A bachelor’s in industrial design is the standard entry credential for product design work. It comes under several titles – BS in Industrial Design, BFA in Industrial Design, Bachelor of Industrial Design (BID), and increasingly BS or BFA in Product Design – and the title tells you less than the required course list does. What you are looking for is a studio sequence: multiple project courses, each ending in a presentation and a critique, running through the middle and final years of the degree.
This page explains the degree titles, what the studio sequence actually requires, why the portfolio matters more than the major name, and what to verify before enrolling in an online program.
Quick answers
Can I get a bachelor’s degree in industrial design online?
Yes, though the offering is narrower than in most fields. IPEDS counted 59 institutions reporting bachelor’s-or-higher completions in industrial and product design, 49 of which report offering distance-education programs (IPEDS 2024). Some of those distance offerings are in other subjects at the same institution, so confirm that the industrial design major itself is available online.
What is the difference between a BS, a BFA, and a BID?
The BFA puts the most credits into studio and art foundation and the fewest into general education. The BS usually adds more technical coursework – materials, manufacturing, sometimes engineering or business – and keeps a broader general education core. The BID is a professional degree title used by some schools that sits between the two. Compare the studio credit count and the technical courses rather than the letters.
How is industrial design different from engineering?
Industrial designers are responsible for what a product is like to use and to look at, and for whether it can be manufactured at a price. Engineers are responsible for whether the mechanism works and holds up. The two roles argue with each other productively on every real project. If you want to own the mechanism, see the engineering program guide; a design degree does not qualify you for engineering roles.
Do I need a portfolio to be admitted?
Usually, yes, either to enter the university or to enter the major after a foundation year. Undergraduate portfolios generally want observational drawing, evidence of three-dimensional thinking, and proof that you build things. Requirements differ enough between schools that you should ask for the specific list before you assemble anything.
How many credits is the degree?
Approximately 120 semester hours, typically four years full-time. The design foundation courses usually come first, the studio sequence occupies the middle years, and a capstone project sits at the end. Studio courses frequently run on a fixed sequence with prerequisites, which limits how much you can reorder them.
Is a bachelor’s enough to work as an industrial designer?
For most entry-level roles, yes. Hiring runs on the portfolio, and a bachelor’s plus strong project work is the normal profile for a junior product designer. There is no license and no required certification. A master’s is mainly for people converting from another field or moving toward research and leadership roles.
At a Glance
- Common degree titles: BS in Industrial Design, BFA in Industrial Design, Bachelor of Industrial Design, BS or BFA in Product Design
- Typical duration: 4 years full-time
- Credits: Approximately 120 semester hours
- Core skills: Sketching, CAD and surface modeling, materials and manufacturing, human factors, prototyping, critique
- Accreditation: NASAD accredits art and design programs; verify institutional accreditation in every case
For a full map of this program area, start here: Industrial Design Program Guide
Schools to compare
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
- Graduation rate 30%
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
- Average net price (lower is better) 20%
- Retention rate 15%
- Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Graduation rate
94%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$83,648
Avg net price
$13,138/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 98%
- Programs offered: 206
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
85%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$78,466
Avg net price
$14,091/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 95%
- Programs offered: 234
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
78%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$78,988
Avg net price
$13,760/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 87%
- Programs offered: 118
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
85%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$75,790
Avg net price
$15,564/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 90%
- Programs offered: 193
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
74%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$54,295
Avg net price
$52,659/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 89%
- Programs offered: 36
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
73%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$49,414
Avg net price
$53,909/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 90%
- Programs offered: 25
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
67%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$58,152
Avg net price
$51,248/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 74%
- Programs offered: 8
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
65%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$42,509
Avg net price
$29,208/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats
- Retention rate: 87%
- Programs offered: 15
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
The main undergraduate pathways
Standalone industrial or product design major
The direct route. The major credits go into design foundation, a studio sequence, CAD and visualization, materials and processes, human factors, and a capstone. Verify that studio runs every term through the upper years. A program in which “industrial design” is four electives attached to a general art major will not produce the portfolio employers expect.
Design major with an industrial design concentration
Some schools run a broad design degree with tracks in visual communication, interaction, and product. This works if the product track is genuinely staffed and taught, and it can be an advantage: shared coursework with graphic design and user experience matches how many products are now designed by mixed teams. The risk is a thinner product studio sequence. Count the studio courses in the track.
Design paired with engineering or business coursework
A deliberate second skill set rather than a substitute. Adding manufacturing, mechanical, or business coursework makes you more useful in a corporate studio and more credible in the arguments that decide what gets built. It does not convert the degree into an engineering credential. See the engineering program guide if that is the actual goal.
Typical coursework in a bachelor’s program
| Course Topic |
What You Learn |
| Design Foundation |
Two- and three-dimensional composition, proportion, and the vocabulary of form |
| Drawing and Ideation Sketching |
Observational drawing, perspective, and fast concept sketching that other people can read |
| Design Studio (sequence) |
Full projects from brief to presentation, with scheduled critique at each stage |
| CAD and Surface Modeling |
Parametric and surface modeling in tools such as SolidWorks, Rhino, Fusion 360, or Alias |
| Rendering and Visualization |
Photoreal and diagrammatic rendering that communicates a design decision |
| Materials and Manufacturing Processes |
Injection molding, sheet metal, casting, extrusion, thermoforming, additive manufacturing, and their design rules |
| Human Factors and Ergonomics |
Anthropometric data, reach and grip, accessibility, and usability testing of physical objects |
| Prototyping and Model Making |
Foam, board, and printed models used to test a form rather than to display it |
| Design Research |
Interviewing, observation, and problem framing before concept work begins |
| Capstone Project |
A self-directed project taken to a resolved, presentable, portfolio-grade outcome |
Skills you may build
- Sketching fast enough to think with a pen and clearly enough that a room understands the idea
- Building and editing three-dimensional models in a parametric or surface modeler
- Choosing a material and a process together, because one constrains the other
- Designing around real bodies rather than an imagined average user
- Making rough models early, because a form you can hold answers questions a screen cannot
- Taking critique in public and coming back with a changed design
- Presenting a project as a decision with reasons, which is most of the job in a corporate studio
Prerequisites and course sequencing
Studio courses generally run in a fixed order with prerequisites, and each usually offers fewer sections than a lecture course. Before you enroll, confirm:
- Whether admission to the major requires a portfolio, and when it is reviewed
- How many studio courses the major requires and in which terms each is offered
- Which CAD tools are taught, in which course, and whether licenses are included
- What computer specification the school assumes, since surface modeling and rendering are hardware-hungry
- How physical model work is assigned and assessed at a distance
- Whether any residency, in-person shop session, or local makerspace access is required
If you are moving faster than a standard four-year plan, compare accelerated industrial design programs. Studio resists compression more than lecture coursework does, because iteration needs time between rounds of critique.
Transfer credits and degree planning
Transfer credit can shorten the degree meaningfully, mostly at the general education end. Confirm with each school:
- The maximum number of transfer credits accepted
- The minimum grade required for a course to transfer
- Whether credits apply to the major core or only to general electives – general education and art history usually transfer, studio courses often require a portfolio review first
- Whether an associate degree in design transfers as a block or course by course
- Residency requirements, meaning a minimum number of credits completed at the institution
See Affordable Online Industrial Design Degrees for more on total program cost, including the software and materials this major adds.
Accreditation and program quality checks
The National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD) is the recognized programmatic accreditor for art and design programs, including industrial design. NASAD accreditation is a meaningful signal that the studio sequence, faculty, and facilities meet a national standard. It is less common among fully online programs than among campus programs, so its absence is not automatically disqualifying, but you should then look harder at studio structure and outcomes.
Verify that the institution holds accreditation from a recognized institutional accreditor through the U.S. Department of Education database. That check comes first.
The Industrial Designers Society of America is a professional membership organization, not an accreditor. Membership, awards, and conference presence are useful for a career, but they do not evaluate a degree program. NASAD and institutional accreditation are the checks that matter.
Building the portfolio while you study
The portfolio is the hiring gate in this field, and it is built out of coursework whether or not the program says so. Practical habits:
- Photograph and document every project as you go, including the ugly middle stages – employers want to see process, and you cannot reconstruct it later
- Keep the sketches. Reviewers read sketch pages to judge how you think
- Finish fewer projects to a resolved standard rather than showing many half-done concepts
- Build at least some physical models even when the assignment allows a rendering, because handling a model changes the design and the story
- Include one project with a real constraint you did not choose: a material, a cost target, a manufacturing process
- Learn to write a short project narrative that states the problem, the decision, and the evidence
Bachelor’s vs a master’s in industrial design
A bachelor’s is the standard professional entry degree, and most working industrial designers hold one. A master’s in industrial design is chiefly for two groups: people converting into design from engineering, business, or another design discipline, and people moving toward design research, strategy, teaching, or management. It is not a required step, and it will not substitute for a portfolio.
Compare degree options:
Data verified: September 5, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
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