Glossy magazines, digital media, corporate stationery, television graphics, billboards - all are composed of images, design, and printed words that work together to sell products and services, or to convey messages. This is the fundamental concept of graphic design, and it?s the basis of some of today?s most dynamic fields - advertising, publishing, television and interactive communications.

The Graphic Design Associate degree program at The Art Institutes International Minnesota is the first step toward a career in commercial graphics. Initially, students develop an understanding of color and composition, design and typography, and have the opportunity to learn accurate drawing skills. As they progress through the program, students have the opportunity to learn to offer effective solutions.

PROGRAM MISSION
The mission of the Graphic Design Associate degree program is to provide a focus on conceptual thinking while developing graphic design technical and creative skills, including an introduction to the theory and practice of print and web design production, electronic publishing, graphic imagery, and sales promotion. Graduates are prepared to enter in entry-level positions in the graphic design field through practice of lifelong learning . Graphic Design graduates are prepared to work and meet the challenges of the continually changing marketplace and Graphic Design profession.

PROGRAM STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
1 . Technical - Graduates will demonstrate competencies in industry-specific computer software programs within the context of producing concrete projects. This includes technical aspects of prepress, output, and quality reproduction, as well as web design
2 . Design - Graduates will incorporate aesthetics and formal concepts of layout and design. This includes spatial relationships; communication legibility and effectiveness; inter-relationships among imagery and text; balance; typography; and color theory
3 . Visual Communication - Graduates are able to verbally articulate the vision behind their creative work and explain and promote their solutions
4 . History / Concepts - Students will demonstrate design concepts and relate these to historical and contemporary trends and social context by producing successful visual solutions to assigned problems
5 . Design Professionalism - Graduates will demonstrate professional presentation; articulation of knowledge of graphic design and visual problem solving