The Experience Design (XD) program takes a human-centered approach to problem solving by developing ethical and impactful solutions to social, environmental and business challenges. Through interdisciplinary courses in content strategy, graphic design, design innovation, user research, interface design and interaction design, students learn the tools of the trade, build portfolios, and launch their careers as experience designers and researchers.
Bentley's XD major offers a rare combination of ethical, inclusive research and design-thinking principles, hands-on practice and tools for advancing an organization's triple bottom line: planet, people and profit. These values, coupled with core business courses, prepare Bentley students to design creative, sustainable and transformative experiences that benefit businesses, customers and communities in today's competitive innovation economy.
By the Numbers
$60K
Experience Design Median Starting Salary
Bentley University CareerEdge
99%
Experience Design Job Placement Rate
Bentley University CareerEdge
89%
of students complete at least one internship
Bentley University Institutional Research
Your path to success starts here
class spotlight
Fundamentals of Design (XD 240)
This interdisciplinary course explores the foundations of visual communication through the lens of experience design, emphasizing how design informs branding, wayfinding, social media, mobile interfaces, and digital storytelling. Students will learn to create effective and engaging visual content by mastering typography, color, layout, and information design while integrating principles of experience design and content strategy. Using collaborative tools like Miro and Figma, students will develop multi-piece design systems that address real-world challenges in marketing, product design, and digital media. Designed for students interested in experience design, digital marketing, and communication, this course provides a strategic approach to solving design problems across multiple platforms.
Explore our Experience Design degree
class spotlight
Prototyping & Concept Development (XD 375)
Everything we interact with has a user interface, from newspapers and grocery stores to cell phones and websites. Designing user interfaces is an important and difficult process, which students will learn and practice with hands-on activities. Understanding how to approach a design problem also helps with doing research for almost any ill-defined problem in business, entrepreneurship, and society. Students will practice sketching and paper prototyping, physical prototyping, and digital prototyping of services and customer experiences with an emphasis on wayfinding, accessibility, and iteratively approaching an ill-defined problem through testing and feedback.
Lights, Camera, Internship!
Show business is called that for a reason, but not every film buff thinks to take their passion to a business university. Valerie Boucher ’20 is different. She always wanted to pursue a career in film and entertainment and, at Bentley, she parlayed a major in Information Design and Corporate Communication into an internship with Bradley Cooper’s Hollywood production company. After an amazing summer there, she’s now one step closer to her dream.
Snap, tweet, post: Interns put their social media skills to work
Jaclyn Leduc ’18 admits she wasn’t that interested in social media before she started an internship helping to manage Bentley’s social media accounts. Today, however, she’s hooked; and that’s a good thing. As a content marketing associate at 3Play Media in Boston, Leduc writes content for the company’s blog and manages its social accounts – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and LinkedIn.
Connect with Bentley Experience Design Faculty
Companies that Hire our Graduates
