upper-Division Requirement - A minimum of 30 semester hours numbered 3000 or above. Of these 30 semester hours, 15 semester hours must lie within the major and 15 semester hours must be completed at Aurora University.
3. Completion of all General Education requirements (with no grades lower than “C”), as follows:
   • Quantitative and Formal Reasoning competency requirement
   • ENG-1000 Introduction to Academic Writing
   • IDS-1200 Discover What Matters or IDS-3040 Global Justice
   • IDS-1150 First Year Experience - Not required for Transfer or AU Online students)
   • Satisfactory participation in the junior-year mentoring and assessment process designed to guide students to successful completion of their degree and to encourage planning for next steps beyond graduation. (IDS-3500 Junior Mentoring Program I and IDS-3550 Junior Mentoring Program II - Not required for ADC or AU Online students but may be designated electives for AU Online students admitted with fewer than 15 hours of transfer credit.)
   • Distribution Requirements
     Students will complete one approved course¹ from each of the following categories:
     • Artistic Literacy
     • Cultural Literacy
     • Human Inquiry
     • Scientific Inquiry

In addition to the above, ADC and Online students will also complete one approved course¹ from the following category:

• Discovery and Reflection

¹

Only courses that are approved to meet the distribution requirement can be used toward this requirement. See the list of approved courses  for available options. Courses taken to meet distribution requirements are 4 semester hours apiece, with the following exceptions:

• An approved transfer course of at least 2.50 semester hours can be used to satisfy a distribution requirement.
• Courses with co-requisite laboratory components may be used to satisfy a distribution requirement, provided that the student successfully complete both the three-credit-hour course and the single-credit-hour lab component.

Learning Outcomes