Design Thinking is changing the future of business

Companies are looking for employees with design thinking skills. In fact, listing “design thinking” as a preferred qualification has seen an increase of 219% on job postings in the last two years, according to the Design Management Institute. Now that the RDC is offering the unique opportunity to earn a Certificate in Design Thinking, your CSU degree can become more marketable.
How to earn the 12-credit Certificate
Start with IDEA 210 Intro to Design Thinking (AUCC3B) to find impactful solutions for yourself, your community, and local businesses. This earns you three credits toward the 12-credit Certificate.
Add in a toolbox course, concurrently if you’d like, or take one in another semester. Our ever-evolving array of toolbox classes offer an opportunity to use everything from vinyl, 3D, and fabric printers, to CNC machines and laser cutters, to wood and metal equipment for making furniture. These courses vary from 1-2 credits, so you’ll need 3-4 for the certificate, but we understand if you want to take more for additional time to make.
A capstone, IDEA 450 Design Thinking Collaborative or IDEA 455 Designing for Defense, completes the certificate with an opportunity to apply all your learnings into an impressive projects, like building a Tiny House, working with the Department of Defense, or getting to develop an app that’s already funded and supported.
Ready? Let’s get design thinking!