CCS prepares students to enter a global economy in which creativity shapes better communities and societies.
Here, creative minds explore and thrive. Students who pursue a master’s degree from CCS advance their creative practices and develop as critical thinkers, while gaining expertise and knowledge to enhance their career opportunities.
The College for Creative Studies offers six distinct graduate programs, including Art Education, Color & Materials Design, Design for Sustainability, Interdisciplinary Design & Media, Transportation Design and User Experience Design. CCS also offers minors in Footwear Design and Design for Sustainability.
Our programs are contextually rich, emphasizing research-led practice and business acumen for the creative economy.
Welcome to CCS
WALTER AND JOSEPHINE FORD CAMPUS
For more than a century, CCS has distinguished itself as one of the premier institutions of higher learning in the world. Located in the heart of Detroit’s Innovation District, our veritable force of talent and resources is unrivaled.
The CCS campus is made up of two locations, the Walter and Josephine Ford Campus and the A. Alfred Taubman Center for Design Education, just one mile apart and accessible via a campus shuttle.
A. ALFRED TAUBMAN CENTER FOR DESIGN EDUCATION
Detroit: First American UNESCO City of Design
Detroit is home to a growing number of artists and entrepreneurs and the highest concentration of commercial and industrial designers in the nation. Our tight-knit artists’ community, affordable living and studio space, and economic opportunity inspire creatives and foster opportunity for growth and change.
Detroit Month of Design Festival
Detroit City of Design Summit Detroit Auto Show
Eastern Market
Eastern Market After Dark Inspiration Is Everywhere
Why CCS? Highlights
DETROIT: A GLOBAL DESIGN INCUBATOR
The only U.S. city designated as a UNESCO City of Design, Detroit is the ideal ground for incubating the next generation of creative innovators. CCS brings the city’s resources and learning opportunities to students via its curriculum — through socialimpact partnerships and creative projects with local design and business communities.
SMALL GROUPS
Study in small, intensive groups where you will receive individual attention from faculty.
Graduate studies alumnus Dong Wu (‘18, Transportation Design) co-created ”Quadrobot,” a fully autonomous, all-electric delivery service that debuted in China in 2019.
Color & Materials Design students have been included in the International Biodesign Challenge for three years, winning twice.
STATE-OF-THE-ART TECH & WORLD-CLASS FACILITIES
Our graduate programs reside in the A. Alfred Taubman Center for Design Education, one of two locations at the College.
AWARD-WINNING
Transportation Design students have been internationally recognized with two Magna Global Bold Perspective awards, three Creative Conscious awards, an International Biodesign Challenge award and a BRP International Design competition finalist award.
REAL-WORLD EXPERIENCE
CCS is uniquely positioned to prepare graduates for successful careers with our well-established tradition of integrating industry-sponsored projects into the curricula.
LONG-TERM CAREERS
An education in design thinking can be applied to a wide variety of scenarios: delivering new products, new services, and new ways of running or creating businesses. We educate designers who have a firm grasp of the business practices that most new hires typically learn on the job.
Alejandra Castelao, (‘12, MFA Interdisciplinary Design) Senior Experience Design Lead at Dolby Labs, Part of Accenture Interactive in San Francisco, California, led the development of the custom body scanner and in-room touch screens for Forward, a healthcare startup in San Francisco, California, headed by entrepreneur and ex-Google Exec Adrian Aoun. The custom body scanner was named one of TIME Magazine’s best 25 inventions of 2017. Castelao also led the space and industrial design efforts creating the building blocks and design principles for the company through a series of projects, including a prototype clinic, fully functional showroom, mobile showroom and brick-and-mortar locations.
RANKINGS
Money
America’s Best Colleges
U.S. News & World Report
Graduate School — Best Fine Arts Programs
Niche
Best Colleges for Design in America
Best Colleges for Art in America
Colleges with the Best Academics in America
College Rank
Best Bachelors of Art & Design
GradDegree.com
Best Colleges, Visual & Performing Arts
College Factual
Most Popular — 2023 Design
Best Quality — 2023 Best Design & Applied
Art Schools
Highest Paid — Master’s Degree Visual & Performing Arts Graduates in Michigan
Plexuss — The Student Opportunity Network
Best Design & Applied Arts Schools (undergraduate)
Best Fine Arts Schools (undergraduate)
INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION
Color & Materials Design students were recently invited to take part in Milan Design Week as part of the UNFOLD exhibition.
UNMATCHED OPPORTUNITY
CCS supports cross-pollination, promoting discourse across disciplines. Electives allow students to build on their unique interests by taking courses from any graduate or undergraduate program. Students can also participate in a number of interdisciplinary collaborative projects that explore new ideas, approaches and skills.
Art Education
Students in the Art Education program are able to maintain their current teaching position while earning their master’s degree via this unique, low-residency, 25-month hybrid program.
The 30-credit MA focuses on professional and technical skills and knowledge.
CCS’s Art Education program celebrates and illuminates teaching as a complex creative practice by deeply exploring the intersections of the artist, researcher and teacher in both classroom and studio settings.
This program is designed to nurture and inspire the artist/researcher/teacher, recognizing the complexities and intersections of these three lenses and identities. Each year, a small group of diverse artist-teachers becomes a cohort and explores multiple layers of meaning and experience by combining both verbal and visual literacies, connecting theory to practice in order to better understand the complex whole of culturally relevant pedagogy in the field of contemporary art and art education.
The curriculum gives graduates the necessary skills to participate in highly collaborative, interdisciplinary settings. Specifically, the students will be knowledgeable of contemporary policy issues in art and design education, issues of diversity, equity and inclusion, developing pedagogical trends within the field of art education and education in general, implications of visual literacy within the field of education, advocacy, pedagogical theories and intersections with practice, current assessment practices of both students and teachers, community art practices, and traditional and visual research methods.
Color & Materials Design
The Color & Materials Design program prepares students for a career in Color, Materials and Finish (CMF) Design.
MA / MFA
The 30-credit MA (initial degree) is the first year of the 60-credit MFA (terminal degree), with classes focusing on professional and technical skills and knowledge. During the second year, students embark on an independently defined critical inquiry.
STEM-designated program
Pairs well with the Footwear Design or Design for Sustainability minor.
The Color & Materials Design program at CCS is the only accredited graduate-level CMF program worldwide, attracting designers globally from the fields of product, transportation, fashion, interior, user experience, textile and animation design, as well as fine art, crafts, architecture, engineering, and the natural and social sciences.
The program curriculum prepares students to cultivate a mindset where forwardthinking color, material and finish strategies are framed to connect functional and emotional meaning to products, environments and experiences — with the understanding of user needs and preferences — across a wide range of industries.
Often working in cross-collaborations through experiential learning with industry partners, students strive to achieve expertise in deciphering patterns within markets, cultures and geographic regions to develop narratives that offer innovative perspectives, mindful of the impact of their design decisions in terms of societal effects, product life cycle and sustainability.
Graduates of the program operate in both tangible and virtual environments, pushing forward color, material and finish concepts through in-depth research and trend forecasting, practical experimentation and prototyping, advanced digital technologies, and visual and verbal storytelling.
See Student Work:
Design for Sustainability
Design and design thinking have a crucial role to play in the advancement of sustainable futures and net-zero strategies.
MA / MFA
The 30-credit MA (initial degree) is the first year of the 60-credit MFA (terminal degree), with classes focusing on professional and technical skills and knowledge. During the second year, students embark on an independently defined critical inquiry.
STEM-designated program
The CCS graduate program in Design for Sustainability will provide students with the skills, knowledge and design toolkit needed to be a change-maker in the field of sustainability.
This innovative and transformative program invites designers and non-designers of all kinds to gain a deep understanding of the complex relationships between design, the environment and society. Students will explore sustainable design principles, systems thinking, visual advocacy and interdisciplinary collaboration, all while gaining practical experience in creating climate solutions for a sustainable future.
Detroit is a hotbed of innovation in sustainability, climate action, climate justice and design. With the city hosting events and conferences like the Sustainable Detroit Forum, the Sustainable Urban Design Summit, Detroit Month of Design, Cumulus 2022: Design for Adaptation, the TED Countdown Summit and many more, Detroit is fast becoming a focal point for meetings of minds.
See Student Work:
The 30-credit MA (initial degree), is the first year of the 60-credit MFA (terminal degree), with classes focusing on professional and technical skills and knowledge. During the second year, students embark on an independently defined critical inquiry.
Interdisciplinary Design & Media
Working laterally across design disciplines, the customizable CCS Interdisciplinary Design & Media graduate program supports the development of each student’s unique, versatile skill set and personal career aspirations.
STEM-designated program
This program can entail either or both graduate minors.
In this option-rich program, each student will build their own customized curriculum across CCS’s other programs toward their own personal goals.
As students advance their design and visual arts practices through this interdisciplinary approach, they’ll hone clear, lateral perspectives and strengthen their leadership skills in multidisciplinary teams. The MFA degree program culminates in a written thesis course and a capstone final project that examines, transcends and redefines interdisciplinary boundaries.
Graduates of this program will pursue successful careers as creatives, curators, academics, entrepreneurs, leaders, policymakers and much more.
Described as Detroit’s “untapped strength,” design and innovative partnerships have played key roles in the city’s resilience. CCS’s Interdisciplinary Design & Media students live, learn and work among a vibrant, international community of creatives in the only U.S. city designated as a UNESCO City of Design.
See Student Work:
Transportation Design
Graduates of the Transportation Design program are innovators, in automotive design and all aspects of mobility, always with an eye toward the future.
MA / MFA
The 30-credit MA (initial degree) is the first year of the 60-credit MFA (terminal degree), with classes focusing on professional and technical skills and knowledge. During the second year, students embark on an independently defined critical inquiry.
STEM-designated program
Building on your art and creativity, the College’s program in Transportation Design will bring you together with other bright, forward-thinking students from design and engineering disciplines who want to delve into the invention and entrepreneurial aspects of transportation design.
In this program, students are invited to assume the role of “designer as inventor” as they are led through a complete design process that includes extensive research, sketching and 3D rendering, animation, core competencies analysis and more. Special projects explore innovation through forms and materials, functionality and engineering. Students apply to this understanding a real-world strategy that includes business practices, research, brand identity, vehicle architecture and mobility as a system.
The CCS Transportation Design studios and labs are in the very place where Harley Earl, the first modern automotive designer, and other pioneers created groundbreaking vehicles – and where today’s industry leaders seek top talent.
See Student Work:
User Experience Design
Graduates of the User Experience (UX) Design program carefully examine the end-to-end process of products, environments, systems and services in order to enhance and improve their function, usability and design.
MPS / MA / MFA
The 30-credit MA (initial degree) is the first year of the 60-credit MFA (terminal degree), with classes focusing on professional and technical skills and knowledge. During the second year, students embark on an independently defined critical inquiry. The MPS is fully online and designed for working professionals.
STEM-designated program
Pairs well with the Footwear Design or Design for Sustainability minor.
This program is situated at the intersection of technology and creative practice. Here, students learn how to design technologically mediated systems and experiences, and human interactions with objects, spaces and interfaces.
Through in-depth user research, iterative prototyping and usability testing, students will explore experiences amidst new and emerging technologies in areas including: artificial intelligence (AI), extended reality (XR), robotics, smart mobility and the Internet of Things (IoT).
The program is grounded in creativity, speculative thinking and experimental practices in response to rich socio- and techno-cultural themes. With access to CCS’s world-class studios and resources, students further their own skills and knowledge through hands-on learning. Critical inquiry and design provocations sharpen insights as students become adept with models of interaction, experience and communication.
Students will learn to sketch and prototype with hardware and software for design ideation and development, and apply code to bring creative concepts to life. Students will also learn about physical and cognitive ergonomics in human-machine and system interactions.
See Student Work:
Color, Material and Finish (CMF) designers aspiring to enter the footwear industry will master the artistry and craft of footwear design and shoemaking in the Footwear Design minor.
The Graduate Minor in Footwear Design allows MFA students to take three classes in footwear design as a defined minor credential within their degree program. The minor includes a unique combination of functionality, aesthetics, color and material innovation, paired with the complexities of patternmaking and shoe construction. Students will have the opportunity to focus on materials and processes within the footwear industry, exploring and innovating sustainable alternatives to surpass existing industry standards.
A highlight of the program is the additional opportunity for experiential engagement through renowned industry partnerships with local and national partners via sponsored projects. Students are able to apply their knowledge in real-world contexts, gaining valuable hands-on experience.
With the last decade being the hottest on record, climate change is at the forefront of current sociopolitical debate and business strategy. The design profession is increasingly in need of designers capable of advancing sustainability goals and net-zero strategies.
The Graduate Minor in Design for Sustainability allows MFA students to take three classes in sustainability as a defined minor credential within their degree program. The minor provides students with skills and knowledge to support climate-focused design practice in their major field, and beyond into their professional careers. Students will learn to think and work creatively within circular economies, zero-waste materials and processes, the science of anthropogenic climate change and ecological decline, and the use of compelling narratives and advocacy. This minor is open to students in any graduate-level program.
Alumni
Creative solutions flow from the firm belief that, as a designer, you can make an impact, not only on people’s lives, but on the future.
The CCS name is well-known, and your degree will distinguish you from other college graduates. CCS alumni are changing the world by applying the skills they’ve learned to the most pressing problems of our times. Our alumni reenvision and redefine what it means to be creatives in the 21st century.
DANIEL SHAPIRO ‘22, TRANSPORTATION DESIGN
Creative Designer
General Motors
‘22, USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN
User Experience Designer
Stellantis
‘17, COLOR & MATERIALS DESIGN
Senior Industrial Designer
Kohler
‘22, COLOR & MATERIALS DESIGN
Color & Material Designer
Puma
ALI LOFTUS
FAN HUANG
CHRISTINE MONTALBANO
DEADLINES
January 15 Priority*
* For students who want to ensure full consideration for scholarships and additional financial aid.
February 15 General
AFTER FEBRUARY 15: ROLLING APPLICATION DEADLINE
Applications will continue to be reviewed on a rolling basis. We encourage you to complete your application as early as possible to ensure space and scholarships are still available.
SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID
CCS is an investment in yourself and your future, and taking advantage of financial aid – whether it is a scholarship, grant, loan or employment assistance – is the best way to make that investment more affordable. Ninety-eight percent of CCS students receive some combination of financial aid, totaling more than $33 million.
Financial aid packages are comprised of a combination of state, federal and institutional scholarships, need-based grants and student loans. CCS also awards scholarships founded by external entities to eligible students based on criteria specified by these donors. All graduate applicants are automatically considered for scholarship awards.
FREE APPLICATION FOR FEDERAL STUDENT AID (FAFSA)
To be considered for need-based financial aid, a completed Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is required. All U.S. graduate students are strongly encouraged to complete the application. Visit studentaid.gov for more information.
TO LEARN MORE, ASK QUESTIONS OR SCHEDULE A VISIT
If you have questions about CCS, our programs or the application process, our Admissions staff and program chairs are both accessible and supportive. We are happy to answer questions at information sessions or through personal admissions appointments.
For more information or to schedule a campus tour, email grad_admissions@ccsdetroit.edu or call 313.664.7814.
ACCREDITATION STATEMENT
College for Creative Studies is a nonprofit, private college authorized to grant Associate, Bachelor, and Master’s degrees. Documents regarding accreditation are available in the Executive Office upon formal request. College for Creative Studies is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org), an institutional accreditation agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
