Masters of Industrial Design

Reading List for Incoming Students

Incoming students might be wondering how to prepare for the coursework, especially if they are not coming from a design or visual background.  Here are three books that may be helpful, and give you a taste for the skills we'll be building each fall.  Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds gives a good understanding of what makes an engaging presentation with the right kinds of visuals and delivery.  Making and Breaking the Grid by Timothy Samara is a good reference for when you start laying out content printed matter, which we do a lot of here.  The Visual Display of Quantitative Information by Edward Tufte is a must have for anyone visually inclined. The first in his information visualization series, the book gives great examples of information graphics that work, how to cut down on "chart junk" and treat your audience like reasonable, intelligent people. His writing style is very dry and fun to read as well.  Over the course of the year there will be lots of other books you'll pick up, and many of these are already in the studio, but it's a decent starting point.