National Technical Institute for the Deaf

As a student in the Arts & Imaging Studies program, you may choose an AOS or AAS degree option with a concentration in either Graphic Design or Graphic Technology. Both degrees are career-focused, designed to prepare you for direct employment following graduation. As a graduate of the AAS degree program, you also may apply for admission to a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree program or a Bachelor of Science degree program in RIT’s College of Imaging Arts and Sciences.

With both AOS and AAS options, you’ll gain real-world work experience through a required cooperative education experience. Depending on your specific program concentration and elective course selection, you’ll use computer-based methods to produce drawings, layouts, illustrations and digital photographic images; prepare documents for print, Web and digital distribution; produce interactive digital media; perform digital retouching and restoration of photographic images; produce composite digital images; design and produce websites; produce computer animations; plan and produce short-edited videos; and operate electrophotographic digital printing and inkjet systems and simple bindery.

When you review the requirements for the Arts & Imaging Studies AAS and AOS degrees you will notice that the technical requirements are identical between the AAS and AOS degrees. The difference is in the English language minimum capability. The AAS degree requires the Writing and Liberal Arts courses in humanities and social sciences from the RIT College of Liberal Arts – the same courses required for all students in baccalaureate degree programs. The AOS degree requires writing, humanities, and social sciences courses from NTID which delivers the content of these courses at a lower English competency level.

Regarding job placement, we prepare students for jobs in the large graphic communications industry which includes commercial digital printing, website design and development, packaging, signage and photography. Jobs have evolved from a skilled trade craft to a high-tech digital design and production workflow. Some industry job outlook projections include:

• http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos090.htm
• http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos264.htm
• http://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/27-1024.00
• http://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/15-1099.04

The graphic communications industry is changing rapidly. The world depends on text, graphics, illustrations, video, and photos in communication with print, web and mobile devices.