Graphic Design Area

The Graphic Design program prepares you to become a visual communicator, critical thinker, and creative problem solver. Through our mentorship and curricula, you will learn the history and theory, acquire conceptual, analytical, and practical skills through hands-on exploration, and develop professional portfolios.

Common careers for graduates include the following in design, advertising, corporate communications, education, publishing, or non-profit sectors:

Visual, production, and interactive design
Art direction
Editorial/publication design
User experience and interface design
Data visualization and Infographics
Branding and packaging design
Experiential graphic design
Motion graphics and title design

Graphic Design Courses
Note:

Upper-level art history courses fulfil the 3000-4000 level art history requirements in all Visual Arts majors.

All courses in the following topics fulfill the 1000-4000 level studio requirements in all Visual Arts majors.

Animation

Illustration

Digital fabrication

Textitle

Photography

Printmaking

Introductory

ART 1450 - Digital Tools and Techniques

An introductory course in graphic technology that meets requirements for basic computer literacy for all visual arts majors. This course is an exploratory course to address current hardware and software for existing and emerging computer graphic technology.

Hours:
3

Advanced

ART 3450 - UX/UI

A graphic communication course focusing on creating page layouts and styling websites displayed on various devices. Students will explore the web's interactivity, responsiveness, and technical challenges and possibilities. Recommended to take ART 3460.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisite: ART 2450 with a grade of C or higher, or permission of the Department Head of Visual Arts

Hours:
3

ART 3460 - Typography

A graphic communication course focusing on letterform design, text, and display-type projects. Emphasis will be on legibility and readability, form and counter form, qualities and attributes that constitute a type family, and the development of typographic hierarchical structure within a given design problem.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisite: ART 2450 with a grade of C or higher, or permission of the Head of the Department of Visual Arts

Hours:
3

ART 4450 - Advanced UX/UI

This advanced graphic communication course is a continuation of ART 3450 UX/UI, where students continue to enhance strong research synthesizing and application skills in large-scale projects while exploring a broad spectrum of essential topics, software and design processes.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisites: ART 3450 with a grade of C or higher or permission of the Head of the Department of Visual Arts

Hours:
3

ART 4451 - Design Systems

This advanced graphic communication course focuses on the practical applications of graphic design to audiences.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisite: ART 3460 with a grade of C or higher, or permission of the Head of the Department of Visual Arts

Hours:
3

ART 4452 - Digital Media

An advanced studio course focusing on effective visual problem-solving in interactive and motion design.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisites: ART 3450 and ART 3460 with grades of C or better

Hours:
3

ART 4456 - Experiential Graphic Design

This advanced graphic communications course focuses on finding solutions to integrate information design, wayfinding strategy, and the overall experience of a built environment. It introduces a segue into the graphic design disciplines of environmental graphics and spatial experience.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisite: ART 3460 with a grade of C or higher, or permission of the Head of the Department of Visual Arts

Hours:
3

ART 4458 - Design Practices

This advanced graphic communications course prepares students to thrive in the existing and emerging graphic design marketplace, focusing on best practices in business development, project management, and effective file preparation for vendors.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisite: ART 3460 with a grade of C or higher, or permission of the Head of the Department of Visual Arts

Hours:
3

ART 4460 - Advanced Typography

This advanced graphic communications course is a continuation of ART 3460 Typography, where students examine more complex typographic issues and develop expressive ways to solve communication problems in large-scale projects. Emphasis will be on the expressive potential of designing with type, investigation of the application of visual communication concepts to problems involving sequential relationships, legibility and readability.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisite: ART 3460 with a grade of C or higher, or permission of the Head of the Department of Visual Arts

Hours:
3

ART 4850 - Internship in Visual Art

Students apply skills acquired through academic study in a performance-based context. Students enrolled in this course are generally assigned to work with an outside agency or institution through a cooperative agreement originated by the �鶹��Ʒ��߲�� Department of Visual Arts and the Office of Career Services. This course is repeatable for up to 9 credit hours.

Hours:
3

ART 4915 - Special Topic in Art

A detailed study of an art form, medium, style, technique, or other special topic of current interest not covered in catalog listings. May be repeated for a total of up to 9 credit hours.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisites: ART 1010, ART 1020, and ART 1030 with grades of C or higher

Hours:
3

Letter Press

ART 3310 - Introduction to Book Arts

Organization of ideas and technical problems in book arts. Processes may include various construction, assemblage, and binding techniques, letterpress, and interdisciplinary two- and three dimensional media employed in the construction of the book form.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisite: ART 1020 with a grade of C or higher or permission of Head of the Department of Visual Arts

Hours:
3

ART 3300 - Introduction to Letter Press

Organization of ideas and technical problems in letterpress. Processes may include various printing on a variety of presses using movable type, photopolymer plate and linoleum cut and wood cut block printing.

Prerequisite/Corequisite:
Prerequisite: ART 1020 with a grade of C or higher or permission of Head of the Department of Visual Arts

Hours:
3

Studios & Equipment
Dahlonega Campus

Graphics Lab Studio: , room 212

18 iMacs, 21.5-inch display

Adobe Creative Suite

Microsoft Office

16 Wacom Intuos Pro Medium Tablets

Epson Color Inkjet Printer

Epson Large-format Flatbed Scanner

1 overhead digital projector

Oconee Campus

Technology Enhanced Active Learning (TEAL) Room: , room 313

21 Apple iMacs, 21.5-inch display

Adobe Creative Suite

5 Sony BRAVIA X81CH 55” Class HDR 4K UHD Smart Professional LED TV

1 HP Color LaserJet Enterprise M751 Printer

Gainesville Campus

Graphics Lab/Student Technology Center: , room 2300

17 iMacs, 24-inch 4K Retina display with Apple M1 chips

Adobe Creative Suite

Glyphs app (type designing software)

Microsoft Office

4 worktables

5 self-healing pads

1 large Mayline Ranger light table

2 Xyron Pro 2500 laminators

Print Room/Teach Support Equipment Room: , room 2302

1 iMac, 24-inch 4K Retina display with Apple M1 chip

1 Epson Expression 12000XL Graphic Arts Scanner

Canon Pro-4000 large format printer

Epson SureColor P5000 commercial edition printer

HP Color LaserJet Entrepress M750DN Laser Printer

1 large media storage spindle rack

Bundles of various media & foam-boards

1 overhead digital projector

Graphic Design Advising Guide
Things Graphic Design Majors and Minors Need To Know

The Visual Arts Department has two separate programs and a minor in both Dahlonega and Gainesville: an Art Major with Graphic Design; a Visual Arts B.F.A. in Graphic design; and a Graphic Design minor. Majors will be assigned an advisor based on where they are in the program. The following Graphic Design faculty advisors are Prof. Tiffany Prater in Gainesville and Prof. JinYoung Lim in Dahlonega.

Consistent and regular communication with your graphic design advisors is mandatory and necessary for successful progression through the B.A., B.F.A. and minor programs. Students planning to pursue the B.F.A. Graphic design program must first communicate with the graphic design faculty and contact the B.F.A. Coordinator.

Students must familiarize themselves with the all-program requirements located on our department website.

Required courses: Students planning to pursue either a B.A. or B.F.A. with a focus in Graphic design must pass the Foundations Portfolio Review first before registering for the upper level studio and art history courses. Graphic Design minors are excluded from the Foundations Portfolio Review but must take the required courses.

All students must plan on acquiring a laptop - please view the laptop recommendations.

B.A. students must take ART 4850 Internship in Visual Arts to complete their study plan, while B.F.A. students are not required, though they may register for the internship course to expand their portfolio. The course is not available to graphic design minors.

Students must be mindful that the classes are available on each campus through course rotation. Therefore, should students need one last class to graduate on time, which is only available on another campus, they may travel to the other campus, waitlist, or take the course next semester.

Both B.A. and B.F.A. students are expected to join and participate in the events organized by the AIGA Atlanta chapter and the AIGA Student board. Joining this professional design organization is the best way to network and gain internship and job opportunities off-campus.

Graphic Design Internship

internships are a great way to build hands-on skills, solve real design problems, and connect with industry professionals. Learn about enrolling to ART 4850 Internship in Visual Arts course.

Where to Look

Explore opportunities on LinkedIn, Coroflot, AIGA, Creatively, or Google. You can also reach out directly to agencies, nonprofits, or in-house design teams. Need guidance? Check out the

Professional memberships

Joining a professional and credible organization can help you connect with design-centric minds, gain insights on industry and design trends, enhance your skills, and locate employment opportunities. Some organizations include , , and .

BFA Graphic Design Society

A dedicated to supporting students as they begin their design careers. Students can explore design trends, discover internship and career opportunities, and engage in creative dialogue.

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