It is the goal of the Industrial Design Department to educate students to identify and resolve design problems — innovatively and with sensitivity to the social, physical, and ecological environment. Students learn the traditional values of industrial design and, while building an awareness of materials, gain an in-depth understanding of visual and three-dimensional vocabulary. CAD and other digital media programs are taught using laptop computers that the department requires all incoming students to purchase. Using this language, they analyze and solve diverse design problems from technical, aesthetic, social, and ecological viewpoints. In the studio, students progress from developmental drawings, through three-dimensional mock-ups and models to working drawings and construction with manufacturing considerations. The curriculum is structured so the skills of drawing, presentation, and model making are taught as an integral part of the design studios. Fully equipped wood, metal, and model shops provide in-depth construction experience, allowing students to see their designs develop from concept to finished product, under technical and creative guidance.

A number of elective courses in furniture design are offered to students majoring in Industrial Design. Responding to steady growth and interest in this area, these courses expose students to a broad range of topics and issues. Students are afforded the opportunity to gain a thorough understanding of design process, materials, and construction practices. Innovation is stressed, along with the ability to refine formal design issues. The department has a history of working on collaborative projects with departments within the school. Harvard Business School, The Sloan School at MIT and the NASA Commercial Space Center at the Yale University School of Medicine have worked with Industrial Design faculty and students on various projects. There are also numerous opportunities within the program for students to work with industry through Wintersession and summer internships and corporate-sponsored studio projects during their junior and senior year. Diversification within the curriculum prepares students to enter the field of design at either an industrial or entrepreneurial level.