Certificate Programs

In the Drawing Certificate, students develop the skills and conceptual foundation necessary to cultivate their art practice, drawing inspiration and context from SAIC’s many resources. Among them is the Art Institute of Chicago, an encyclopedic museum encompassing more than 5,000 years of creative expression from cultures worldwide.  

The Fashion Certificate is designed for students interested in artistic and professional training in fashion. Participants hone the technical skills necessary to realize their creative vision as they develop a portfolio of work that can be used for a variety of purposes, including preparation for further study.

Inspiration and context are drawn from SAIC’s Fashion Resource Center, a unique collection of late 20th- and 21st-century designer garments and accessories representing extreme innovation, as well as the Art Institute of Chicago museum and other SAIC collections and resources.

The Graphic Design Certificate is designed for students with an interest in exploring graphic design with an emphasis on print media. Participants employ analog and digital processes and may elect to work across disciplines as they develop a portfolio of work that represents their personal voice and demonstrates the technical, critical, and analytical skills required of the field.

Students enrolled in the Graphic Design Certificate should have access to a Mac or PC computer with Adobe Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop installed. Before starting this program, students should feel comfortable navigating the directory structure and creating, deleting, renaming, and moving files and directories without assistance.

SAIC’s noncredit Interior Design Certificate Program equips students with knowledge and skills in the constantly evolving field of interior design. Students will study interior architecture, learning how to design and create functional interior spaces while gaining exposure to contemporary design concepts, trends, and applications. You will learn what is required to design and build an interior space, gain a general knowledge of how interior designers work, and examine what it takes to move creative designs from ideas to reality.

The Certificate in Interior Design is ideal for: Students wishing to learn technical interior design skills for career advancement; students interested in undertaking personal design projects relating to interior architecture or design; students looking to build a portfolio for admission to interior architecture degree programs, including SAIC’s Master of Architecture with a Track in Interior Architecture.

In addition to fostering the practical skills needed to succeed in the field, our program also emphasizes the importance of creativity and innovation. Students will have the opportunity to work on real-world projects while developing their design skills and building an interior architecture portfolio that showcases their abilities.

Students should have access to a Mac or PC, and be comfortable navigating directory structures and creating, deleting, renaming, and moving files.

In the Painting Certificate, students develop the skills and conceptual foundation necessary to cultivate their art practice, drawing inspiration and context from SAIC’s many resources, including the Art Institute of Chicago, an encyclopedic museum that encompasses more than 5,000 years of creative expression from cultures around the world.