Minor Program Admission

Applications for Spring 2023 minors are now closed. The Fall 2023 application will open week 2 of that semester.

The Academy offers several minor options for majors in other USC schools who wish to specialize in cross-disciplinary theory and application and design strategy. Each minor provides access to the Academy's unique and extensive maker facilities, as well as the breadth of Academy faculty expertise. Students who declare an Academy minor can specialize in any of the following Academy Minor Options listed below.

For questions about the Academy Minor experience, please contact the following advisers:

Anique James aniqueja@usc.edu
Minors Last Name A-L

Adrian Coson coson@usc.edu
Minors Last Name M-Z

The potential for innovation at the intersection of health, medicine, design and technology is exploding. In order to take full advantage of the entrepreneurial and research opportunities in this space, a new style of undergraduate education is necessary for a new generation of learners – agile and adaptive thinkers who cross easily from discipline to discipline, steadily advancing the role that technology plays in our present and our future. Because of their strong interdisciplinary foundations, the USC Iovine and Young Academy and the USC Keck MESH Academy are uniquely poised to take the lead in the design and implementation of such a curriculum, one that will provide the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the emerging field of health innovation. 

See the USC Catalogue for complete information on the Health Innovation Minor. 

A minor in Designing Products offers USC students a deep understanding of the design process leading to the creation of consumer goods and services, including the fundamentals of design thinking and human-centered design as they relate to successful ideation and implementation. Students will learn the method by which conclusions are made through study and application of acquired knowledge and skills in the areas of user research, market opportunity, consumer insights, competitive analysis, ideation, 3D form development, production methodologies, branding, packaging, marketing and distribution. Course work will focus on the process by which decisions are made regarding not only a physical object's function and aesthetic qualities, but also if it is solving a problem, how it is solving that problem better than the competition, and whether or not it is a problem worth solving in the first place. 

See the USC Catalogue for complete information on the Designing Products Minor. 

Entrepreneurs, content creators and experience designers in today's tech-rich market environments must understand how multimedia arts platforms interconnect. Facility with state-of-the-art visual and audio tools, and the ability to combine and integrate them successfully to create compelling and persuasive experiences, is essential. The learning approach in this minor combines design-driven, user-focused theory with hands-on, practical tools and production skills. Within a studio critique model, technology fundamentals are combined with entrepreneurial and design thinking perspectives. These skills and techniques will augment and enhance the knowledge students learn in their home domains and majors, and in virtually any future field of endeavor. 

See the USC Catalogue for complete information on the Designing Multimedia Experiences Minor. 

Disruptive innovation results from an invention or discovery that radically changes an existing eco or social system. Invariably, that change requires new learning and new, sustaining innovations in response. Lasting innovation, then, requires both creativity in generating fresh, bold new ideas and an understanding of the constant interplay of economic, technological, cultural and social forces that drive the use and consumption of products, goods and services. Innovators who maintain success and momentum over long periods have learned to anticipate and adapt to trends by focusing on the needs and opportunities presented by the customer, the citizen, the community and the user. The Iovine and Young Academy utilizes the techniques of human-centered design and a uniquely interdisciplinary, hands-on approach to provide students with the knowledge and skills to understand, nurture and drive innovation. The course work in this minor delivers a range of fundamental theories, frameworks and experiences to augment and enhance the knowledge students are gaining in their majors with an understanding of the techniques, methods and methodologies of the world's greatest innovators. 

See the USC Catalogue for complete information on the Disruptive Innovation Minor. 

The Designing for Live Experiences minor provides USC students, in all fields of study, the opportunity to gain essential knowledge and skills as related to human-centered interactivity and learning in and with our physical environments. Courses focus on the practical tools needed to assess, interpret, ideate, and solve for successful interactions and memory making. Benefits of considered physical experience design solutions lead to a repeat customer base, meaningful community engagement, and relevance in the competitive landscape of service and education design. This minor is of particular interest to students wishing to expand their understanding of user interactions with spatial design and how to capture prolonged, and repeat engagement. 

See the USC Catalogue for complete information on the Designing for Live Experiences Minor. 

The Designing for Digital Experiences minor provides students in all fields of study an opportunity to gain essential knowledge and skills in interaction design. Courses focus on the tools required to implement powerful interactive visual and touch experiences, as well as the conceptual and theoretical knowledge necessary to apply universal standards for human-centered design. The minor is of particular interest to students wishing to further develop highly sought-after specializations such as interaction design, data visualization, app design, social media marketing and digital art direction. 

See the USC Catalogue for complete information on the Designing for Digital Experiences Minor. 

**Admission for the News and Information Innovation minor has been suspended**

Departmental clearance ("D-Clearance") is permission for a student to register for a class. Class sections with a "D" designation are restricted by the department offering the course, requiring students to obtain the department's permission ("D" clearance) before attempting to register.

Please email iovine-young@usc.edu about course availability and D-Clearance for non-majors.

Minors

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