Industrial Design: Portfolio and Information Sessions (Fall 2026)

Applicants to the Bachelor of Industrial Design program will need to satisfy academic admission requirements and submit a portfolio of work that demonstrates a range of design creativity and an aptitude for the study of industrial design.

Important dates

Information sessions:

• Session 1: Friday, December 12, 2025 at 1:00 p.m. (in-person; program-specific interested students)
• Session 2: Friday, January 16, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. (online; program-specific interested students)
• Session 3: Friday, February 13, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. (online; program-specific interested students)

Find out more and register now for an information session!

March 1: Deadline for receipt of applications by Admissions Services

March 5: Deadline for receipt of portfolios by the School of Industrial Design
*Note: This is a very competitive and limited enrolment program and offers of admission will start going out to qualified applicants as early as March. Therefore, it is best to get your portfolio in as soon as possible so that you can be eligible for our first round of offers.

Information sessions

Information sessions provide an important opportunity to learn more about the school and visit the design studios, workshops, and laboratories. You may bring your portfolio (completed or in progress) or early examples for feedback. Information session dates are listed above or can be found on the School of Industrial Design website.

Portfolios

Successful candidates are chosen from a large pool of applicants. The design of the portfolio is important, and the Admissions Committee will also be considering the quality and clarity of the work presented.

Your submission should include:

• Resume (academics, work experience, interests, and other);
• Statement of interest with reasons for wanting to study industrial design; and
• Diverse selection of creative works (10-15 suggested) that demonstrated your critical thinking and problem-solving process in the development of the final work. Please include explanatory notes where needed to explain the theme, problem, or process. Show creative effort through fine artwork such as drawing, sketching, sculptures, painting. You may also present work in performance and digital arts, such as film, dance, event design, drama/theatre, video, game design, animation etc. You may demonstrate the human interaction with your design work such as fashion, jewelry design, furniture, built environments, sports equipment. Illustrate if you work with different technologies such as computer aided design, technical communication, machining, fabrication, programable hardware devices and software design, as well as robotics and coding.
  

Your portfolio will be evaluated on the following:

Portfolio submission

The School of Industrial Design offers a straightforward digital only submission process. All details are available at the School of Industrial Design website (carleton.ca/id) for preparing a portfolio, including portfolio guidelines and portfolio samples and videos. It is important to clearly follow format requirements to be considered for acceptance.