Looking To Get Into Industrial Design

[Guest iMagxz]

Hello everyone,

I am a recent high school graduate from US,Florida. I've been pondering on the idea of getting into industrial design for some time and but I'm very confused, i hope someone can help me.

 

My original plan was to go to a nearby community college for general education credits then transfer to a university for mechanical engineering major but i realized that this wasn't totally me. I want some of what i love in my career, art. From what i've found out so far, i would really like to get my foot into industrial design, badly.

 

The problem is, i dont know what colleges/universities educate in industrial design. I thought about getting the Bachelor of Science from The Art Institutes:Fort Lauderdale because i can transfer there with some general education classes that i was going to take at my community college. I would've really like to stay here ( Pinellas county) and attend SPC (our community college turned junior college), and take classes that can transfer, but i am very confused.

 

Please , someone , some clarification on the education process for industrial design?

Thank you

[Cyberdemon 16]

Visit www.idsa.org for a list of schools.

 

Florida doesn't have much to offer (The Fort Lauderdale program is still very young) but consider schools like SCAD, Georgia Tech and Auburn. All are within a reasonable driving distance and have very solid programs. If you want to venture further there are plenty of other schools worthy of consideration.

 

Transferring credits isn't always a great idea. The main reason being the foundation of design typically involves taking studio courses which are very intensive and you usually can't take more than 1 per semester. Because of this, even if you took all of your liberal arts classes at a community college, while you could transfer credits it wouldn't necessarily cost less or save you time, because you'll still need to spend 4 years to get your degree. I would speak with your guidance counsellor or give the admissions offices at some schools a call to find out what your best option would be.

 

If you think affording it is a problem, then there are always loans (or joining the military and using the GI bill to pay for school). I went to Virginia Tech specifically because the tuition price was nearly half of that at most private schools.

[Guest iMagxz]

Thank you, i see the list now.

Well spoke to my admissions counselor at SPC and she said it might be best to get an AA here and transfer in as a junior. I'll call up some of these colleges and see if they'll accept that.

 

Thanks again, i hope something works out

[Guest Yeshu]

Seeing the title of this thread, I felt inclined to add on, only because I'm in the same boat as the OP. Except I have a different sort of question:

 

I've been recently looking at ID as a serious career path I might try, yet my intended university doesn't offer Industrial Design as a major. Would it be best to find another University that does offer a major in ID, or is it possible to get a major in something else while still having a chance to get a career in ID?

[Guest csven]

@Yeshu - anything is "possible". Likely? That depends on you. But I'll be honest, your compromising at this early stage would make me bet against you. You'll be competing for jobs with highly motivated people (read this to get a sense of what I mean - Link) and increasing numbers of them as Chinese schools produce enough graduates to flood the market. It's not getting easier and I'd not have recommended your path ten years ago. But again, anything's possible.

[Guest Yeshu]

I read the posted link, and I honestly must say that those students mentioned remind me highly of myself, I realize this is possibly a dream job that i would LOVE to have and I can assure you I would go to great lengths to get into this industry!

 

That being said, in order to maximize my chances of getting into the industry, it would be best to get a major/masters in ID I'm assuming? I don't mean to sound creepy or anything, but I've seen your portfolio and resume, and I saw that you're a hybrid engineer and a designer. Was that possible through double majoring?

[Guest csven]

A Bachelor's is sufficient. The return on a Master's is questionable in this field. Even grades aren't treated the same as most other majors bc what matters most coming out of school is the portfolio of work you have to show.

 

As to double-majoring, back then double-majors were relatively rare. At ND they'd just started such programs. And while ND had/has an ID program, I'm glad I didn't go that route. Hard enough to get either an aero or ID degree in four years. Cramming both into 5 or even 6 years isn't something I think would have benefited me. So I don't regret the nine years it took. The second trip was hard but at the same time it was a blast. I'd do it all over again.

[Guest Yeshu]

Thanks for all the advice Csven, you've really helped my direction out a bit more! I'll be sticking around with more questions most likely..

[BBrandDesign 4]

Finding the right design firm for your product and business can be difficult. There are different types of designers, industrial design, graphic design, interaction design, you put a word and then say designers. I think design has to do with being sensitive to interacting with something else. Everything is interaction design. To answer the question of how did I get into interaction design from industrial design.

[DSK Supinfocom 0]

Industrial Designing and Mechanical Engineering are completely different streams. Industrial Designing is more of designing a product, then be it transportation or consumer product. If you wish to pursue course in Industrial Design then you need to have artistic skills as well as be innovative than just having technical knowledge about the product. Some institutes even offer specializations under Industrial Design which cover product design, transportation design and digital design. Industrial designers are expected to merge the information from their research and use their skills to arrive at a clarification that sells the designed product in the market for several years. DSK ISD is the best designing institute offering courses in product design, transportation design and digital design. It is an internationally recognized design school that originates from France.