Program Overview

Introduction to the Digital Media Minor

The College of Design’s undergraduate minor in Digital Media is intended to familiarize students with the use of digital media in the design process. This minor is open to all undergraduate students at Iowa State University. It covers the knowledge and techniques necessary to generate digital representations for a wide variety of disciplines.

Program Requirements

This minor requires at least 15 credits of coursework. Students are required to complete three (3) credits of fundamental courses at the 2000 level, and then at least nine (9) credits of elective courses at the 3000 level or above. At least nine (9) credits must not be used to meet any other college or university requirements except the credit requirement for graduation.

Fundamental Courses

• Students choose 3-6 credits from the following College of Design Majors (courses may be restricted to their respective majors):
  • ARCH 2300: Design Communications (3 credits)
  • ARCH 2310: Advanced Design Representation (3 credits)
  • ARTGR 2720: Digital Photography for Graphic Design (3 credits)
  • ART 2270: Introduction to Creative Digital Photography (3 credits)
  • ARTID 2630: Graphic Communication for Interior Design II (3 credits)
  • Open to all majors:
    • DSNS 2320: Digital Design Communications (3 credits)
    • ARTIS 2120: Studio Fundamentals: Computers (3 credits)
    • CRP 2510: Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems (3 credits)
    • LA 2110: Digital Design Methods for Landscape Architecture (3 credits)

Elective Courses

• Students choose 9-12 credits from the following courses:
  • Courses with no prerequisites:
    • ARCH 3340: Computer Applications in Architecture (3 credits)
    • ARCH 4320: Advanced Computer Lighting and Rendering (3 credits)
    • ARCH 4340: Computer-aided Architectural and Environmental Design (3 credits)
    • ARCH 5340: Topics in Computer-aided Architectural Design (3 credits)
  • Courses with prerequisites:
    • ARCH 4330: File to Fabrication (3 credits)
    • ARCH 4370: Architectural Photography (3 credits)
    • ARCH 4390/5390: Computational Design Theory (3 credits)
    • ARCH 4510x/5510x: Whole Building Energy Performance Modeling (3 credits)
    • ARCH 5280A: Equity in Computing (3 credits)
    • ARTIS 3080: Modeling, Rendering and Virtual Photography (3 credits)
    • ARTIS 4070/5070: Principles of 3D Character Animation (3 credits)
    • ARTIS 4080/5080: Principles of 3D Animation (3 credits)
    • ARTIS 4480/5480: Digital Textile Design (3 credits)
    • ARTIS 4730/5730: Video Art (3 credits)
    • ARTIS 4750/5750: Interactive Art (3 credits)
    • ARTIS 4820: Data Visualization (3 credits)
    • CRP 3510: Intermediate Geographic Information Systems (3 credits)
    • CRP 4520/5520: Geographic Data Management and Planning Analysis (3 credits)
    • CRP 4540/5540: Fundamentals of Remote Sensing (3 credits)
    • INDD 3410: Computer Aided Industrial Design
    • INDD 5410: Computer Aided Industrial Design (3 credits)
    • LA 4570/5570: Landscape Parametrics and Design Coding (4 credits)
    • LA 4580/5580: Web Mapping/GIS (3 credits)
    • LA 4780G: Topical ST Graphics (2-3 credits)
    • DSNS 3320: Multi-dimensional Digital Design Communication (3 credits)
    • DSNS 3330: Time-Based Digital Media (3 credits)