Parsons School of Design Master of Arts Design Studies program theses
Abstract
The Parsons School of Design Master of Arts (MA) Design Studies program was launched in 2012 with the aim of exploring design as "a field of scholarly research and an agent of social change." The program became a minor in 2018. This collection contains student theses from 2014-2020, representing all graduating classes in the program's history as a major, and its first two years as a minor.
Dates
- 2014-2020
Creator
- Parsons School of Design (Degree grantor, Organization)
Extent
1.41 Gigabytes (52 theses)
Language of Materials
English
Scope and Contents
This collection is comprised of student theses submitted as part of graduation requirements for Parsons School of Design's master of arts in Design Studies, a degree program that The New School university discontinued as a major in 2018. The program had four graduating classes, all of which are represented in the collection. Additionally, the first two years of the program's existence as a minor are represented in the collection. The most frequent thesis advisors are Clive Dilnot, Jilly Traganou, and Susan Yelavich. Thesis topics frequently reflect an international outlook, with design practices and structures in Brazil, China, India, Lebanon, and the former Yugoslavia represented.
Conditions Governing Access
In accordance with The New School Archives Confidentiality and Restrictions Policy (2021 revision), student work donated to The New School Archives without the student creator's knowledge or consent may only be accessed onsite in the Archives reading room by appointment. Upon receipt of request by student creator, The New School Archives staff will remove the work from the collection for return to the creator or destroy the work, and delete records of the work from published collection guides.
Conditions Governing Use
In accordance with The New School's Intellectual Property Rights Policy, copyright is held by each thesis' respective author. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the user.
Historical note
The master of arts in Design Studies program, situated in The New School's Parsons School of Design, received state accreditation in 2011 and was launched in 2012 as a two-year, full-time, or four-year, part-time degree program, with the aim of exploring design as "a field of scholarly research and an agent of social change." The transdiciplinary program was situated in the School of Art and Design History and Theory, and encouraged students to create their own course of study based on personal interest.
Susan Yelavich chaired the Design Studies program for most of the duration as a major. Caroline Dionne succeeded her as chair. The program's journal, Plot(s) of Design Studies, was published from 2014 until 2019.
Although never a large program, due to decreasing enrollment, the degree program shifted to become a graduate-level minor in 2018. As of 2022, students enrolled in the Master of Arts in History of Design and Curatorial Studies may pursue a nine-credit minor in Design Studies.
Sources
Audio interview with Susan Yelavich, January 31, 2019. Parsons School of Design oral history program, PC.07.01.02, New School Archives and Special Collections, The New School, New York, New York.
Design Studies flier, circa 2012, Parsons School of Design academic programs collection, PC.02.01.02. Unprocessed collection. New School Archives and Special Collections, The New School, New York, New York.
"Design Studies (Graduate Minor)." New School website. Accessed January 4, 2022 at https://www.newschool.edu/graduate-minor/design-studies/.
Arrangement
Theses are organized chronologically by year of completion, and within each year by student last name.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Transferred to The New School Archives by former program director, Susan Yelavich, 2018. The New School Archives staff accessioned theses from the years 2019 and 2020 in 2024 from a shared Google Drive.
Processing Information
New School Archives staff accessioned the files as one unit via a Google Drive shared by former program director Susan Yelavich. New School Archives staff downloaded the files and added them to a shared drive upon transfer. Archives staff employed spreadsheets accompanying the files for cataloging each thesis. When abstracts and/or thesis advisor names are missing from a record, this is the result of their absence from the accessioning spreadsheets supplied by the program.
- Design (Subject) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Design -- Philosophy (Subject) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Masters theses (Type of Material) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Student projects (Type of Material) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Title
- Guide to the Parsons School of Design Master of Arts Design Studies program theses
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- New School Archives and Special Collections staff
- Date
- January 4, 2022
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Revision Statements
- 09-26-2024: New School Archives staff accessioned theses from 2019-2020, updating the finding aid extent, inclusive date range, abstract, Immediate Source of Acquisition note, and Repository Processing Note.