Classes run for 10 weeks per quarter Monday through Thursday typically from 7pm to 9:00pm, plus a half-day of classes on Saturdays.

Yes and no. The reason that this is considered a full-time program is that we offer a rigorous project-based education. This means that while in-class time adds up to 12 hours per week, a lot of learning happens outside of class time. You can expect to spend about 40-60 hours per week in class and on doing course-related work. It is possible to do this program with a full-time role but will take understanding and commitment from your employer.

No. Austin Center for Design is not a degree program.

A certificate in Interaction Design and Social Entrepreneurship recognized by the Texas Workforce Commission. Not to mention a wide toolbelt of skills that will allow you to make products and services that change the world.

At Austin Center for Design, we believe in the power of design to tackle the world’s toughest, most “wicked” problems. The products and services we use every day impact our lives and our communities in big ways. While learning about design, you will be considering the systems that these things operate in, so that we might design things that make the world a better place. We focus on problems that matter, and students learn to re-contextualize design in the space of large-scale wicked problems.

Our students have roles in a wide variety of industries, with titles from Design Lead to Service Designer to UX Designer to Design Strategist. Check out our Alumni Success page to learn more about what our former students are doing now.

Tuition for our program is $16,000. Many of our students pay for this with personal loans. AC4D can also work with students to create payment plans as needed.

Our program has gone hybrid! If you’re located in Austin classes will take place in north central Austin at Common Desk - Anderson Lane and remotely via Zoom. If you attend the program remotely from outside of Austin, you can expect to be in person three times throughout the year of the program.

• Orientation: 1/16/24 - 1/20/24

• Quarter 2: 6/10/24 - 6/15/24

• Quarter 4: 11/18/24-11/23/24

There is no set class size, but cohorts generally range from 10 to 15 students.

Design has come a long way from its humble beginnings, when it focused primarily on products and print materials. As technology has made our world increasingly complex, designers have stepped into a larger role. UX designers help structure the websites that you use each day. Service designers ensure that the experiences you encounter, whether it be visiting a doctor’s office or going to Disney World, are pleasurable and engaging. At the end of the day, design is about figuring out what people need and developing ways to make our lives better.

User research! We’ll teach you how to conduct proper design research, so that your design ideas are informed by real, observed attitudes and behaviors. This is invaluable in making sure you’re not designing unusable products or services that nobody wants.

Design teaches you to share your ideas so that you can iterate upon them with others. This means that you’ll learn how to convey information simply and effectively. You’ll do this with Post-It Notes, drawings, diagrams, journey maps, and other methods. We’ll teach you how to conduct effective user research to inform your design ideas. You’ll learn exercises and practices that will help you to work collaboratively and push your thinking toward new ideas. And you’ll use these skills in real-world scenarios, talking to real people about the problems they face, and designing real and imagined solutions.

Nope! Although some designers have a background in the arts, many do not. We’ll teach you some drawing basics, so that you can sketch out your environment and convey ideas with images. But you don’t need any special drawing skill beforehand.

Although some basic familiarity with design or illustration software is helpful, it is not required. You will need to use some form of software for your coursework, such as Figma, Illustrator, Mural, and Dovetail. Our program doesn’t focus heavily on teaching the use of design software, as industry tools are always changing and there are many videos and educational resources available to provide this instruction.

Many AC4D graduates go on to become UX designers, but this is not the specific focus of the program. While students will learn about product development and evaluate and redesign website content, the focus of this program is to give students the skills they need to apply a critical design perspective to any field. Students use their education in tandem with previous education and existing skill sets to pursue the career path that’s right for them.

Here are some answers to common questions we get from international applicants.

• Does AC4D provide student visas? No

• Does AC4D accept international applicants? Yes (assuming they do not need AC4D to provide a visa)

• Does AC4D have resources to help prospective students get visas? Unfortunately, not.

• Does AC4D give scholarships? Yes. The amount of funding we have to go to scholarships is variable each year, and dependent on the number of scholarship applicants, and the amount of scholarship funding we anticipate.

• Can a student do the full-year immersive program 100% remote? Yes, with the exception of a few pre-scheduled times per year. If you attend the program remotely from outside of Austin, you can expect to be in person three times throughout the year of the program.

  • Orientation: 1/16/24 - 1/20/24

  • Quarter 2: 6/10/24 - 6/15/24

  • Quarter 4: 11/18/24-11/23/24

• If a student needs to travel back to their home country to renew their visa, can AC4D be flexible with missing classes? Within reason, yes - e.g. a few days each quarter is fine.

• Do students need to be fluent in English? Yes