Immersive media and extended reality arts have become extraordinarily powerful technologies for human expression – we call these XRts.
With the growth of XR in fields like healthcare, education, entertainment and retail, there will be millions of designed worlds that require animators, storytellers, experience designers, composers, audio engineers and beyond. The Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts is creating degrees and experiences in these emerging fields and to understand how technology impacts all fields of creative study.
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XRts related graduate degrees
Prepare for the careers of the future with a suite of transdisciplinary graduate degrees.
The future is technology-driven, transdisciplinary, global, bold and just. Be a part of this future: Master the skills you need for emerging careers and industries at Arizona State University's Herberger Institute for Design in the Arts—skills like augmented reality and experience design, machine learning and artificial intelligence, game design and virtual production, and more.
MS in Media Arts and Sciences (Extended Reality Technologies)
Immerse yourself in the creation of content for virtual, augmented and mixed realities with the Master of Science in Media Arts and Sciences with a concentration in extended reality technologies.
MSD in Design (Experience Design)
Prepare for careers in designing all kinds of experiences: games, extended and virtual realities, interactive environments and more with the Master of Science in Design (Experience Design).
MA in Narrative and Emerging Media
Develop a creative practice and critical understanding of emerging storytelling and immersive experience content creation with the Master of Arts in Narrative and Emerging Media, a joint program between the Herberger Institute and the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
This program is not eligible for federal financial aid in Los Angeles, but generous scholarship assistance is available.
Explore more transdisciplinary degrees
In addition to XRts-focused degrees, the Herberger Institute also offers transdisciplinary graduate degrees for creatives, designers and artists who want to gain leadership skills and critical perspectives in creative work to prepare for careers of the future where they can make a difference in the world.
MA in Creative Enterprise and Cultural Leadership
Shape the future of art and design industries and connect art and public impact with the Master of Arts in Creative Enterprise and Cultural Leadership.
MS in Innovation and Venture Development
Launch your own venture in this one-year program with the Master of Science in Innovation and Venture Development, a joint program between Herberger Institute, the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering and W. P. Carey School of Business.
Digital media graduate degrees
The School of Arts, Media and Engineering offers transdisciplinary digital media concentrations to students pursuing graduate degrees in 10 different disciplines as well as a unique Media Arts and Sciences PhD program in which students focus on translating and transporting knowledge and skills across disciplines.
XRts Immersive Media Fellowship
The XRts Immersive Media Fellowship supports diverse artists, technologists and designers to drive social change through immersive experiences. Co-run by the Herberger Institute and ASU Gammage and supported by the New American Council for Arts and Design, the fellowship aims to facilitate and help disseminate work by artists whose experiences are commensurate with the challenges that face BIPOC students, early career artists and entrepreneurs in emerging media and extended reality (XR).
Spaces and faculty
The Herberger Institute’s transdisciplinary degrees are offered in three different cities across two states, and graduate students and fellows have access to cutting-edge technologies, state-of-the-art facilities and world-class faculty.
MIX Center
The state-of-the art Media and Immersive eXperience Center in Mesa, Arizona, is a world-class facility for emerging media technologies, second to none.
ASU California Center
The ASU California Center in downtown Los Angeles, home to the MA in Narrative and Emerging Media, was custom-designed with emerging technology curriculum in mind, including two studios, a large green screen that allows for virtual reality productions and a large Planar LCD wall.
ASU Tempe campus
Anchoring all of our locations, the ASU Tempe campus is home to most of our degrees, academic buildings, the ASU Art Museum, and world-class venues and facilities, and it is located in the heart of the Tempe arts and culture scene.
ASU and the Herberger Institute are building a dream team of expert faculty to train the creative workforce of the future and building facilities that will allow graduates to take advantage of open positions in emerging technology.
