Communication Design Studios, Labs, & Letterpress
Students work in spacious facilities that include small and large format printers, a RISO printer and large plotter, Macs and tablets, a Letterpress Studio, and more.
Learn MoreCommunication Design BFA students gain a robust working knowledge of print design, information design, branding, and dynamic media.
Location: On Campus (Boston)
Format: In-person, Full Time
Length of Program: 4 years
Degree Awarded: Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communication Design
MassArt’s Communication Design BFA prepares students to become versatile visual problem-solvers ready for careers in print, digital, and interactive media. Taught by working designers and experienced faculty, our program emphasizes strong conceptual thinking, visual clarity, and user-centered communication.
You’ll build foundational skills in typography, visual language, branding, and information design, then apply them across real-world projects—from publications and packaging to web and app interfaces, advertising, motion graphics, and interactive experiences. Studio courses include frequent critique, helping students strengthen their ideas, refine their craft, and develop the communication skills needed to work effectively in creative teams.
The program is ideal for students who are curious, collaborative, and interested in design that makes a meaningful impact on how people understand information, experiences, and brands. Students are also encouraged to pursue internships, gaining hands-on experience working with clients and learning how design functions within different professional environments.
Chelsea Akers, BFA ’24, Communication Design
Sow., Paper and light installation, 2023
Abigail Tully, BFA ’24, Communication Design
Printmaking with Cyanotypes, Laser printing and Cyanotype, 2023
Genesis N. Gonzalez Porras, BFA ’25, Communication Design
Voices Woven: A Celebration of the Female Figure, Crafted Paper, 2023
JD Tiffany, BFA ’25, Communication Design
Film Festival Animated Poster, Digital Signage Design, 2023
Brian Kaminske, BFA ’25, Communication Design
Elements Magazine, Design, 2023
Amanda Tyutina, ’25 BFA, Communication Design
DeliCats Food Wrapper, Package Design, 2023
What You’ll Learn
You’ll start with assignments that focus on developing technical skills while also encouraging inventive and experimental approaches from the very beginning. As you move into your own projects, you’ll gain efficiency in production, explore organizational methods, strengthen creative problem-solving, and build adaptability. Alongside these foundational abilities, you’ll also learn how to teach yourself new techniques—a vital skill for any successful communication designer.
As students create original work, they will also refine their projects through revision and participate in group critiques. In this collaborative environment, you’ll be part of a close-knit community of Communication Design students and faculty who are eager to support your growth and push your work to the next level.
BFA Learning Outcomes
Students who complete the Communication Design BFA program are expected to be able to demonstrate the following learning outcomes.
- Practiced a wide variety of approaches to problem solving through design
- Demonstrated proficiency in developing concepts as well as in implementing visual language and graphic form
- Designed for a variety of media including print, time-based and interactive, and gained expertise in matching media to content
- Applied the fundamental concepts of visualizing complex information
- Gained experience in designing systems that allow users to logically and easily interact with data
- Demonstrated proficiency in typography for both print and screen environments
- Developed competent critical language for analyzing and evaluating their own design work and the work of others
- Learned how to research and evaluate user and audience needs
- Worked effectively in a team
- Acquainted themselves, through readings and presentations, with current trends and people in historical and contemporary design
- Mastered a wide range of technical and craft skills, and gained a realistic understanding of how to implement their knowledge in a professional design environment
Career Outcomes
Graduating students have mastered a wide range of technical and craft skills and gained a realistic understanding of how to implement their knowledge in a professional design environment.
Because MassArt’s program is both broad-reaching and conceptual, and provides rigorous training in typography and information architecture, our graduates enjoy an excellent reputation in the profession. Alumni are in demand in multiple industries, including UX design, exhibition design, branding, type design, publishing, editorial design, web design, and design management.
Career Paths
Graphic Designer, UX/UI Designer, Web Designer, Art Director, Brand Strategist, Motion Graphics Designer, Marketing & Communications Specialist, Print Designer, Exhibition Designer, Creative Copywriter, Social Media Manager, Design Consultant, Content Strategist, Illustrator, Freelance Designer.
Internships
PUMA, Wayfair, Sony Music Entertainment, UPPAbaby, DraftKings, Fidelity Investments, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, General Electric, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Stoltze Design Group, Tank Design, Wasserman Media Group, Paramount Global, Proverb, Neoscape, Agncy, Parabolic Agency, Propr Design.
Where Alumni Have Worked
Arnold Worldwide, Converse, VUE Health, Continuum, Fidelity Investments, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Moth Design, Education First (EF), Wayfair, Tank Design, W.B. Mason, Agncy, Schneider Electric, City of Boston, Watson Design Group, Bloom, EF Educational Tours
Sophomore Studios Communication Design class with Faculty member Fish McGill in the computer lab. Photo: Tony Luong, MFA ’15 Photography
Sophomore Studios Communication Design class with Nancy Hughes in a classroom critique. Photo: Tony Luong, MFA ’15 Photography
Making Meaning Communication Design class in a Tower building classroom with Ryan Diaz and Katherine Hughes. Photo: Tony Luong, MFA ’15 Photography
Making Meaning Communication Design class in the Tower building with Ryan Diaz and Katherine Hughes. Photo: Tony Luong, MFA ’15 Photography
Making Meaning Communication Design class in the Tower building with Ryan Diaz and Katherine Hughes. Photo: Tony Luong, MFA ’15 Photography
Making Meaning Communication Design class in the Tower building with Ryan Diaz and Katherine Hughes. Photo: Tony Luong, MFA ’15 Photography
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