Over the ages, the means of transportation has been a difficult one for men. But the discovery of modern transport machines has made it all easy. Thus, it gets more interesting when you move around in a styled automotive machine. This makes many students have dogged aspiration in becoming an automotive designer. Because they know that it comes with a handsome bonus. Hence, automotive design has become a popular major field in colleges and universities especially in places like the US. This bringing the great need of knowing the best automotive designer school.
However, McLaren P1 said, “We have better automobile designs than Ranker’s best looking car brand”. This is because the designs are unrefined in your head and you don’t know how to bring it to life. We can tell you with certainty that what you need is an automotive designer school. Hence, an automotive design degree from one of the best automobile design schools will convert your unrefined auto designs to world-class wonders.
Going to an automotive designer school is very essential. So as to boost your career and design abilities. Knowing that one of the world’s rated cars like Lamborghini was designed through educational acquisition. Thus, the renowned Italian automobile designer designed the Lamborghini Marco Polo concept car in 1982. Which may not have been possible without the right education.
On this note, we have provided you with the best automobile design school in the US. So you can know the best school to obtain your automotive design aspirations from. We would show you the right degrees you need and the best schools to attend to get them. We will also give you adequate career information for automobile designers and answer some questions you may be asking. Stay with us.
What is Automotive Design?
Firstly from basic knowledge, we know that automotive is any mechanized movable object. Thus, it is often referred to as automobiles or simply vehicles. Hence, on this note automotive design is simply the discipline that involves the process of developing the appearance and aesthetics of vehicles. However, the discipline may reach deep into creating the product concept – vehicles, in this case. Thus, the design and development of a car involve the team effort of automotive designers and professionals from other disciplines.
Furthermore, automotive design has three aspects: exterior design, interior design, and color and trim design. The automotive design also involves graphics design. However, the whole team shares this aspect, the same way they do the functionality of the vehicle.
What Does the Automobile Designer Do?
The major role automobile designers play in the development of automobiles os simply the designs. They do this by the application of different Softwares to sketch out the designs. Such Softwares are always in the 3D phase. In the software, they will carefully design the automobile parts, assemble it and watch it work.
Afterward, they would create a prototype of the design and relate it to the rest of the team. So, they work closely with automotive specialists to ensure that the vehicle is functional and appealing to the customers. When the work is complete, the automobile designer will then evaluate the finished design to make sure it complies with safety requirements.
How Much Does an Automotive Designer Earn?
The expected salary wage of Automotive designers is quite appealing. They earn well as their job positions is a demanding one.
However, according to Glassdoor Automotive Designers earn an average annual salary of $86,616.
Also, Nissan North America pays its Automotive Designers as high as $93,697 annually.
The salary earned by Automotive Designers could be higher than this as this is just estimates.
What Kind of Education do you Need to Become an Automotive Designer?
The best educational path to take to become an automotive engineer is a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design or Automotive Engineering. This is the minimum you have to obtain in your path to becoming an Automotive Designer. As such, you will need to attend the best Industrial Design Schools or Automotive Engineering Schools for Automotive Designers.
However, you will hardly see a college in the USA offering an automotive designer degree. You will need either an undergraduate degree in Industrial Design, Automotive Engineering, or Industrial Engineering to progress in your career.
If you choose an Industrial Degree program. You will take courses in design research methods, design materials, and physics. You will also complete a studio course along the line.
For Industrial Engineering, however, your program will cover courses in computer science and electronics technology.
Finally, for Automotive engineering, you will take courses in prototype and operational testing and vehicular systems technology.
Why Attend an Automotive Designer School in the US?
The real question here should be “Where is the best country to study Automotive Design?”. Yes, it is already a fact that the US is one of the best countries to undertake any degree program. Not just that schools in the US are well equipped with standard facilities. But their teaching scheme is well applaudable. They also tend to have the right schools for each program. Undoubtfully, the US has provided most of the world’s top institutions. With over 5,000 universities and colleges in the USA, there is surely a wide option of colleges available to you to choose from.
Meanwhile, studying in the United States might be quite expensive, but it is worth it. Especially if you are an international student, several others are quite affordable. Although, US universities and colleges offer a plethora of scholarships to students who study in the USA.
Specifically, the United States of America is one of the best locations in the world to study automotive design. They have some of the leading automobile companies like General Motors where you can quickly get employment after graduation if you’re excellent enough.
They also offer some of the best automotive design programs. That adopts internships into their curriculum so that you can acquire some hands-on experience in the field.
Best Automotive Design Schools in the USA
When considering the best engineering schools, we look at the best Automotive engineering and best industrial design school. Hence, on this note, we would be enlisting schools based on two categories viz;
Note: Schools that will be listed in any of the categories above, are being ranked with respect to the under-listed basis;
Schools with the best Industrial Design program
If you’ll choose to acquire an Industrial Design degree in the US. Then it is advisable you check any of the schools in this category.
#1. Arizona State University
Arizona State University ASU is one of the best schools for automotive design. The Art Career Project ranked ASU Design School’s Industrial Design program 20th in 2018. ASU’s degree in Industrial Design prepares students for a professional career in product design, concentrating on the development of manufactured objects people use on a daily basis.
Generally, ASU offers four Industrial Design Program through its Herberger Institute for Design and Arts (Design School). These are the Undergraduate Industrial Design (BSD), Master of Industrial Design (MID) for over 3 years, and Industrial Design (MSD) for advanced studies.
Acceptance Rate: 84%
#2. University of Houston
The University of Houston through its Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design offers two kinds of degree programs in Industrial Design. These programs create a pathway for a career in Automobile Design as well as in other innovative areas of design.
You can take a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Design or a Master of Science in Industrial Design at the University of Houston. However, the MS in Industrial Design is especially notable for its integration of non-design disciplines such as engineering to its design disciplines such as industrial design. This makes it one of the best automobile design schools in the USA.
Acceptance Rate: 45%
#3. North Carolina State University at Raleigh
North Carolina (NC) State University at Raleigh with its “Think and do the Extraordinary” slogan offers one of the best Industrial Design Programs in the US. Through its College of Design, NC State University offers a Bachelor of Industrial Design (BID) degree for undergraduates and a Master of Industrial Design (MID) for graduates.
However, the MID program at NC State University is in two tracks – Track 2 and Track 3. Track 2 is for students with an undergraduate degree in industrial design, while Track 3 is for students with a non-industrial design undergraduate degree. These options easily absorb students looking for automobile design schools with an engineering or business degree.
Acceptance Rate: 47%
#4. The University of Illinois at Urbana – Champaign
The School of Art + Design of the University of Illinois at Urbana – Champaign offers its Industrial Design degrees. These degree which prepares automotive designers for a career path in Product design, transport design, etc are one of the best in the United State.
However, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign only offers two program degree in Industrial Design towards an automotive design career. They are the Industrial Design BFA (undergraduates) and the Industrial Design MFA (graduates).
Acceptance Rate: 62%
#5. University of Washington – Seattle Campus
The University of Washington – Seatle Campus offers its Industrial Design through its School of Art + Art History + Design. It is one of the best automobile schools in the USA with its Industrial degree programs.
Through its Design School, The University of Washington offers two Design programs. They are the Industrial Design for Undergraduates (BDes) and the Design for graduates (MDes).
Acceptance Rate: 49%
Best Automotive Engineering Schools
Here are the best Automotive Engineering schools and their programs, if you’ll be taking this educational path towards an automotive design career;
#1. University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is arguably the best school in the USA to take an automotive engineering program towards an automobile design career. This university in Michigan offers a Master of Engineering in Automotive Engineering and a Sequential Undergraduate/Graduate Study (SUGS). It does this through its Integrative Systems + Design department (ISD).
Meanwhile, ISD’s sequential/graduate study makes it possible for undergraduate mechanical engineering students (B.S.E) to transition into the Master’s in Automotive Engineering (M. Eng.) and study both programs for five (5) years.
Acceptance Rate: 20%
#2. Clemson University
Clemson University is almost a school of automotive engineering, having a department wholly dedicated to the discipline. This is unlike most schools that offer the automotive engineering program through their mechanical engineering faculty. The university actually proclaims its Automotive Engineering department as the school for the brightest and best talented automotive-inclined students.
Also, offering a Masters, Ph.D., and undergraduate and graduate certificate, Clemson ranks as our second-best school for automobile design students. Whichever level of engineering skill you need to grow in your automotive design career, you can find it at Clemson.
Acceptance Rate: 25%
#3. Georgia Institute of Technology
Georgia Institute of technology or Georgia Tech is one of the best schools in the USA to take an automotive engineering degree towards a career as an automotive designer. Through its Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Tech offers both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Engineering with an Automotive concentration.
What makes Georgia Tech’s Mechanical Engineering degree suitable for automobile design is that the programs emphasize design, creativity, and hands-on learning. So, this is a school you would want to attend as an automobile student who wants to know more about the functionality of automobiles than just the design.
Acceptance Rate: 22%
#4. Indiana University – Purdue University
Indiana University – Purdue University (IUPUI) is especially the school for automobile designers who are interested in motorsports. Through its School of Engineering and Technology, IUPUI offers a bachelor of science in motorsports engineering (B.S.M.O.E).
This program prepares graduates for careers in the motorsports industry, as well as in automotive-related companies. As such, the program focuses on teaching the fundamentals of engineering, including hands-on projects that involve designing, analyzing, and building actual systems for motorsports. This is definitely an automobile school you should consider if you dream to build and design the best sports cars.
Acceptance Rate: 72%
#5. Kettering University
Kettering University is another of the best schools in the USA for Engineering students who wish to grow a career in the automobile field. At Kettering, you will get an internationally respected master of science in Engineering with a concentration in Automotive Systems.
This Automotive Systems concentration at Kettering is for individuals who desire a deeper understanding and knowledge of the engineering operations of various systems on vehicles. Thus, Kettering’s automobile program will help automobile design students advance their career in the field to better deliver in the automobile development team.
Acceptance Rate: 70%
What is the Best Automotive Design School?
You can get either an Industrial Design degree or an automotive design degree and still be on the right track to an automotive design career, but one is better. Industrial design is closer to automotive design than automotive engineering. This is because automobile design requires high creativity, which is a quality that pertains more to artists than engineers.
Also, an artist needs only to know little about the engineering of a project to design something amazing. Whereas, an engineer would need to learn a lot about the creative process to design a similar project, though he may excellently put it into functionality.
So, while the Industrial designer has the artist’s advantage – which is key to automotive design – over the automotive engineer, an industrial design degree will favor you more than an automobile degree.
Therefore, the best automobile design school to study a degree program towards an automotive career is Arizona State University.
FAQs on Best Automotive Designer School
How can I work as a car designer?
To be able to work as a car designer, you must have completed an automobile degree. It is only then that employers will consider your jon application. However, you will need to have built a wonderful portfolio alongside your degree to get car designing job.
How much do car designers make?
According to Glassdoor, an automotive designer makes anywhere between $86,616 and $93,697 annually.
How many years does it take to become an automotive engineer?
It takes at least four years of completing your degree to become an automotive engineer.
Where can I study automotive engineering?
You can study automotive engineering in four-year degree offering college or university offering an automotive engineering program or a mechanical engineering program with a concentration in automotive engineering.
What education do you need to become a car designer?
You need at least a four-year bachelor degree to become a car designer. An associate’s degree is not an option.
How Can I become a car designer?
To become a car designer, you must first obtain a bachelor’s degree in a relevant feild of study. During your time of study, you should also complete an internship program to help build your portfolio. Next is to find a job in the industry to gain work experience, then progress in your career by taking a graduate degree. Finally, you should consider joining a trade association.
Conclusion
To become an automotive designer, you would either take an industrial design degree program, an automotive engineering degree program, or an industrial engineering program. Whichever path you take, there is an exciting career awaiting you as an automotive designer. However, an industrial design degree is the closest degree to actualizing your career goal. Therefore, ensure to attend one of the best industrial design schools and take internship positions to build your career portfolio.
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