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Program-Level Learning Outcomes

Setting Goals for Success

SVA grants the faculty expansive latitude in constructing distinctive courses for our students. Concurrent to our encouragement of varied pedagogical approaches and curricula, however, is the belief that all students should graduate with a command of certain core competencies. Each program chair has worked with the Office of Academic Affairs to develop a set of learning outcomes germane to their particular discipline. Each year the chairs and faculty review these program-level goals to ensure that they embody the current state of professional practice. 

Undergraduate Programs

    • Developed capacity for critical, analytical and conceptual thinking.
    • Fluency in the mechanics of storytelling, character development and visual narrative expression.
    • Development of personal creative voice.
    • Knowledge and application of fundamental principles of image-making and design.
    • Working knowledge of video and film post-production issues.
    • Exploration and development of effective methods for successful collaborative work.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.

    • Development of personal visual language within the context of traditional and contemporary language of design.
    • Ability to identify and solve visual and conceptual problems. 
    • Developed capacity for critical, strategic and conceptual thinking.
    • Ability to present and communicate effectively, in oral and written form.
    • Competency in core technical skills, including facility with a range of relevant tools, media, technology and related practices.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.

    • Developed capacity for critical and analytical thinking, creative problem-solving, clear articulation of abstract visual and sensory concepts, and the ability to explain and defend views effectively and rationally.
    • Fluency in the mechanics of storytelling, character development and visual languages extended to fiction and narrative, as well as non-fiction and non-narrative forms of expression.
    • Competency in core technical skills, including proficiency in two-dimensional and three-dimensional drafting, principles of color and composition, and digital production methods.
    • Development of effective methods for successful collaborative work, and the ability to communicate effectively with all involved personnel at each stage of production.
    • Knowledge of major movements, themes, and significant practitioners and works in the history of animation.
    • Ability to address culture and history from a variety of perspectives.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.

    • Development of personal creative voice and the ability to effectively translate this voice into graphic form.
    • Developed capacity for critical, analytical, and conceptual thinking.
    • Fluency in the mechanics of storytelling and visual narrative expression.
    • Proficiency in core technical skills including fluency in visual grammar and skilled application of a variety of materials and media.
    • Ability to present and communicate effectively, in oral and written form.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.
    • Ability to produce a professional quality online portfolio demonstrating original materials and a developed artistic voice.

    • Developed capacity for critical, strategic and conceptual thinking.
    • Ability to identify and solve visual and conceptual problems.
    • Ability to present and communicate effectively, in oral and written form.
    • Development of personal visual language within the context of traditional and contemporary language of design.
    • Proficiency in core executional skills, including facility with a range of relevant tools, media, technology and related practices.
    • Experience in various creative roles, from art direction and copyrighting to typography and TV commercials.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.

    • Developed capacity for critical and analytical thinking, creative problem-solving, and clear articulation of abstract visual and sensory concepts.
    • Ability to present and communicate effectively, in oral and written form.
    • Fluency in the mechanics of storytelling, character development and visual languages extended to fiction and narrative, as well as non-fiction and non-narrative forms of expression.
    • Conceptual and technical proficiency with a range of roles contributing to a successful film.
    • Exploration and development of effective methods for successful collaborative work, and ability to communicate effectively with all involved personnel at each stage of production.
    • Knowledge of major movements, themes, and significant practitioners and works in the history of film.
    • Ability to address culture and history from a variety of perspectives.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.

    • Developed capacity for critical thinking and visual literacy in the making of art.
    • Effective communication and presentation skills, in oral and written form.
    • Development of student’s own visual language and vocabulary.
    • Proficiency in core executional skills, including facility with a range of relevant tools, media, technology and related practices.
    • Ability to apply foundational themes, styles, and historical contexts of art history to student’s own practice.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.


    • Developed capacity for critical, analytical, and conceptual thinking.
    • Development of personal creative voice and the ability to effectively translate this voice into graphic form.
    • Understanding of the mechanics of storytelling and visual narrative expression.
    • Proficiency in core technical skills including fluency in visual grammar and skilled application of variety of materials and media.
    • Ability to present and communicate effectively, in oral and written form.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.
    • Ability to produce a professional quality online portfolio demonstrating original materials and a developed artistic voice.

    • Developed capacity for critical thinking and spatial problem-solving.
    • Development of spatial and material vocabulary.
    • Effective communication and presentation skills, in oral and written form.
    • Proficiency in core technical skills.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.

    • Developed capacity for critical, analytical and conceptual thinking.
    • Ability to identify and solve visual and conceptual problems.
    • Development of aesthetic vocabulary, ability to read images, articulate observations, identify and analyze issues pertaining to photographic representation.
    • Development of the student’s own aesthetic sensibility and visual style.
    • Comprehensive knowledge of history of photography, significant movements, works, and practitioners in the field and an understanding of major shifts and intellectual claims that have shaped the contemporary discourse surrounding art, image making, and visual cultural theory. 
    • Technical and conceptual proficiency relating to still photography, video production, and post-production.
    • Understanding of important aspects of light and color management, and the ability to implement that knowledge to develop individual style. 
    • Facility with the mechanics of visual narrative expression, and understanding of experimental and nonlinear approaches to storytelling.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.

    • Developed capacity for critical thinking and visual literacy in the making of art.
    • Ability to engage in critical reading and writing of philosophy, history and theory.
    • Understanding of multiple theoretical approaches, methodologies and movements in the history of art.
    • Ability to apply foundational themes, styles and historical contexts to student’s own field of study.
    • Fluency in fundamental principles and practices of academic writing.

Graduate Programs

    • Practical training that prepares our students to enter the field of professional curating with all the basic technical knowledge required to do the work effectively. 
    • Academic knowledge in curatorial theory, art theory, social theory, art history, and exhibition history to provide a substantial intellectual basis for professional curatorial work. 
    • Professional network-building.

    • Familiarity with range of research methodologies, with an emphasis on journalistic reporting techniques, interviewing, and an understanding of how to conduct archival research.
    • The ability to write in a range of styles, with an emphasis on a research-based journalistic style, and technical proficiency in composing and editing content for a variety of media formats, including those typically used in contemporary professional practice production of print and online publications, podcasts, exhibitions, and books.
    • A developed capacity for analytical and critical thinking, including an understanding of how to apply analytical and critical thinking to all aspects of design.
    • A thorough knowledge of design history and criticism pertinent to contemporary design research and the production of cultural criticism. 

    • Gain understanding of the relationship between studio practice and teaching.
    • Apply pedagogical theory in curriculum development.
    • Gain experience in classroom leadership.
    • Complete required practicum towards initial licensure.
    • Develop awareness and understanding of the diverse cultural, historical, and experiential issues expressed and inherent in one’s own artwork, in one’s teaching.
    • Understand teaching for diverse populations and for diverse learning styles.
    • Gain understanding of aesthetics and contemporary art theory.
    • Complete required coursework towards professional licensure.
    • Gain familiarity with contemporary media for art making.
    • Engage in arts-based research that contributes to the field.

    • Develop the student’s own creative voice and personal vision with an awareness of the strength of teamwork and collaboration.
    • An ability to identify and solve visual and conceptual problems by developing a student’s capacity for critical and conceptual thinking.
    • Knowledge and application of, and experimentation with, the multidisciplinary aspects of digital art including technical proficiency in a student's chosen area of focus.
    • Understanding of the mechanics of storytelling and visual narrative expression in a broad form of computer arts as well as the specific chosen discipline.
    • Working knowledge of the theory, history, and context of digital art, as it relates to contemporary art and art history and a professional level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.

    • Demonstrate critical thinking to inform the students' work as social designers through analysis, argumentation, communication, and ethics and responsibility, as well as background knowledge of historical and current events and future contexts.
    • Apply creativity, issue reframing, and insight development to approach social and environmental issues by engaging in novel and adaptive thinking, working in complex systems, and demonstrating an entrepreneurial mindset.
    • Choose appropriate design methodologies that support social impact collaborations in theory and practice, including participatory design processes, critique, facilitation, co-creation research, synthesis, prototyping, game mechanics, prototyping/making, service/UX design, and communication design.
    • Utilize sensemaking to inform theories of change by employing mapping, data analysis, visualization, storytelling, and monitoring and evaluation.
    • Apply relevant practices and new media literacy relevant to social innovation, including movement design, activism, community engagement, network development, and emerging practices and technologies.
    • Identify collaborative and collective leadership capabilities required for social change through presenting to and collaborating with diverse communities and industry professionals, cross-disciplinary engagement, and cross-cultural competencies demonstrating self-awareness, empathy, care, and accessibility.

    • Capacity for conceptual, analytical, and critical thinking.
    • Ability to discuss and present their work effectively.
    • Creative vision and artistic purpose.
    • Knowledge of relevant contemporary art practices, art history, cultural theory.
    • Professional skills required to pursue a successful career in fine art.

    • Organizing content and ideas is a crucial component of developing stories. The students have to understand their audience in order to develop the right triggers to lure them into their world.
    • Once we have built the framework for a story, we decide which media or form(s) (such as animation, graphic novel, oils, pencils, color, or B&W) are best suited to carry the story.
    • How do we extrapolate the work from our classrooms and package it in such a way that it reaches not only the widest audience but also the most interested audience?
    • How do we develop a long-term strategy? Which particular elements of a successful thesis can be developed further to grow into a bold stylistic language? The thesis project is the seed of a future career.

    • Demonstrate critical thinking and knowledge of multiple interaction design frameworks and methods (e.g. human-centered design; user experience design and research; service design; universal, accessible, and inclusive design; and more).
    • Apply multiple interaction design methods in ways that demonstrate technical proficiency in developing innovative, hybrid (digital and physical) design solutions.
    • Use multimedia storytelling techniques to effectively communicate problems, insights, and design solutions to diverse audiences.
    • Know and apply the highest level of ethical design standards and values in the practice of interaction design and its implementation with diverse consumers and communities (e.g. accessibility and transparency, user safety and trust, data privacy and confidentiality, intellectual property rights, etc.).

    • Developed capacity for thinking critically, analytically, and abstractly about design problems and solutions.
    • Understanding of the design industry’s shifting terrain—across artifacts, services, systems, and platforms.
    • Proficiency in design research methodologies, narrative storytelling, and presentation techniques.
    • Highly developed capacity for creating prototypes at many levels of fidelity and scale.
    • Clear understanding of ethics and professional practice, along with a robust personal network of leading professionals across multiple domains of design.

    • Explore and develop a deeper, personal understanding of what “story” is, where it comes from, how it functions across media, and identify where each student’s own stories and perspectives come from in order to broaden their perspective and focus their point of view.
    • Advance each student’s visual language skills and expertise in visual story development, creative writing, and technical media skills in the pursuit of their personal vision and individualized command of story.
    • Elevate and expand students’ creative production, project management, studio, and professional practice skills to successfully create, produce, and execute innovative and original visual narrative works.
    • Help each student build a professional network and the promotional skill sets needed to confidently communicate and engage within their professional communities and industries.
    • Through collaborative study, critical thinking, and constructive feedback, support each student in defining their personal artistic and authorial voice, in order to advance their professional portfolio and contribute to the contemporary art and culture of visual storytelling.

    • Obtain an understanding of the complex relationship between cognition, emotion, and behavior and analogizing these areas to art therapy diagnosis and treatment.
    • Cultivate the capacity for productive self-reflection, empathy, critical thinking, examination of personal assumptions and biases, and insight to enhance clinical practice.
    • Develop a distinctive approach to art therapy practice based on the client’s needs while taking into account the student’s individual talents and working style.
    • Demonstrate artistic growth through realized handling of materials process and product as they relate to art therapy practice.
    • Develop an active leadership role, learning to advocate and collaborate in a professional setting.
    • Gain a thorough understanding of professional practices within the field, i.e., ethical/legal standards, research, career strategies, and expectations.

    • Practical technical skills required for contemporary professional photographers in areas including digital and video capture, lighting, asset management, artificial intelligence tools, color management, image processing, video editing, graphic design, and printing and output.
    • Strengthened quality of conceptual and creative image making practice in students' chosen photographic fields through the stages of initial idea generation, project planning and development, production, postproduction, output, exhibition, and publication.
    • Knowledge of the professional business practices to allow students to market and license their photographs, videos, prints, and services to potential clients, collectors, employers, editors, gallerists, and curators.
    • Completed thesis project including exhibition prints, a book, video component, and website, along with branding materials and the verbal and written communication skills that allow them to professionally present themselves and their work.
    • Professional network and photographic community.

    • Hands-on experience that equips our students with essential creative and professional skills, enabling them to step into the world of fashion photography with confidence.
    • In-depth understanding of photographic concepts, art theory, social studies, curatorial practice, and fashion photography history, offering a solid intellectual foundation for a career in the field.
    • Opportunities for building professional connections and networks.

    • Thorough understanding of the mechanics of storytelling, character development, and visual narrative expression.
    • Exploration and development of effective methods and techniques for successful collaborative work and project management.
    • Ability to effectively manage production costs/finances and the set and crew for a successful film shoot.
    • Professional-level understanding of industry practices, standards and expectations, and career strategies.