Ontario College of Art & Design

Country : Canada

OCAD University, formerly the Ontario College of Art and Design, is a public university located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The school is within the Grange Park neighbourhood, and adjacent to the Art Gallery of Ontario. The school is Canada's largest and oldest educational institution for art and design. OCAD U offers courses through the Faculties of Art, Design, Liberal Arts and Sciences, and alternative programs. The enabling legislation is Ontario College of Art and Design University Act, 2002.

Academic degrees

OCAD offers a Bachelor of Arts (Visual and Critical Studies).

The school combines a studio-based education with liberal studies, which is recognised with a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), a Bachelor of Design (BDes), an Interdisciplinary Master's in Art Media and Design (MA, MFA or MDes), a Master of Fine Arts in Criticism and Curatorial Practice (MFA), a Master of Design in Strategic Foresight and Innovation (MDes), an Executive Master of Design in Advertising (EMDes), a Master of Design in Inclusive Design (MDes), and a Graduate Program in Digital Futures (Graduate Diploma and MA, MDes, MFA).

Research

OCAD conducts research under the umbrella of the Digital Media Research + Innovation Institute (DMRII) which focuses on creative applied research in digital expression, digital immersion, digital experience and digital media industries. It consist of 19 research labs, including:

the Ambient Experience Lab, focusing on experience design
the Art Research Centre
the Inclusive Design Research Centre (IDRC), focusing on inclusive design with an emphasis on information and communications technology
the Social Body Lab, focusing on the interaction between the human body and the external world, which includes material research and wearable technology
the Game:Play Lab, which explores, critiques, and expands the nature of the gaming experience through play, theory, and practice

In addition to research centres within the school itself, OCAD also belongs to a number of research networks, including:

the Centre for Innovation in Information Visualization and Data-Driven Design (CIV-DDD), led by York University and funded by the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation, is a 5-year research initiative launched in March 2010 to address "innovation and training in information and scientific visualization in Ontario" and consists of a team each from York University, OCAD University (directed by Sara Diamond) and the University of Toronto, 14 industry partners, and a number of international collaborators; and
the Inclusive Design Institute (IDI), directed by Jutta Treviranus and funded by the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation, is a regional research network for inclusive design founded in 2008 and officially launched on 24 May 2012, with the aim to "address the challenge of designing our information and communication systems (ICT) so that they work for all potential users, including users with disabilities, varying language needs and diverse cultural preferences"; it consists of eight core postsecondary partners (OCAD University, University of Toronto, Ryerson University, York University, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Sheridan College, George Brown College and Seneca College) and over 100 collaborating organizations.

Commercialization of research is supported by two incubators:

the Imagination Catalyst, directed by the AVP Research and Graduate Studies and coordinated by the Digital Futures Implementation office, which provides incubator support for students, alumni, and faculty and was established in August 2011 through the merger of the Digital Futures Accelerator and the Design Incubator; and
the MEIC convergence centre, an industry mobile incubator directed by the MEIC, a not for profit association of mobile industry stakeholders and academia.

Sources : Wikipedia, www.ocadu.ca