M.F.A. – Design for Sustainability

Summary

The College for Creative Studies’ M.F.A. in Design for Sustainability (2026–2027) is a two-year graduate program structured across four semesters (about 60–61 credits total) that progressively blends sustainability-focused design studio work with research, climate-informed context, and culminating thesis projects. In the first year, students build foundational skills in design for sustainability and related systems concepts such as zero-waste and circular economies, while also taking graduate communication, seminar, design-thinking, and earth-science/climate narrative coursework; they also complete a co-creation and participatory design component and begin formal graduate research preparation. In the second year, the curriculum transitions into thesis execution through Thesis Project I and II, supported by additional sustainability design studio progression, data visualization training, and studio electives, culminating in work that emphasizes translating sustainability design into broader advocacy and sustainability policy. The catalog also specifies practical academic requirements such as maintaining a required 3.0 cumulative GPA, includes a process for department-chair approval of studio electives prior to registration, and notes an English proficiency exam consideration connected to program requirements.