Graduate Certificate in Graphic Design
Unlock your creative potential with the Graduate Certificate in Graphic Design! This interdisciplinary program is designed for graduate students across campus who seek to integrate graphic design into their academic and professional work. Whether you’re in the Arts, Business, Communication, or Design, this 12-credit certificate strengthens your ability to communicate clearly, influence audiences, and innovate through visual communication.
This certificate helps students develop a design process grounded in visual communication. Beginning with a critical assessment of cultural contexts, audience perceptions, information processing, and narrative approaches, students synthesize these insights through an iterative process to create design solutions that effectively inform, persuade, and engage audiences across a variety of media.
Program Highlights
- 12 credit hours, completed in as little as 2 semesters
- Future-focused curriculum combining foundational and advanced design skills
- Apply visual communication strategies across disciplines
Ready to make your mark? Start by enrolling in IND 5324, Graphic Design Foundations I, then apply for the Graduate Certificate in Graphic Design.
Who should apply?
- Arts: Art Administration, Art Education, Studio Art
- Business: Marketing, Professional Sales, Entrepreneurship etc.
- Communication: Advertising, Media/Communication Studies, Public Relations
- Design: Interior Architecture & Design, Urban & Regional Planning
- Anyone who may need to communicate with the public on a large scale.
Throughout the program, you’ll master a design process that begins with a critical understanding of audience perceptions and cultural contexts. You’ll then apply these insights to create impactful graphic design solutions across multiple platforms—whether for the built environment, emerging media, or commercial experiences.
By the end of the program, you’ll be equipped to communicate ideas more effectively, craft compelling visual messages that inform, persuade, and engage, and apply graphic design strategies within your own academic and professional work. Along the way, you’ll build a portfolio that demonstrates your ability to communicate across a range of media and contexts.
Curriculum Maps
Suitable for students pursuing: MFA and Ph.D. Degrees Semester Courses Credit hours/semester Fall Certificate Year 1 Graphic Design Foundations I 3 Spring Year 1 Graphic Design Foundations II 3 Fall Year 2 Focus Area Course(s) 3-6 Spring Year 2 Focus Area Course(s) 3-6 Per FSU Policy 3A-1, Students are required to apply for the certificate prior to completing the second course in the program). Suitable for students pursuing: MS & MA Degrees Semester Courses Credit hours/semester Fall Certificate Year 1 Graphic Design Foundations I (3 credit hours) And
Graphic Design Foundations II (3 credit hours)6 Spring (2) Focus Area Courses 6 Per FSU Policy 3A-1, students are required to apply for the certificate prior to completing the second course in the program). Required Courses
Graphic Design Foundations 1, IND 5324, (3-credit hours)
In this course, students will explore the elements and principles of graphic design. Learn and apply graphic design terminology, theories, and strategic design processes for effective communication to diverse audiences.
Graphic Design Foundations II, IND 5337, (3-credit hours)
This course provides graduate students with hands-on intermediate introduction to graphic design useful for the creation of publications, the development of a brand elements for coherent and consistent communication, and data visualization. Explorations include event promotion materials, animations, introductory video editing techniques and basic website creation.
Focus Area Courses (Choose Two)
Branded Environments and Experiences, IND 5329, (3-credit hours)
This course explores the design of brand identity packages within a variety of branded environments and experiential settings. Students learn to analyze communication campaigns and environmental graphics; design branded messages and spatial experiences tailored to diverse audiences and settings.
Exhibition Design, IND 5265, (3-credit hours)
This course explores the interdisciplinary nature of the discipline and its many layers of execution through museums, trade shows, and cultural institutions. Exhibition design creates a sense of place through storytelling and connecting to the visitor. With the primary focus on creating a connection with the visitor through an engaging experience, students will develop their own exhibition demonstrating the importance of craft, visual hierarchy, and storytelling.
Environmental Graphic Design and Wayfinding, IND 5335, (3-credit hours)
This course focuses on graphic design in the built environment and how it can influence behavior, generate storytelling, provide affirmation, and contribute to wayfinding. This hands-on course will focus on the materiality and fabrication of environmental graphics through the fundamentals of inclusive navigation, and wayfinding.
Admissions
Students must be graduate students at FSU, with a minimum GPA of 3.0. Applicants must be enrolled in or have taken IND 5324, Graphic Design Foundations I and must submit their application prior to week 14 of the fall semester.
Student applications will be reviewed on the rubric below by three faculty. Students receiving an unsatisfactory score on any of the components will not be considered for the program.
Criteria Weight Exceptional (9-10) Proficient (7-8) Adequate (5-6) Needs Improvement (3-4) Unsatisfactory (1-2) FSU GPA 25% 3.9-4.0 3.7-3.8 3.5-3.6 3.3-3.4 3.0-3.2 Letter of Intent 25% Clearly articulated goals and exceptional relevance to graphic design Clear goals and good relevance to graphic design Goals are somewhat clear and relevant to graphic design Goals are unclear and have limited relevance to graphic design Goals are not clear and lack relevance to graphic design Example Graphic Design Elements 25% Exemplary design with evidence of established foundational skills in the discipline Good design with evidence of developing foundational skills in the discipline Adequate design with evidence of emerging foundational skills in the discipline Design needs improvement with little evidence of foundational skills in the discipline Design is unsatisfactory with no evidence of foundational skills in the discipline Designer’s Statement 25% Designer’s statement is compelling and well-articulated Designer’s statement is clear and relevant Designer’s statement is somewhat clear Designer’s statement lacks clarity Designer’s statement is unclear Forms for Current Students
Students must complete the Certificate Completion Request form during their final semester in the program in order to receive the certificate upon graduation.
