Beginning in fall 2013, freshman students entering Parsons will share a common first-year experience. The same course sequence will constitute the first year of every BFA program, providing a foundational experience that familiarizes students with the tools, methods, and skills of art and design. A similar course sequence will apply for BBA students, with a few exceptions specific to that degree. These required courses provides a core learning experience, the outcomes of which are fundamental to continuing undergraduate study at Parsons. Many of the required courses also offer an array of course options, allowing students the flexibility to create their own pathway through the first year based on their own interests.
| BFA First Year | F | S |
|---|---|---|
| PUFY 1000/1010 Integrative Studio and Seminar 1
This course pairing brings together writing, reading, and making through projects that draw on creative and critical skills in a liberal arts and studio context. In Integrative Studio, students create projects that involve collaboration, cross-disciplinary activity, research, and prototyping. In Integrative Seminar, they develop essential reading and writing skills that help them connect text and visual elements, a practice central to art and design. Students will be able to select from course options that allow them to explore different topics. |
6 | - |
| LIBS 1000 Sustainable Energy Systems*
In this liberal arts course, students explore energy, climate change, and our dependence on nonrenewable materials. Lectures, seminars, fieldwork, and hands-on experiments introduce students to the physics, chemistry, and biology of energy and the way these systems relate to design and everyday experience. |
3 | - |
| PUFY 1020 First-Year Studio: Space/Materiality**
In this six-hour studio, students become familiar with the methods and tools used to investigate and manipulate space and materials. In Parsons' modeling facilities, studio classrooms, and shops, they explore form, connections between making and thinking, and properties of space and materials such as weight, texture, color, durability, life cycle, and ecological impact. Students will be able to select from course options that allow them to explore different topics. |
3 | - |
| PUFY 1030 First-Year Studio: Drawing/Imaging**
In this six-hour studio, students explore human interaction with the visual world and create two-dimensional works using digital tools such as adobe illustrator and photoshop, drawing, photography, and mixed media. They investigate perception, representation, and culture as they record and then translate observations into visual form, organizing content, analyzing relationships, and communicating ideas. Students will be able to select from course options that allow them to explore different topics. |
3 | - |
| PUFY 1040 First-Year Studio: Time**
In this six-hour studio, students focus on evolving concepts of time in art and design and the way those concepts shape human experience and our understanding of the world. They develop and structure narratives and shape user experiences in projects ranging from bookmaking to performance art to audiovisual pieces. media including adobe indesign and video editing software are used. Students will be able to select from course options that allow them to explore different topics. |
- | 3 |
| PUFY 1050 First-Year Elective
|
- | 3 |
| PLHI 1000 A History of the World Told Through Objects*
This lecture-and-discussion seminar traces world history through the social, cultural, technological, and religious functions of objects found in collections throughout New York City. Readings, lectures, and field trips to museums introduce students to objects representing a span of time from prehistory up to the Industrial Revolution. Students conduct research on objects used by a society and report their findings in written form and presentations. |
- | 3 |
| PUFY 1001/1011 Integrative Studio and Seminar 2
Building on methods introduced in the first semester, this course pairs a reading and writing seminar with a studio exploring the impact of research on art and design practice. Students learn to use design tools employed by professionals in the field and undertake individual and collaborative projects that investigate how cultural values can be transmitted through art and design. Coursework emphasizes research, formal writing, systems thinking, and information navigation skills and introduces distributed learning techniques. Students will be able to select from course options that allow them to explore different topics. |
- | 6 |
| 15 | 15 | |
* A History of the World Told Through Objects and Sustainable Energy Systems may be taken in any sequence, one in the fall semester and one in the spring.
** First-Year Studio courses—Space/Materiality, Drawing/Imaging, and Time—may be taken in any sequence, two in the fall semester and one in the spring.
| BBA First Year | F | S |
|---|---|---|
| PUFY 1000/1010 Integrative Studio and Seminar 1
This course pairing brings together writing, reading, and making through projects that draw on creative and critical skills in a liberal arts and studio context. In Integrative Studio, students create projects that involve collaboration, cross-disciplinary activity, research, and prototyping. In Integrative Seminar, they develop essential reading and writing skills that help them connect text and visual elements, a practice central to art and design. Students will be able to select from course options that allow them to explore different topics. |
6 | - |
| LIBS 1000 Sustainable Energy Systems
In this liberal arts course, students explore energy, climate change, and our dependence on nonrenewable materials. Lectures, seminars, fieldwork, and hands-on experiments introduce students to the physics, chemistry, and biology of energy and the way these systems relate to design and everyday experience. |
3 | - |
| Introduction to Quantitative Reasoning
This course covers the fundamentals of elementary and intermediate algebra used in business and social science. Students develop quantitative literacy, learning to organize and analyze data and mastering counting techniques and elementary probability. Students are also introduced to the use of technology as a computational aid and a tool for creating graphics. |
3 | - |
| PUFY 1030 First-Year Studio: Drawing/Imaging***
In this six-hour studio, students explore human interaction with the visual world and create two-dimensional works using digital tools such as adobe illustrator and photoshop, drawing, photography, and mixed media. They investigate perception, representation, and culture as they record and then translate observations into visual form, organizing content, analyzing relationships, and communicating ideas. Students will be able to select from course options that allow them to explore different topics. |
3 | - |
| PUFY 1020 First-Year Studio: Space/Materiality or PUFY 1040 First-Year Studio: Time*** In this six-hour studio, students focus on evolving concepts of time in art and design and the way those concepts shape human experience and our understanding of the world. They develop and structure narratives and shape user experiences in projects ranging from bookmaking to performance art to audiovisual pieces. media including adobe indesign and video editing software are used. Students will be able to select from course options that allow them to explore different topics. |
- | 3 |
| PUFY 1050 First-Year Elective
|
- | 3 |
| Advanced Quantitative Reasoning
This class presents data visualization techniques and introduces probability theory and statistical analysis methods, preparing students for higher-level strategic design and management courses. |
- | 3 |
| PUFY 1001/1011 Integrative Studio and Seminar 2
Building on methods introduced in the first semester, this course pairs a reading and writing seminar with a studio exploring the impact of research on art and design practice. Students learn to use design tools employed by professionals in the field and undertake individual and collaborative projects that investigate how cultural values can be transmitted through art and design. Coursework emphasizes research, formal writing, systems thinking, and information navigation skills and introduces distributed learning techniques. Students will be able to select from course options that allow them to explore different topics. |
- | 6 |
| 15 | 15 | |
*** The two First-Year Studio courses—Drawing/Imaging and either Space/Materiality or Time—may be taken in any sequence, one in the fall semester and one in the spring.
Please note: Students are advised to refer to the current applicable program catalog for degree completion requirements and to confirm their progress in satisfying those requirements with their advisors.
