Concentration in Computation, Technology, and Culture

2025 - 2026 | CTC Concentration Requirements

Concentration Coordinator: Minkyoung Kim (mkim37@risd.edu)

The Computation, Technology, and Culture Concentration (CTC) is a 15-credit undergraduate concentration. Students earn credits toward the concentration by taking a mix of required courses and identified electives. Through CTC students gain an understanding of the ideas and techniques of writing in programming languages, while engaging with critical analysis, history, and theory concerning software systems, computational platforms, and associated technologies shaping society. Students hone their ability to write source code, author software, and program machines for making works of art and design.

Administered by the Division of Experimental & Foundation Studies, CTC has an interdivisional structure that bridges Divisions and Departments. CTC provides students with focused investigations to augment the existing and ever-evolving digital methods inherent to their own major. CTC includes the arts, design, humanities, computer science, and social sciences in order to create interdisciplinary potential.

Using a 15-credit minimum, students typically take five, 3-credit courses comprised of:

• 3-credit required introductory course CTC 1000 - Introduction to Computation

• 3-credit level 3000 advanced course: i.e., CTC 3002 - Interdisciplinary Critique

• 9 elective credits from across the College. These courses can be selected from CTC-sponsored or from approved Departmental offerings.

CTC is open to all undergraduate students. Students typically decide to become concentrators toward the end of their first-year or in their sophomore year. It is also possible to begin the concentration in the junior year. Students can maintain their status as concentrators for their remaining time at RISD, provided they remain in good academic standing with a B- or above in CTC courses. Students are eligible to officially become concentrators once they have enrolled in the required course, CTC 1000 - Introduction to Computation, or after successful completion of two elective courses. Students can petition the CTC Coordinator to substitute an appropriate elective for this requirement.

CTC allows students to create their own pathway across identified courses throughout the College. Each year, a course listing is generated of all recognized CTC eligible courses and published on the CTC website. This provides a guide for students as they register for the 9 credits of CTC electives. Students can make a request to the CTC Coordinator to recognize courses that are not included in this listing. This could occur due to late announcements, new courses, or if students take relevant courses at Brown University.

In order to complete the concentration, students must take and successfully pass the required advanced 3000-level course. Typically, this course will be taken in a student’s senior year though eligibility for this course comes after the student has completed 12 credits for CTC.

Please visit the CTC website for additional information and policies.

Learning outcomes

Concentrators in Computation, Technology, and Culture are able to:

• write source code, author software, and program hardware for making their own works of art and design.

• discuss significant historical developments in computational technology including the work of key engineers, scientists, programmers, designers and artists.

• compare and contrast theories surrounding the cultural reception and production of new and emerging media technologies.

• demonstrate ability in critical discourse surrounding computation, technology, and culture through speaking, dialogue, writing, and artistic production.