The application process is held once a year during winter semester for admission the following fall. The curriculum is designed to give students a strong knowledge of color theory, visual aesthetics, and typography while developing their skills in design application at basic and advanced levels. Basic Studies 15, Graphic Design 43, Photography 3, Writing about Art 3, Art Electives 9, Art History 12, and General Studies 37. The program in graphic design provides the opportunity for students to participate in a national design organization through its student chapter of the American Center for Design in Chicago. With a graphic design faculty member as advisor, student members participate in exhibitions and lectures and attend the center's annual conference in Chicago, which includes presentations, portfolio reviews by prominent design professionals, and visits to local design firms.
Seniors work in individually designated studio spaces.
Graduating seniors attend a four-day trip to New York, where they visit professional design studios and meet with designers who give presentations on the profession and review portfolios. Some private interviews occur as a result. They are likely to go on to professional practice. The program boasts a very high placement rate. While some graduates form small design studios or work independently in areas of their choosing, most are now practicing designers in studios and businesses across the nation and abroad.