Textile Design (B.S.)
The mission of the textile design program is to provide an integrated, collaborative curriculum that blends experiential learning in aesthetic and creative area with emerging global technologies. The program emphasizes supportive relationships with faculty and peers, together with cross-disciplinary knowledge, to turn innovative ideas into actual products, preparing students for successful careers establishing the trends in design, color and pattern.
Program Learning Outcomes
Graduates of the textile design program will have the ability to:
- Apply conceptual and critical thinking skills that illustrate an understanding of the theoretical foundations of textile design.
- Demonstrate creative talents required of the textile design industry.
- Apply a base of liberal arts knowledge to examine textile design issues through acquiring, developing and conveying design ideas and information.
- Demonstrate an understanding of textile design business practices, including ethics and law.
- Develop design industry marketability through successful completion of the program.
- Identify international perspectives to function in a global marketplace.
With expanding international markets, the billion-dollar textile industry cuts across a multiplicity of products and commerce—fashion, home furnishings, medical, performance, retail and technical. This provides a world of opportunity for talented textile designers. Our program puts students on the fast track to an exciting career in this field. Textile majors range from those who are design- and trend- oriented to those focused on textile science, engineering and product development, enabling specialization in the area most suited to individual interests and strengths.
Each year, Textile Design students win awards in prestigious, international design competitions sponsored by textile associations and industry corporations.
Textile designers begin their education in the studio developing a sense of color, light, shape, texture and form. They explore properties of fibers, yarns and dyes, and they study how fabrics are constructed. Advanced courses allow students to concentrate in a breadth of fabrication technology, including woven, knit and printed textiles.
The University invites designers, artists, industry leaders and experts onto campus to interact with students. These weekly presentations create an opportunity for students to explore the range of career possibilities in the textile design field. Additionally, frequent field trips provide exposure to design studios, textile manufacturing facilities and product development firms.