The programme comprises four years of study with specifically designed course loads, during which the above-listed subjects recur at different levels. Each academic year consists of two semesters, with an evaluation at the end of each.
Year 1: Focus on image
Lessons in the initial year are class-based. You will familiarise yourself with the visual media, such as drawing, photography and film. The second semester is devoted primarily to creating imagery, with a focus on design issues.
Year 2: Focus on various media
The second year is all about exploring the possibilities afforded by various media. The assignments in the first half of the year are short and intensive; you will be introduced to many facets of design and forms of expression and the different design processes. In the second semester of year two, assignments will become longer and you will be combining various media and possibilities. Starting this semester, you will discuss your individual progress at least once a month with your mentor, who will help you maintain an overview of your studies.
During the first two years of the programme, a great deal of emphasis in the class-based lessons is on how to formulate and receive critique and develop your own stance, which is crucial for the next stage in your education.
Year 3: Focus on your position
In the first half of the third year, you will select (in consultation with your mentor) from a list of various short-term and long-term projects suited to your interests and talents. The project structure provides plenty of room for working on widely divergent investigatory questions. You will learn to work on, and assume your role in, varying design teams. You will also have to take responsibility for developing your own speciality, strategy and method of working. You will create a portfolio and work on your thesis. In the second half of the third year, you will either do a traineeship or an exchange programme at an academy abroad.
Year 4: Reinforcing your position
In the first half of the fourth year, you will be given a great deal of freedom to work on your own research and projects, along with devoting a great deal of attention to fleshing out your individual palette; in consultation with your mentor and instructors, you will determine what you need to expand on or explore further before graduating.
In the second half of the fourth year, you will focus entirely on your final project and exam, comprised of a portfolio (print and online), a thesis (print) and a final project (in media of your own choosing). All Crossmedia Design students exhibit their projects at the end of the school year at the final project exhibition in Enschede, held at the academy itself and nearby galleries.
Reality Studios Design Office. Crossmedia Design has its own design firm, in which students from all years work, either independently or on teams, on actual commissions under the supervision of instructors. The academy accepts a wide variety of design projects in any given year, such as publications, corporate design, ad campaigns, websites, motion graphics, video, etcetera.
It is also possible to execute more long-term projects with alumni or outside parties in conjunction with the Academy Studios Foundation.
Woods from Dorien Koelemeijer on Vimeo.
