How will I know that I have been accepted into the College of Design?

Applicants must first apply to NC State and, based on certain admissions criteria, may be referred to Design for admissions consideration. The College of Design will review the student's application and either deny admittance or recommend acceptance to the Undergraduate Admissions Office. Official acceptance letters for rising first-year fall students will be sent in March from the Undergraduate Admissions Office and the College of Design simultaneously.

How do I select a first-choice major?

Design applicants have the option of applying to one of the following College of Design studio-based majors as a first-choice major: Environmental Design in Architecture, Art + Design, Graphic Design, or Industrial Design. All of these studio-based majors require an electronic portfolio and essay. Or, applicants may choose to apply to the Design Studies curriculum, which is a new, non-studio-based major in the College of Design.

Applicants may choose a studio-based major as their first choice and Design Studies as a second choice. However, admission to Design Studies does not offer transfer advantages to students and will not be used as a back-door entry into studio-based majors. Design Studies students wishing to change majors compete with all other transfer applicants for spot.

What should I choose as a second-choice major?

To determine a second major, choose something you are passionate about studying in the event you are not admitted to Design. While a few denied applicants reapply and are admitted to Design after their freshman year, many others are not. Denied applicants may reapply multiple times, however we do not recommend considering transferring after the sophomore year due to the number of hours required for Design programs.

I am interested in design, but I do not know which program would be best for me. What should I do?

As admission to the college is very competitive, we recommend strongly that applicants research and investigate all of our programs thoroughly before applying. Apply to the program in which you are most interested and one in which you can be satisfied. Only a limited number of internal transfers are admitted annually to other Design majors at the end of the freshman year. Internal transfers are possible only if there are vacant seats, but internal and lateral transfers compete in the same applicant pool.