The College of Design offers or participates in eight undergraduate minors, three graduate minors, and three graduate certificates. Most of the minors are open to all students at Iowa State University.
If you are interested in registering for a minor, contact your academic adviser. They will complete a curriculum change form to add the minor for you. Certificate application requirements and processes are dependent on the certificate program.
The undergraduate minor in Critical Studies in Design offers students opportunities to engage the history, theory and criticism of visual and material culture and the built environment. In lectures and focused seminars, students explore historical and contemporary issues, cultural production, media and technology, design in everyday life, and models of professional practice. Open to undergraduates in all university majors.
Open to undergraduates in all university majors, this minor requires 15 credits of coursework. At least six (6) of the 15 credits must be taken at Iowa State University in courses numbered 300 or above. At least nine (9) of the 15 credits must not be used to meet any other college or university requirements except the credit requirement for graduation.
The undergraduate minor in Design Studies is constructed to facilitate design awareness among interested students and to provide a vehicle for interdisciplinary study within the College of Design. This minor is open to all undergraduate students at Iowa State University.
This minor requires 15 credits of coursework, with three credits of history and 12 additional credits selected from the College of Design course offerings. At least six (6) of the 15 credits must be taken at Iowa State University in courses numbered 300 or above. At least nine (9) of the 15 credits must not be used to meet any other college or university requirements except the credit requirement for graduation.
Students enrolled in the College of Design may not use courses in their major to satisfy this minor.
Manipulation of digital media has emerged as an essential skill for design inquiry alongside traditional methods of building models and drawing sketches. To familiarize students with the use of digital media in the design process, the College of Design offers an undergraduate minor in Digital Media. This minor is open to all undergraduate students at Iowa State University.
This minor requires 15 credits of coursework. At least three (3) credits of fundamental courses at the 200 level must be taken in the student’s primary major (see list below). At least 9 of the 15 credits must be taken at Iowa State University in courses numbered 300 or above and may not be used to meet any other department, college, or university requirement.
The College of Design is an active participant in the Entrepreneurial Studies Minor for undergraduate students. This interdisciplinary curriculum provides opportunities for students to learn about entrepreneurship and serves to complement the student’s major area of study in any college discipline at Iowa State.
Students in the entrepreneurship minor will develop skills and knowledge in the entrepreneurial process, business feasibility analysis, customer discovery, business planning, innovation, opportunity recognition, technology transfer, industry analysis, and startup strategy. Students will learn to develop an entrepreneurial mindset that applies to business creation or employment within an existing firm or organization.
The minor consists of 15 credits with no prerequisites, and more than 100 elective courses to choose from. Detailed information about the Entrepreneurship minor, the list of approved electives, as well as information about the experiential learning options are available through the Ivy College of Business.
The undergraduate minor in Geographic Information Science (GISC) is an interdisciplinary program that provides students with opportunities to engage with the theories, processes, techniques and tools that use spatial data and computational technology to create cutting-edge analysis and mapping approaches for a wide range of fields. Those fields include urban planning, architecture, landscape architecture, design, community development, agriculture, environmental sciences, natural resources, sociology, criminology, anthropology, political science, environmental studies and others.
The minor is open to undergraduates in all university majors with a minimum overall GPA of 2.0 prior to enrolling.
Students must complete a minimum of 15 undergraduate credits of GIS coursework to receive the minor. At least 6 of the 15 credits must be taken at Iowa State University in courses numbered 300 or above with a grade of C or higher. At least 9 of the 15 credits must not be used to meet any other department, college or university requirements except the credit requirement for graduation.
The undergraduate minor in Illustration is ideal for students interested in illustration for books, graphic novels, magazine articles, advertising and concept art for game design and film. This minor provides the ability to tailor a curriculum that serves these varied career interests, whether you want to work in the industry or freelance as an independent studio practitioner.
Students must complete two prerequisites prior to pursing the Illustration minor: DSN S 131 (Drawing I) and ARTIS 230 (Drawing II). After completion of the prerequisites, students must complete a minimum of 15 credits of Illustration coursework to receive the minor. At least 9 of the 15 credits must not be used to meet any other department, college or university requirements except the credit requirement for graduation.
The undergraduate minor in Preservation and Cultural Heritage provides students with knowledge, skills, and credentials that complement undergraduate degrees in a wide variety of majors, but especially Architecture, Interior Design, Community & Regional Planning, Landscape Architecture, and History.
The minor requires a minimum of 15 credit hours. At least six (6) credits need to be taken at the 300 or above (see list below), and at least 9 of the 15 credits must not be used to meet any other department, college or university requirement except the credit requirement for graduation.
The undergraduate minor in Textile Design allows students to focus specifically on the design and creation of textiles, a practice with applications in the fine arts, fashion, and related fields. Students will learn historical and contemporary applications of textile production, develop conceptual and technical skills in textile design, and more. Open to undergraduates at the sophomore level and above enrolled in any College of Design major or in the Apparel, Merchandising and Design major in the College of Human Sciences.
Students must complete 16-18 credits of Textile Design coursework to receive the minor. At least 9 of the 15 credits must not be used to meet any other department, college or university requirements except the credit requirement for graduation.
The undergraduate minor in Urban Studies is an interdisciplinary program that emphasizes urban life in a variety of settings and from different disciplinary and methodological approaches. The Urban Studies minor will allow students to explore varied and multiple dimensions of urban and community life through differing conceptual and analytical frameworks. The minor is open to undergraduates in all university majors except Community & Regional Planning.
This minor requires 15 credit hours of coursework. At least 6 of the 15 credits must be taken at Iowa State University in courses numbered 300 or above. At least 9 of the 15 credits must not be used to meet any other department, college or university requirements except the credit requirement for graduation.
Download the list of courses that quality for the Urban Studies minor
The graduate minor in Industrial Design consists of 12 credits chosen from the courses below.
IND D 520: Design Theory and Methodology
IND D 530: Design Thinking
IND D 540: Design Communication
IND D 550: Human Factors: User Experience Design
IND D 560: Change by Design: Disruptive Innovation
IND D 570: Systems Thinking in Design
IND D 580: Material Culture and Values
IND D 640: Digital Technologies
The graduate minor in Integrated Visual Arts consists of 18 credits, with specific courses chosen in consultation with the program of study committee.
The graduate minor in Sustainable Environments consists of 11 credits and is an interdisciplinary program that focuses on holistic design strategies for the production of sustainable, resilient environments and artifacts.
Find your place at Iowa State University’s College of Design, where we like to ask questions, poke and prod, create something new, and make a difference through design.
