The New Century Education Program celebrates our University’s first 100 years by anticipating new approaches to teaching and learning that will characterize our second century. The New Century Education Program encourages students to learn how to learn, to fail fast, and to design ethically. Students are trained to thrive in uncertainty and complexity, to adapt to and influence a changing world. They understand themselves, are prepared to contribute to their community, and build for the future. Students attracted to our New Century programs are unconventional, driven, and eager for challenging experiences. They have range, and seek to develop skills from engineering to business, coding to visual arts. They are not content to sit back and passively receive information—they are immensely curious active learners, who take ownership of their education.
The jobs, technologies, crises, and opportunities of tomorrow require a radically new approach to higher education. Interdisciplinary academic training must give students the skills to thrive in a diverse set of contexts. Urban and global immersion must give students the ability to work across cultures, generations, and boundaries. Experiential and project-based learning, tightly integrated with formal academic training, must provide the real-world context in which students grow and refine their abilities. Professional relevance and opportunity must be at the start, not only the end, of a student’s journey.
The BS in Innovation Technology & Design (ITD) program is the first new degree program for our New Century. It prepares graduates at the intersection of design, innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship. Students research, analyze, prototype and design innovative products and processes from concept to launch. They will be entrepreneurial-minded, experienced graduates who will tackle the complexities of real-world challenges and opportunities and translate ideas into sustainable, high-impact ventures. The students will be equipped to effectively integrate concepts from business, art and creativity, ethics, law, and engineering and draw on design tactics for innovation and problem solving. A critical component of this degree is that most courses are team taught by faculty from multiple disciplines. The students learn and innovate through experiential design challenges provided by industry partners every semester, and embedded summer internships, research opportunities, and/or civic engagement.
Click here to visit the ITD website
