Design Tech Announces New Master of Science in Design Technology at Cornell

Following the establishment of the multicollege Department of Design Tech in fall 2022, led by the Department of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP) in partnership with four other Cornell colleges, comes the announcement of a new Master of Science in Design Technology (M.S. DT), a two-year research and project degree offered jointly between AAP and Cornell Tech.

"At a time when we are seeing a paradigmatic shift in the way we think about design practice and research, this unique new degree program prepares the next generation of designers, engineers, scientists, technologists, and creatives to work across design and technology to take on some of our most urgent and complex challenges," says AAP Dean J. Meejin Yoon.

Design as an expanding field in education, creative practice, and industry is reflected in the three focus areas that comprise the department and degree program. Areas include Design + Interactions, Design + Materials, and Design + Environments, to which Design Tech faculty bring expertise from AAP and Cornell partner colleges including, the Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science (Bowers CIS), Cornell Human Ecology (CHE), Cornell Engineering, and Cornell Tech. Students across all areas will have opportunities to study at both Cornell's Ithaca campus and Cornell Tech in New York City.

"At Cornell, we are uniquely positioned to be pioneers in the burgeoning space between design and technology, given our expertise in design, robotics, nanotech and materials science, computer science, and beyond," says Architecture Professor Jenny Sabin, Design Tech Department Chair and M.S. DT program director. "The department and new M.S. DT bring these areas together to advance design thinking, research, and practice across our disciplines. This program is a culmination of the imagination and efforts of many faculty and students who, over the last several years, have not only advanced design education at Cornell, but have created and continue to contribute to a critical new discipline."

The department and new degree program stem from years of cross-disciplinary, cross-campus collaboration that makes it possible for students to pursue research and projects that bridge disciplines and domains with the aim of generating innovations across science and design for applications spanning digital tools, products, responsive materials, and the built environment.

"We are interested in what we can do together when we learn from each other," says Cornell Tech Professor Wendy Ju, cofounder with Sabin of the pilot program that preceded the M.S. DT, Design Tech inaugural faculty member, and leading expert on design and interaction. "We use all kinds of new and changing technologies to explore possibilities in our research and studios while asking how our research, knowledge, and ideas can be applied in ways that make the world better."

"Design Tech brings people together to rethink design practice and education — the processes, limitations, and potential," says Professor of Engineering Uli Wiesner who focuses primarily on the molecular engineering of materials. "As researchers and designers coming from very different backgrounds and places, we value both technical skills and creativity as we develop different technologies and see how cross-disciplinary, collaborative design helps us to scale what we find at the molecular level to the human and architectural scales in the environments we make and inhabit." 

Design Tech invites prospective applicants for the first program cohort entering in fall 2024 to RSVP here for a virtual open house on Wednesday, November 1 at 10 a.m. ET., ahead of the January 3, 2024, application deadline. An in-person session will be held in spring. Please visit the M.S. in Design Technology page to learn more about the program and the Department of Design Tech at Cornell.