Please put together a list of Art/Design Universities that collaborate with Tech focused Universities to offer a joint degree or program

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Please put together a list of Art/Design Universities that collaborate with Tech focused Universities to offer a joint degree or program

Hi there! Thanks so much for coming to Wonder with your question about joint degrees in art/design and technology. In short, I was able to find several dual degree programs that should meet your needs, but this combination was not nearly as common as one might think. The best options for programs such as what you describe are the partnerships between RISD and Brown, and in-house BFA plus BA/BS dual degree programs at the University of Michigan, Tufts University and Cornell University. Please see below for details.

ASSUMPTIONS
The most useful research method ended up being a search for Bachelor of Fine Art (BFA) and Bachelor of Art (BA) or Bachelor of Science (BS) dual degree programs. While I used the previous research done by Wonder to search the top art/design schools, it was rare that I was able to find dual degree programs connected to technology. In most cases, dual degrees at these art institutes allowed the student to study two types of art, or perhaps combine the fine arts with teaching. Even the partnership program between the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and the University of Pennsylvania, which looks extremely promising at the start, does not provide a dual degree, but an MFA only with some classes taken at UPenn. Similarly, the Stern-Tisch joint program at New York University does grant two degrees (BFA and BS), but the BS is in Business and would not really qualify as being tech-related. I found many near misses such as these. Below are the best options.

FINDINGS
1) The Penny W. Stamps School of Art and Design at the University of Michigan offers its students the opportunity to earn a BA or BFA from its school, with a dual degree from one of a number of other schools at UMichigan. Options include the School of Engineering and the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning.

2) The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and Brown University Dual Degree Program offers exactly the type of partnership you described. This program allows students to obtain a Bachelor of Art or Bachelor of Science, including engineering, from Brown and a BFA from RISD after five years of study.

3) Tufts University offers a BFA+ BA/BS combined degree program where students take five years to earn the BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts (SMFA) and a BA or BS through the School of Arts and Sciences. While the School of Engineering is separate and not mentioned in this combined degree, there are many tech-focused BA/BS options in the School of Arts and Sciences, including computer science, applied mathematics, biomedical sciences, and many others.

4) Cornell University offers a dual degree program from its College of Human Ecology, Department of Fiber Science & Apparel Design (FSAD). This program allows students to earn a BFA from FSAD along with a BA from the College of Arts and Sciences or a BS from the College of Engineering.

5) Similarly, the Department of Art at Cornell University offers students the opportunity to combine a BFA with a BA or BS from another department. Engineering and various options in the College of Arts and Sciences are possible.

6) Wesleyan University offers a joint program with the California Institute of Technology, the engineering school at Columbia University, and the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth allowing students to earn two degrees in five years. However, it is unclear whether Wesleyan offers a BFA. They have undergraduate concentrations in dance and art studio, for example, but the online information does not indicated whether students earn a BFA or a BA.

7) While not technically a joint degree, MIT offers a program under the school of architecture and planning that I wanted to mention. The course of study is entitled the MIT Program in Art, Culture & Technology (ACT). According to its mission statement, the program includes a "vibrant ecosystem of programs, centers, and labs that continue to promote this interplay between science, technology, art, and design." Students may cross-register at Harvard University and Wellesley College, and undergraduates at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. It is not clear from the website what degree students earn upon completing the ACT program, so despite the partnership between an arts school and an engineering school (MIT) here, it does not appear to grant a dual degree. The ACT coursework on its own does not appear to be sufficient on the technological side compared to true joint programs.

8) Similarly, Stanford University offers a graduate design program that is a joint program through the School of Engineering. The program has changed names several times, but is currently called Design Impact Engineering. Graduates will be awarded an MS in Engineering, Design Impact.

CONCLUSION
While I regret that we weren't able to find ten programs that meet your needs, I hope that this information proves helpful and useful. I do believe the first five and potentially six options listed are what you're looking for. I hope that helps and thanks for using Wonder!

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