Design
Design the future
From landscapes to libraries to cities, sets, and stages, we provide the advanced technical skills and foster the deep human sensitivity needed so that you can create spaces, environments, and realities (digital and physical) – simply put, these degrees can help you build a better future.
Undergraduate
Degrees
B.Arch. in Architecture
The B.Arch. is a highly sought after five-year professional degree program that consistently produces graduates who push the bounds of architecture to enhance the human experience.
B.A. in Art
The B.A. in Art offers visual artists the opportunity to find their artistic voices in an environment that fosters individuality and prepares graduates for an impactful career in the arts.
B.A. in Art History
The B.A. in Art History offers an opportunity for students to explore and examine art while developing a deep understanding of how and why it brings the world closer.
B.Des. in Digital Arts and Media Design
The B.Des. in Digital Arts and Media Design is on the cutting edge of a rapidly growing discipline that prepares students to develop digital technology in art, gaming, simulations, web-based design, and much more.
B.Des. in Digital Multimedia Design
The wholly online B.Des. in Digital Multimedia Design program prepares students to impact the ever-changing visual art, information science and technology, and communications digital media landscape.
B.Des. in Graphic Design
The B.Des. in Graphic Design empowers students to become innovators that meet the growing demand for branding, storytelling, visualizing information, user experience, and user interface designs.
B.A. in Integrative Arts
The B.A. in Integrative Arts offers the unique opportunity for students to work successfully as innovative and dynamic artists, designers, and performers in an increasingly interdisciplinary world.
B.L.A. in Landscape Architecture
The B.L.A. in Landscape Architecture immerses students in cutting-edge sustainability strategies that produce responsible and creative design for the world around us.
B.Des. in Professional Photography
The B.Des. in Professional Photography prepares students to realize the power of photography while training them to professionally capture the beauty and complexity of the world.
B.F.A. in Theatre
With options in Stage Management and Theatre Design and Technology, the B.F.A. in Theatre trains the behind-the-scenes theatre professionals to produce a transformative theatrical experience by artistically engaging modern technology and skills.
Undergraduate
Minors + Certificates
Architectural History Minor
The Architectural History minor teaches exceptional visual acuity and analysis. You will better understand space, design processes, and construction practice within historical periods.
Architecture Studies Minor
The Architecture Studies minor will permit students in other majors the opportunity to gain insight into the discipline of Architecture.
Art History Minor
Explore art from ancient to contemporary times, in Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. This minor relates visual images to the big questions of humanity.
Digital Arts Certificate
Blend classroom and online learning in this 15-credit certificate program that will help you develop artistic knowledge and technical skills that can be applied across industries and professions.
Entrepreneurship and Innovation Minor
Become a leader in the arts or design. Engage in a start-up venture. Leverage your art or craft. Create alliances. Meet social or business needs. Craft ideas and make art work.
Graphic Design Minor
The Graphic Design minor is intended for students interested in augmenting their academic major with the physical, technological, aesthetic, and conceptual skills associated with a design discipline.
International Arts Minor
Expand your perspective. Become a well-traveled citizen of the world. A minor in International Arts will provide a deeper understanding of how art and design permeate cultures around the world.
Landscape Architecture Minor
Landscape architecture is a design profession focused on natural and built environments and people’s experiences within them.
Museum Studies Certificate
Learn the fundamentals of museum studies. Explore the history, theory, and practice of institutional collecting and conservation. Engage in a technical investigation of art.
Music Technology Minor
The Music Tech minor opens the study of musical acoustics, digital audio, sound design, and audio recording. You will apply domains of knowledge from your majors to the fields of audio production and digital technology.
Photography Minor
Acquire technical and conceptual photographic capabilities for documenting, expressing, and sharing information, ideas, views, and cultural perspectives. Learn to communicate in a visual language.
Graduate
Degrees
M.Arch. in Architecture
The professional M.Arch. degree deeply explores the techniques, principles, histories, theories of architecture, preparing students to become leaders in the field.
M.S. in Architecture (+Dual M.S. +IUG)
The M.S. in Architecture program is designed for students interested in advanced research and independent work. Integrated undergrad/grad, as well as dual-title program options exist.
Ph.D. in Architecture (+Dual Ph.D.)
The Ph.D. in Architecture is a research-based degree concentrating on a number of areas of inquiry. Hone the degree via research clusters, program focus areas, or dual-title options.
M.L.A. in Landscape Architecture
The professional M.L.A. program at Penn State equips students with the techniques, principles, histories, theories, and technologies to become leaders in the profession of landscape architecture.
M.S. in Landscape Architecture (+Dual M.S. +IUG)
The research-focused M.S. in L.A. degree, with HDNRE, Geodesign, and IUG options, is framed to enhance the expertise of individuals who already hold a professionally-accredited degree in landscape architecture or architecture.
M.P.S. / Certificate in Geodesign
The M.P.S. and graduate certificate in Geodesign are online programs that prepare students to employ a unique combination of science and design to change the way we design for a sustainable future.
M.F.A. in Theatre
Program Application Deadline The deadline for applications for AY 2023–24 is January 15, 2023. To be assured full consideration, please apply by this deadline. Review individual program descriptions for details...
Alumni Spotlight
View your education as an opportunity to explore...get weird and fail a few times – it’s a great way to learn.
Alumni Spotlight
Colleen Wade
B.Des. in Graphic Design 2019Soon after graduating, Colleen Wade landed her dream job at Burton Snowboards, where she is a production designer. She credits her Penn State education with preparing her well for this position, which has given her the opportunity to combine her passion for snowboarding and love of design.
Design Facilities
From labs and shops to libraries and galleries, A&A boasts myriad design spaces. Visit and be inspired.
See All Design Facilities
Architecture and Landscape Architecture Library
Located in 111 Stuckeman Family Building, the Architecture and Landscape Architecture Library supports study and research in architecture and landscape architecture and their histories Learn More
DArt Design Studio
The DArt Design Studio computer and peripheral labs are available 24 hours a day to the entire DArt community, and are primarily for student Learn More
Stuckeman Shop
The Stuckeman Shop – primarily supporting architecture, landscape architecture, and graphic design students – provides an excellent opportunity for motivated students to develop their ideas Learn More
Theatre Lighting Lab
The Penn State School of Theatre Lighting Lab is one of the most advanced and well-equipped labs of its kind in the country. Seating Learn More
Students at work...
Crafting and creating solutions and systems. Design permeates our world, and A&A students lead the way forward.
Faculty Spotlight
Ryan Russell
Associate Professor of Graphic Design
The Bienal del Cartel Bolivia BICeBé – a biennial elite international design event in Bolivia – attracts the best designs from Latin America and around the world while promoting a humanistic approach to design. Two posters designed by Ryan Russell, associate professor of graphic design, were accepted into the 2019 BICeBé. Russell’s poster for “Deconstructing Symbols of Hate in America” was selected in the cultural category. His other selected poster, this time in the advertising category, was for an immersive augmented reality exhibition called “TOUCH.”
News from A&A
Interim architecture department head to retire after 35 years at Penn State
Dan Willis, interim department head and professor of architecture in the College of Arts and Architecture’s Stuckeman School, is retiring June 30 after 35 years at Penn State.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A strong drive to always learn more has been one of the defining elements of Dan Willis’ career at Penn State. Willis, interim department head and
Architecture IUG student named undergraduate thesis award winner
Holly Zimmerman was named the winner of the Department of Architecture’s 2023 Paul M. Kossman Design Thesis Award for her project that focuses on designing the walls of a building Read More
Strategic city planning can help reduce urban heat island effect
New Penn State research suggests that certain urban factors can reduce the tendency of cities to trap heat — a phenomenon called the “urban heat island." Read More