PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

All program participants are required to reside in the Living ArtsEngine designated hallways in Bursley Residential Hall. Students will also have access to the Living ArtsEngine Creative suite and an equipment room with tools to use for hand-on creative making experiences.

students standing next to Block M

Required courses

Fall semester

All Living ArtsEngine Students must register for UARTS 150 “Writing and Interdisciplinary Collaborative Design” in the Fall semester. Engineering students will enroll in ENGIN 100.210)

In this course, instructors from five different disciplines will support your exploration of the creative process through a collaborative, semester-long project: a multimodal essay, in the form of a video game, that combines architecture, art & design, engineering, music and writing to make an argument. This project will lead you to explore fascinating processes and questions such as: how can writers, artists, architects, musicians and engineers work together to create interactive experiences? How do makers from all disciplines use research to inform creative work? How can interdisciplinary creative work convey arguments in fun, innovative and meaningful ways? Your work towards this final project will be supported by two additional essays, as well as creative exercises, tutorials, workshops, readings, discussions and research activities that will encourage you to hone existing skills and experiment with unfamiliar disciplines. This course fulfills the First Year Writing requirement with an emphasis on argument-based writing in a number of modalities and the Engineering 100 requirement for students in the College of Engineering.

First Year Writing Requirement courses prepare students for college-level writing across the disciplines. This Living Arts FYWR course emphasizes connections between writing and other forms of making. Like these other creative activities, writing is a process of inquiry; this class will encourage you to cultivate curiosity and ask good questions in order to make genuine discoveries in your written work.

Video created by University of Michigan College of Engineering
Videographer: Robert Coelius,   Producer: Krista Quinn

Winter Semester

All students must register for UARTS 175 “Collaborative Creative Projects” in the Winter Semester.

Collaborative Creative Projects is a 1 credit hour course. Teams of Living ArtsEngine students will plan, implement, execute, iterate, and deliver solutions and/or physical prototypes to open-ended interdisciplinary design challenges. Students will present their creative ideas to others and apply feedback they receive to improve their work. A portfolio-style documentation process will be used to log each team’s progress.

Co-Curricular Activities

  • Students are required to attend one community meeting each month. These meetings will feature guest artists as well as provide a platform for office staff and students to share experiences and opportunities that may be beneficial to the community as a whole.
  • Students will choose at least two additional co-curricular events each semester. These may include workshops with faculty or guest artists, webinars, or even student-run events and workshops.
  • Students will also have the opportunity to participate in a variety of social events presented by our student leaders and Alumni.