There are approximately 180 undergraduate students in Design|Media Arts, across all four years.

We do not, we only have the major. A close cousin of Design|Media Arts is the Digital Humanities minor, but that does not have an explicit art-making component.

This depends on how you define your relationship with technology and digital media. As a public institution, the department understands that even though technology seems ubiquitous, not everyone has meaningful access to specific programs.

Do you need to know certain software for admission? No. Visual artwork that has been generated by/involves technology is not a requirement for admission into the program. We are looking for your sensibility around design thinking, which can be expressed in many different ways.

For both First Year and Transfer applicants, the evaluation considers the following:

• Portfolio of creative work

• Department Statement

• Academic Record (from UC application)

• Extracurriculars/Honors/Awards (from UC application)

With regard to the UC PIQs, the department considers them for Transfers only. We do not consider the PIQs for First Year candidates.

While we do not have portfolio samples, or offer portfolio reviews (more info about this here), here is some guidance from Design|Media Arts faculty, on how to prepare supplemental materials:

"This is a program meant for the development of conceptual and aesthetic critical thinking, and many different ways of looking at media. It is not meant for commercial graphic design. Take the time to learn as much as you can from the website, and look at examples of our past student's work."

"This is a research university, where students get access to humanities, to sciences, to different ways of thinking. It's a different context from an art school."

"We work with a lot of different media, so it's helpful in your portfolio to see work with different kinds of media. Digital media is a real focus for us, so tailoring your portfolio as much as possible to the focus of our program will give us the best sense of whether it’s the right fit. If you haven’t worked with digital media before, it’s helpful to use your written answers to explain how you envision your practice transitioning to include new types of media."

"It's important to see your technical skill set, but your work does not need to be highly representational or heavily using technical effects. We’re more interested in the conceptual focus behind your work."

"We want students who are curious, experimental, and open, with a rich inner artistic voice."

"For the written response, we encourage you to be as specific as possible and tell us what excites you. The written response can be particularly illuminating and connecting if your portfolio is not explicitly design/digital media (ex. painting, drawing, etc.)."

"Be cautious about including very standardized assignments from a class if they're not showing your unique vision or creativity."

"We like to see some cohesiveness across pieces. Each part of your application is one piece of the larger picture, be mindful of those relationships between your application elements as you edit and organize your story."

In concert with the portfolio, take care with preparing your departmental essay. Because this is a program that sees candidates with diverse visual communication abilities as far as the portfolio, the departmental essay is a place where you can contextualize and articulate your interests in design and media arts, and show us how you engage with the world as an artist citizen and community member. Strong critical writing skills are highly valued in the admission review.

The Department of Design|Media Arts emphasizes innovative creation with digital and mass media within the context of a public research university. The curriculum features a solid foundation in form, color, space, motion, typography, and interactivity, followed by a broad selection of area studies courses in video, visual communication, network media, game design, and narrative. Rather than focusing on narrow professional development, our curriculum fosters experimentation across a range of different media. We privilege a social outlook, process, experimentation, and personal growth over conservatism and commercialism.

While it may be beneficial to complete the courses listed below as preparation/experience, they are not required for admission and there is no guarantee they will satisfy major requirements and/or transfer as exact equivalents of any UCLA courses. Substitutions for lower division requirements will be determined by the department in the summer following admission. Syllabi or other descriptive course documentation may be required for consideration.

Suggested (not required) preparation for the major:

• One course each in drawing, color theory, two-dimensional and three-dimensional form, digital media/computer design, programming for media arts, letter forms and typography, design history, design culture, and interactivity and media arts.

Please note that most, if not all, transfers to Design|Media Arts require three years to complete the curriculum. This is usually due to the lack of availability of coursework at the student’s current institution. The department has prepared a guide sheet that outlines the learning outcomes for the lower division courses in Design|Media Arts, so that you can identify best matches at your current institution.

Portfolio and Supplemental Requirements: In addition to the general UC Application, applicants must submit a supplemental application that includes a portfolio of creative work (additional fees may apply). All students must have a cumulative 3.0 GPA at the time of application November 30). Students MUST complete the requisite two English courses and one Math course by the end of Spring prior to transfer. Students are encouraged to take their required English and Math courses as early as possible with at least one English course completed by the end of Fall. Completion of IGETC is not required but strongly recommended.

Design|Media Arts considers sophomore transfers. For more information about eligibility and criteria, please visit this link.

A great place is https://classes.dma.ucla.edu/. You can look up all of the courses in the department, see course syllabi, and often see student work that responds to class assignments.