Product Design | Minneapolis College of Art and Design

Product Design

Form and Function
for the Everyday

Nearly every human-made object was influenced by a product designer, and the influence can have a lasting impact on people’s lives. MCAD’s Product Design major engages students who have mechanical aptitude and find joy in solving problems with and for others. Students master the interplay of design, art, usability, environmental impact, and manufacturing to create inspiring, everyday products. Whether building models, prototypes, or digital representations, students learn how to collaborate with and communicate ideas to clients, users, manufacturers, investors, and business partners.

Students working in a product design class

Hear about the student experience

As a Product Design major, you will:

  • Develop a solid foundation in design thinking, qualitative and quantitative research, material experimentation, and human-centered design methodologies.
  • Master how design, usability, and manufacturing intersect.
  • Refine your ideas about how products work, look, and feel in 2D, 3D, and 4D through collaboration and critiques.
  • Build models, prototypes, and digital representations to test your ideas.
  • Learn how to communicate your ideas in compelling ways to clients, users, manufacturers, investors, and business partners.
  • Get a head start on what it takes to bring a product to market.
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Class Highlights

This Bachelor of Fine Arts program emphasizes a collaborative process of working on teams with students from all MCAD majors. Required classes include: 

  • Designing for Bodies
  • Forms That Make Us Feel
  • How It’s Made: Materials and Manufacturing Processes
  • Future Products

After MCAD

There are many paths to explore with a degree in Product Design. Potential careers include:

  • Industrial Designer
  • Lighting Designer
  • Materials Researcher
  • Entrepreneur

“I knew that at MCAD any idea or project wouldn't be out of reach. With the community and facilities, I knew that anything would be possible and allow me to explore and experiment while being supported and pushed along the way.” –Zachary Wegscheid ’22, Target Product Design Scholar