Archived: One-Year Immersive Program (2010-2025)
This page serves as a historical archive of the Interaction Design & Social Entrepreneurship One-Year Immersive program previously offered by the Austin Center for Design. While this specific format is no longer available, alumni of this program have successfully launched careers in UX, product design, and social impact roles. This page remains available for reference by graduates and potential employers.
From 2010 to 2025, AC4D’s One-Year Immersive program provided an intensive, project-based education in design, social impact, and entrepreneurship. This highly selective program, limited to 15 students per cohort, challenged participants to navigate ambiguity, tackle complex problems, and develop the skills needed to drive meaningful change.
Designed for working professionals, the program was held on nights and weekends, requiring significant commitment and resilience. Graduates of the program form a well-regarded global network of design practitioners and leaders, serving as valuable resources, mentors, and advocates in their fields.
While this specific program is no longer offered, its legacy lives on through our alumni and our current course offerings.
For more information or to verify alumni status, please contact admissions@austincenterfordesign.com.
Curriculum
This curriculum was part of AC4D’s One-Year Immersive program, designed to develop expertise in research, prototyping, business strategy, and social impact design. Alumni have completed this rigorous training and demonstrated applied learning through real-world projects.
| Quarter 1 | Quarter 2 | Quarter 3 | Quarter 4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Methods | Research & Sensemaking | Prototyping & Testing | Creative Leadership | Business Design |
| Theory | Public Sector, Innovation & Impact | Designing Structures & Systems | Lecture Series: Sustainability & Impact | Portfolio & Professional Practices |
| Studio | Studio: Foundation | Studio: Research & Synthesis | Studio: Proof of Concept | Studio: Concept to Launch |
Quarter 1
A designer's work is best done with a resonant understanding of the world - the people in it, the systems at play, and the contexts in which our work will live. In this course you will learn how to responsibly and effectively explore the complexities of the human world, describe it, and develop a point of view around what you've learned.
Public Sector, Innovation, & Impact
In Public Sector Innovation and Impact, you will learn of the history of a problem space, develop a deeper understanding and build your voice on social issues. You will explore how design can be leveraged to create impactful change - both positive and negative. This class includes exploration of Race, Privilege, and Equity in design in a supportive learning environment.
To be effective, provocative ideas must be sharp, smart and easy to understand. In this foundational studio you will develop a baseline set of skills in sketching and visualization to bring your ideas to life, as well as basic quantitative analytical skills to understand complex domains and contextualize bold ideas with data.
Quarter 2
In design the act of making an idea tangible is a catalyst for knowledge creation and problem solving. In this course, you will rapidly make your ideas tangible with prototypes in order to test them in the world and measure outcomes to validate assumptions, expose risks and understand the potential to scale.
The application of design is continually expanding to broader and more complex systems of people, environments, processes and tools. In Designing Structures & Systems you will learn tools and methods to holistically understand a system and its intricacies (digital, physical, or both) and identify opportunities to create a more idealized future state. You will evaluate, analyze, and make tangible representations of physical, digital, and cultural components and processes that articulate their relationships and impact on outcomes.
This course begins the capstone project students will develop over the course of 3 quarters in studio. Each studio builds off of the prior quarter, allowing application of methods and concepts in depth.
This studio course will focus on information gathering and discovery. In a team, you will define a problem space, develop a research plan and execute research based on your team's topic. This course builds off of the 101 course offering more advanced research planning and management skills, including developing a research plan, managing recruiting, managing research data and communicating research value.
Quarter 3
Design is not linear work, and requires a diverse team. In Creative Leadership, you'll learn to plan, facilitate, guide, and manage projects that give shape to the ambiguous. You will learn the basics of how to manage and advance the design process with non-design team members and stakeholders. This class will help you anticipate and plan for the unique challenges of the design process, whether as an independent consultant or part of an in-house design team.
Lecture Series: Sustainability & Impact
One of the benefits of the Austin Center for Design is access to a valuable network of design practitioners. This lecture series will expose you to a collection of design leaders, who will share their experience on topics from the varying role of design across organizations to sustainability and measuring impact.
Taking the knowledge foundations established during Quarters 1 & 2, in this studio, your team will begin to make the design process your own. You will further hone your ideation and making skills in the context of a single capstone project that will continue through Quarter 4. You will develop, test and refine your concepts using prototypes. You will develop participatory design skills, further your understanding of iterative design and how to communicate value.
Quarter 4
In order to develop creative ideas that deliver value, designers must understand business context. This course will introduce you to basic principles of business including designing and evaluating business models and assessing market landscapes. This class will also touch on Product Management basics including using product roadmaps to illustrate a long-term product vision, how to evaluate, prioritize and communicate the value of ideas to stakeholders.
Portfolio & Professional Practice
AC4D fundamentally alters the trajectory of students' lives and careers. This class is designed to prepare you to re-enter the workforce with your best foot forward. You will learn how to navigate the creative industry and community, tell the story of your body of work, create your professional portfolio, and highlight your strengths to potential clients and/or employers.
Final Studio: Concept to Launch
Building on outcomes from prototyping and testing in the previous quarter, your team will design and execute a pilot of a product or service. You will further your communication skills by sharing progress throughout the quarter, culminating in a final pitch that communicates the value of your team's concept and learnings from work to date.
Program Overview & Legacy
From 2010-2025, AC4D’s One-Year Immersive program prepared students to become high-value creative problem solvers, equipping them with hands-on experience in design, social impact, and entrepreneurship. While no longer offered, this program’s graduates continue to apply their skills across various industries.
Program Structure
12 ten-week courses, structured into four quarters
Hands-on, project-based learning in small cohorts
Final capstone project with real-world application
Enrollment & Requirements
Selective admissions process
Required application materials: Resume, Statement of Purpose, and Portfolio
Open to students and professionals from diverse backgrounds
Graduation Credentials
Certificate in Interaction Design & Social Entrepreneurship, recognized by the Texas Workforce Commission
Recognized by employers as a rigorous, design-driven education
For alumni verification or employer validation, contact: admissions@austincenterfordesign.com
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