Gain Autonomy through Design
Unlock your potential to craft the future. Our programs empower you with the design skills to navigate your path freely, turning your vision into reality. Discover how you can redefine boundaries and create impactful change.
Make products and services that
change the world
Make an impact
Our focus is on addressing humanitarian problems that matter. Students learn to re-contextualize design in the space of large-scale “Wicked Problems” to change human behavior and improve the world.
Build community
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Live instruction
Get hands-on instruction from industry experts. Our faculty are all world-class working practitioners. Founder Jon Kolko is recognized as a thought-leader in advancing the role of interaction design in product development and social entrepreneurship.
Discover your
design potential
Develop skills to gain autonomy include qualitative research, synthesis and interpretation, sketching, the creation of storyboards and wireframes, entrepreneurial business modeling, service design blueprinting, and complex system diagramming. These skills represent the foundation of a career in product management, design strategy, interaction design, and social entrepreneurship.
Upcoming courses
Transform your creative aspirations into reality as you learn from experienced professionals at the Austin Center for Design. Dive into hands-on projects, receive personalized feedback, and develop a solid foundation that will kickstart your design career.
Prototyping & Testing: Making ideas tangible and testing them in the real world
COURSE BEGINS: OCTOBER 8, 2024
Upon completing this course, you will be able to effectively make prototypes (both paper and digital), present and critique design ideas, write design briefs, iterate and conduct pilot testing. Throughout it all, you will create compelling narratives to foster empathy and reveal actionable insights.
Format: Live instruction from AC4D faculty
Duration: 10 weeks
Time per week: 4 course hours per week, 40 course hours in total; T/TH, 7-9 PM CST
Location: Remote
Designing Systems & Structures: Identifying opportunities in complexity
COURSE BEGINS: OCTOBER 7, 2024
Upon completing this course, you will be able to effectively evaluate, analyze, and make tangible representations of physical, digital, and cultural components and processes that articulate their relationships and impact on outcomes.
Format: Live instruction from AC4D faculty
Duration: 10 weeks
Time per week: 4 course hours per week, 40 course hours in total; M/W, 7-9 PM CST
Location: Remote
Learning that embraces
unique backgrounds
Design is for everyone, and our learners have a variety of backgrounds. Some of our learners are already designers, but most aren't. Our typical applicants have experience in marketing, engineering, fine arts, finance, or the service industry. Our program teaches design fundamentals in addition to advanced topics, in a rigorous, intense environment.
Gained autonomy through design
We evaluate the success of our alumni based on autonomy: we hope our graduates are doing what they want to do, and have gained the skills, mindset, and network to make their dreams a reality.
JONATHAN LEWIS
Sr. Director of Design Research
Ascension Healthcare
“I wanted to have a career that had a broader impact on the world. AC4D ended up being the best professional decision I have made to-date. AC4D opened the door to an entirely new line of work - design, entrepreneurship, and innovation - [which was] 100x more satisfying than the career path I was on.”
Is AC4D the right stop on your learning journey?
Subscribe for an introductory email series giving you a glimpse into what we teach. We also share free resources, highlight student work, and invite you to events that help you get to know our close knit community.
DAVID BILL
Senior UX Designer
Amazon Web Services
“My goals coming to AC4D were to refine and extend my design strategy, adapt to working in a design team, and learn UX skills.
Additionally, having spent my career supporting education and civic institutions, I wanted to deepen my understanding of how Design overlaps with social impact.”
BHAVI PATEL
Principal Service Designer
Consultant
"I get to do what I love because of AC4D. One of the parts of what you do as a designer is teach. It doesn’t matter where you work in all these ever-evolving terms, you are constantly teaching. I left the program with courage, a sense of responsibility, and purpose instead of fear."
