Senior Thesis
Jan 20, 2026-May 1, 2026
Faculty: Zhenzhen Qi
Course Description
This course is designed for DMD BFA students in their final semester to complete their senior project—an independent work that synthesizes what they have learned in their major coursework to create an original piece of creative scholarship. During this semester, students will complete the final stages of their senior project—refining and putting the final touches on their projects.They will finalize their exhibition plans and finalize their artist statements and bios.
Students will also work together with their peers in committees to plan and execute the BFA degree exhibition, which consists of a physical exhibition at the Jorgensen Gallery. Committees will plan the identity, marketing, website, screening & installation and documentation of the exhibition.
Students will be responsible for working both independently and collaboratively, preparing and following a self-initiated schedule, practicing strong time management skills, utilizing materials and tools, consulting with the appropriate faculty for support, documenting their process, and participating in crits with faculty and peers. Course Objectives The goal of this course is for students to engage in the conceptualization and development of a capstone project to exhibit in Spring of their Senior Year. It is meant to bridge the gap between intermediate student and a junior professional exiting the university, culminating in a final “piece” that showcases your advanced process & practice from your concentration courses and time at DMD.
During this course students will:
Participate in class discussions and critiques
Apply techniques covered in their previous concentration courses in the completion of projects
Design and develop previsualization materials and final materials for public-facing project
Document their creative planning, process, and completed work
Engage in Creative Problem Solving and Research
Learn about their creative process & practice
Course Goals
Develop concepts and production materials for culminating projects across DMD Concentrations Conduct research relating to subject materials and relevant technologies for individual projects Apply a high level of craftsmanship to the execution of proposed projects Work effectively both individually and independently Respond successfully to feedback from instructors and internal and external collaborators Use visual, written, and spoken communication for the successful presentation of work Create high quality work to be exhibited as part of the BFA requirementPublic-Facing Work
The Digital Media and Design Department reserves the right to retain student work for exhibition purposes, online program promotion, and classroom demonstration. For games that are exhibited in a museum setting unattended for a long period of time, there are additional factors you should consider:Make a version of the game that has Restart button, but no Quit Button
If the controller has been idling for X amount of time, restart the game and display the Starting menu screen.
For players who are not native gamers, consider printing out a physical copy of the instructional menu and place it next to your monitor screen.
Selected Student Works
