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California Institute of the Arts

MDes: Creative Computing

Creative Computing students in front of an immersive projected work at CalArts

Páramo Immersion, Luisa Pinzon

Collaborative and Interdisciplinary

At CalArts, code isn’t just logic; it’s light, sound, kinetic motion, and raw creative immersive material. The Master of Design (MDes) in Creative Computing is a two-year, 60-unit graduate laboratory designed for creators who want to build their own tools rather than work within the limitations of existing corporate software. Bridging computational engineering, human-centered artificial intelligence, spatial computing, and digital signal processing, this program empowers both engineers and practicing artists to design complex, interactive systems and lead next-generation innovations across tech, design, and emerging media.

Happy Birthday, Jeffrey Minwoo Kim, Creative Computing, CalArts
  • 14.6% Projected industry job growth

    ~587,000 openings in the next 5 years

  • 10:1 Targeted student-to-faculty ratio

    by 2029

  • 5 Specializations

    Stackable pathways: Music Tech, AI, Game Design, Spatial Computing, Coding for Design

The technology is the medium

MDes Creative Computing

Here, software and hardware are treated as foundational expressive media. Moving far beyond the passive application of someone else’s software, candidates engage in rigorous, hands-on experimentation: prototyping physical computing interfaces, building custom algorithms, designing responsive environments, and deploying machine learning models rooted in ethics and human-centered design. 

Whether coming from a traditional arts background to acquire software engineering skills from scratch, or entering with a computer science degree to apply technical mastery to expressive systems, every student shapes a personalized research trajectory. Across their two years, candidates customize their work through stackable specializations: 

  • designing novel digital musical instruments and custom audio software in Music Technology; 

  • building interactive systems across physical and virtual spaces in Spatial Computing; 

  • engineering generative AI tools and custom machine learning models in Human-Centered AI; 

  • engineering mechanics and emergent play in Game Design; or 

  • using software as a conceptual medium in Coding for Design.

The MDes experience is deeply woven into CalArts’ renowned interdisciplinary culture. Students build across traditional boundaries, collaborating with animators, musicians, performers, and designers while creating in specialized environments like the Machine Lab. For those looking to expand their reach even further, the degree offers fluid pathways into Institute-wide graduate concentrations. Candidates can explore Integrated Media to deepen their critical theory, media discourse, and cross-disciplinary critique, or pursue Arts Education to cultivate a progressive teaching philosophy and hands-on instructional practice alongside their technical research.

As graduate candidates step into leadership, they gain teaching experience, mentoring undergraduate BFAs and refining their ability to communicate complex technical concepts. The program culminates in a academic research thesis and a substantial, public-facing capstone project. Graduates step into the world not just as practitioners, but as inventors and leaders, prepared to define the future of digital culture as Creative Technologists, Interaction Designers, Immersive Experience Architects, Systems Designers, and Game Developers across top-tier entertainment, technology, and design sectors worldwide.

Interested in this program?

View our step-by-step application guide to learn more

Start your application

Admission requirements

To be considered for the MDes in Creative Computing, you must complete an application and all program-specific requirements, including a portfolio representative of your work, an artist statement, a brief video introduction, and two letters of recommendation. The program does not require an audition, but some applicants may be asked to take part in a virtual interview. Before applying, please familiarize yourself with the detailed application requirements and resources available to assist you in this important process. 

View application requirements

Specializations

Students in the Creative Computing program have the opportunity to tailor their studies by choosing one of five distinct specializations:

Music Technology: Explore the relationship between sound and technology, from compositional practice for experimental sound to the development of new musical digital instruments.

Spatial Computing: Learn to design and create interactive experiences that engage audiences through motion, touch, and other sensory interactions, working with robotics as well as AR/VR.

Game Design: Dive into the art and science of game development, focusing on mechanics, narrative, and player experience.

Coding for Design: Master the tools and techniques of digital media to create compelling visual work for various platforms, including mobile, web, and immersive projection experiences.

Artificial Intelligence: Investigate the creative potential of AI, from generative systems and machine learning to intelligent interactive systems that push the boundaries of creativity and artistic expression.

Interdisciplinary opportunities

In addition to CalArts’ naturally collaborative atmosphere, the Institute provides several programs of study that can be pursued concurrently with a student’s chosen metier, such as a concentration in Arts Education or Integrated Media.

MFA concentrations

Courses you might take

What courses would you take as an MDes Creative Computing student? Browse the courses offered in the BFA Creative Computing program, with more to come as we roll out the MDes. 

Creative Computing courses

Your custom curriculum

Whether you are writing your first line of code or already building complex interactive systems, the MDes Creative Computing offers flexible pathways tailored for both beginners and experienced coders. Our curriculum is designed to grow alongside your unique background and creative goals. Through agile micro-courses, you can rapidly acquire targeted skill sets, from foundational programming to specialized topics, without getting bogged down in rigid prerequisites.

Witch's Daughter, a game designed in Creative Computing at CalArts

Meet the faculty

At CalArts, faculty and students are collaborators, teaching, learning, and working together as members of our community of artists. 

What will you make?

  • ARTEMIS

    Ilai Gilbert

    ARTEMIS listens to a performer’s monophonic input and procedurally creates interactive music in conversation. You are invited to sing, play, whistle, speak into the microphone. Read more.

  • Utmori

    Junson Park

    Utmori is a generative music composition that reconfigures traditional rhythmic and timbral structures through real-time interaction with machine learned sound. At its core, the piece treats the latent space of a neural audio model not as a technical intermediary but as a musical material, where latent vectors are shaped, sequenced, and recombined as sonic objects. Read more.

  • Feedback Loops All the Way Down

    Naomi Mitchell

    Feedback Loops, All The Way Down is an exploration of feedback loops and limited audience participation in an enclosed environment. The universe is a series of complex and interconnected feedback loops that influence every aspect of our lives and the existence of everything in the universe. Read more. 

Program Director Ajay Kapur at TedxCalArts

Want to learn more?

We got you. Our Admissions team is all about providing the information you need to decide if CalArts is right for you. We’re excited to connect with you for a tour of our legendary campus, a virtual info session, or at one of our admissions events across the country or around the world. Take the next step—we’re here to help.