Alumni Stories
Haeun Bijou Park (Amber/Bijou)
Pronouns: she/her
Graduation date: Summer 2020, BFA Product Design
Haeun Bijou Park (Amber/Bijou) (She/her) is currently pursuing her Master of Science in Advertising at Boston University. She graduated with a BFA in Product Design in May 2020. When asked some questions about her time at MICA, she provided some very insightful responses.
How did studying Product Design at MICA help you at your job now?
“ The MICA Product design degree helped me to build a deep understanding of the User (audience). This knowledge connects me to the key aspects of designing, marketing, and advertising. I was able to get into graduate school with a merit scholarship because I learned user experience, design thinking, research skills, and potential interactions between the company and the user while I was studying at MICA. My first semester of graduate school is basically learning more about the target audience/customer and deeper market research that builds on what I did in Product Design classes.”
The best advice you’d give your prior self now?
“The most important thing I learned is how to work smart! Product design is one of the hardest majors at MICA. There were times when I wanted to give up because it seemed like I was doing so much more work compared to other majors, and it seemed unreasonable. But one of the most valuable things that I learned from this major is how to develop good time management skills and also foster a sustainable work ethic. These skills have benefited me in my pursuit of my Masters degree and also have benefitted me in my current role as a Graduate Teaching Assistant.”
What do you enjoy most about the work you are doing now?
“I enjoy doing creative work! I look at advertising and product design both as arts that communicate with people, and I think that is the beauty of it! Since it is commercial art, an ad gets to reach millions of people and it leaves a big impact on viewers' life. Everybody probably has at least one or two ads that have stuck in their head through their whole life – like remembering a song or the tagline – and I want to have my work have that kind of impact. I enjoy communicating with general audiences with my creative work.”
What is your favorite project you have worked on in your current position?
“I am currently working on a project on creating an ad for the country of Puerto Rico.”
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
“I am not sure where I will be in 5 years. Maybe in the design field or maybe in the advertising field? I know that I will still be in a creative field.”
What fun/funny/quirky aspect about yourself would you like to share?
“I have a love for cosmetics! I love commercial art and I look at cosmetics as another form of art and self-expression. Colors and textures inspire me!”
Anything else you want to share?
“I love the professors that I had during my MICA years. Because we only had 5 people in our class we had a chance to build a really strong bond with professors. Especially Leslie and Juan (because I had multiple classes with them)!”
Carrie Carter
Pronouns: she/her
Graduation Date and Degree(s): 4 2020 BFA in PRD and HMST with a Concentration in Sustainability and social practice
Carrie Carter (She/her) currently works as a design consultant here in Baltimore and has worked for Open Works, Anything Wood and Metal, RPM Tech, and more. You can see some of the amazing work she did while at MICA on her personal website. She is also the recipient of financial support from the 2021 MICA UpStart Competition for her business Reside Burials. She graduated with dual BFA degrees in Product Design and Humanistic Studies with a Concentration in Sustainability and Social Practice in May 2020. When asked some questions about her time at MICA, she provided some very insightful responses.
How did studying Product Design at MICA help you at your job now?
“It helped me to focus on designing for sustainability - even when others don't share the same mindset.”
The best advice you’d give your prior self now?
“Time Management is a key to success in design!”
What do you enjoy most about the work you are doing now?
“I am excited about getting to see how design works in the real world.”
What is your favorite project you have worked on in your current position?
“I'm loving designing custom furniture for peoples homes. When someone wants a custom piece, they want a piece that will stand up to time and will build character with age. Getting to design what might become a family heirloom, and to meet the person who will live with the design, is a pretty cool experience.”
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I hope to be actively engaged in running and growing Reside Burials and that it will be gaining momentum and recognition regionally. Check us out @reside.burials on insta, Facebook, and twitter!”
What fun/funny/quirky aspect about yourself would you like to share?
“Although my job is quite literally to create objects - The quote I strive to live by is "Love people and use things, because the opposite never works". I think it's a good philosophy to keep in mind when creating something that will become a part of someone’s daily life.”
Claire Chuff
Pronouns: she/her
Graduation Date and Degree(s): 2020 Industrial Design BFA and Graphic Design BFA
Clair Chuff (She/her) currently works for Core Home in New York City. You can see some of the amazing work she did while at MICA on her personal website. She graduated with dual BFA degrees in Product Design and Graphic Design in May 2020. When asked some questions about her time at MICA, she provided some very insightful responses.
How did studying Product Design at MICA help you at your job now?
“I studied product design and my first job, and where I am currently working, I was hired as a junior industrial designer in home goods and kitchenwares. So, my studies and my degree helped me to get a job in the industry. My senior thesis project helped me to get a job in the home and housewares industry.”
The best advice you’d give your prior self now?
“The most important thing I learned at MICA was how to render well and how to be thorough and detailed in my work. I had to do a test project to get my current position and my render quality and attention to detail are what set me apart. So, skill building is important to gain while at school, in all types of software and techniques.”
What is your favorite project you have worked on in your current position?
“I enjoy the variety of projects I work on and the fast paced nature of my company. Each project is different from the last and I am never bored. My company is also constantly expanding, which is very exciting and creates even more variety in my projects and potential for growth in my career.”
What is your favorite project you have worked on in your current position?
“Because of who I am as a person, and my love of absurdity and humor, my favorite projects are ones I have done for a kitsch restaurant chain and store, one of our clients here at Core Home. I love being able to combine Graphic Design and Product Design by finding and creating fun, cheesy graphics to render on our products. I also am having fun designing, 3D modeling, and rendering figural kitchenwares like salt shakers, jars, and spoon rests.”
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
“I am honestly unsure. I can see myself moving up within my company, going back to school to specialize in something, or doing something entrepreneurial.”
What fun/funny/quirky aspect about yourself would you like to share?
“I like to be busy and creative. I am currently also working on 2 different start ups. One is an app and I am working in a graphic design capacity, creating a logo, brand identity, and brand guidelines. The other is my own start up; I won funding from the 2020 MICA UpStart program for a sustainable cosmetics company, Pura. It is focused on eliminating the waste and inconvenience that accompany using traditional makeup brushes. I am designing makeup brushes with just one handle and interchangeable heads, which will be more sustainable and easier for the user. The system will eliminate the need to regularly clean makeup brushes, and by implementing a convenient subscription model, creates a more hygienic solution that protects skin health. I recently purchased resin 3D printers with a portion of my funding, which are enabling me to continue developing and ideating on my initial design.”
Laura Kathleen Zawadowicz
Pronouns: She/her
Graduation date and degree(s): 2020, BFA Product Design, BFA Graphic Design
Laura Kathleen Zawadowicz (She/her) currently works for RPM Tech in Maryland. You can see some of the amazing work she did while at MICA on her personal website. She graduated with dual BFA degrees in Product Design and Graphic Design in May 2020. When asked some questions about her time at MICA, she provided some very insightful responses.
How did studying Product Design at MICA help you at your job now?
“MICA Product Design helped build in me the foundation from which I have been able to contribute to my own creative and developmental process. Skills and knowledge about drawing, foam core and clay mockups, ergonomics, and the sustainable teachings of the Okala Practitioner have not only allowed me to bring viable ideas and opportunities to the table, but have also introduced the rest of the RPM-Tech team to a different way to look at and do things. This sharing of processes has both strengthened myself as a designer but has now worked to strengthen us as a company.
The best advice you’d give your prior self now?
“Don’t get attached to any one idea or concept in your work. Everyone is coming in with a different viewpoint and not everyone is going to like your idea. Taking the criticism personally is not only dangerous for your mental and emotional health, it is not going to help you nor your work evolve into it’s true potential.”
What do you enjoy most about the work you are doing now?
“I was lucky enough to be brought onboard a small company in which I am the only designer. While this can be scary, especially for someone right out of college, it provides me the opportunity to wear quite a few hats. In the past six months I have done all the standard product design work you can expect to do coming out of school (sketch, make mock ups, work in the machine shop) but also create big Keyshot rendering projects, logos, branding and packaging for products we create. I have also done product photography, vinyl decal design, cutting and application, internal branding projects (website elements, road sign design, company presentation layouts, video editing and am fully involved with the engineering ideation and problem solving process here at RPM Tech. What really makes it possible for me to do all these things is the positive reinforcement and support I have from the entire company. Knowing that you are valued by everyone you work with is an amazing feeling.”
What is your favorite project you have worked on in your current position?
“Currently I am the lead designer on a multi-million dollar medical device project. This is my first big project and I am constantly trying and learning new things – especially when it comes to the process from beginning to end of a product's development.
This project has been taking full advantage of both my degrees in Product Design and Graphic Design. As lead designer, I am in charge of not only the overall aesthetic of the product and the digital interface, but also reading through the FDA and IEC requirements, extracting anything that could possibly apply to the device, and then creating what it is we need. A few of these requirements are the labels on the device and any accompanying components and packaging, indicator lights, and elements for the operators manual, including a very in depth storyboard that illustrates the user's interaction throughout the entire system process.
Perhaps the most impactful, and most important, lessons I have learned from this project, that MICA couldn't have prepared me for, is learning how to work with every part of the product development team. I have to work closely with Mechanical Engineers, Electrical Engineers, Firmware developers, machinists, and the client and their team. I have definitely grown as a designer through all of this and hope to be able to share this project with you soon!”
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
“I see myself still at RPM Tech but as the head of my department with other full time designers under my lead.”
What fun/funny/quirky aspect about yourself would you like to share?
“2020 has been a crazy year for me. The year started off stressful, but normal as I was getting ready to begin my final semester at MICA. Over the previous 2.5 years, I became a vital part of the Product Design department but also the Dolphin Design Center as a whole. I was hired in a Work Study position for the department and spent any spare time helping out either the department or my fellow majors in some form or fashion. In addition to that job, I was also a Dolphin Shop/Lab Tech and an employee at a local bookstore. I had an hour-long commute both to and from MICA each day so I would often find myself in Dolphin from 8:00am to 2:00am, 5 days a week (I let myself rest on the weekends by not coming in until noon on Saturdays and Sundays).This is how the semester started off and I was loving every minute of it, until Spring Break 2020, when COVID-19 caused everything to shut down. The second part of the semester was nothing like any of us had planned or could have predicted. Regardless, my thesis came out strong and I finished in as happy of a place possible given the situation.
The school year came to an end and I, along with 4 of my closest friends, fulfilled our roles as the first graduating MICA PRD class of 2020. It’s weird looking back on it now 10 months later, but this was truly the end of a chapter in my life. June brought two huge changes. I started my first day of being a professional designer for a company I had interned at the previous two summers. About 3 weeks later my boyfriend of 7 years proposed. 2020 went from being one of the biggest let downs to the bright, shiny new beginning of the next chapter in my life. Life is now filled with design, problem solving, wedding planning for my upcoming wedding, taking on bridesmaids duty for a fellow 2020 PRD grad, and even helping to plan and execute the proposal of another close friend I met within MICA Product Design department (but shhh, don't tell her yet 😜).
While I will always miss MICA and the time that Rona stole from us, the friends I made and lessons I learned from my time there will be with me for the rest of my life.”
Hanya Liu (Lydia Liu)
Pronouns: She/her
Graduation Date: May 2020, BFA Product Design
Hanya (Lydia) Liu (She/her) is currently waiting to hear back about graduate school applications. You can see some of the work she did while at MICA on her personal website. She graduated with a BFA in Product Design in May 2020. When asked some questions about her time at MICA, she provided some very insightful responses.
How did studying Product Design at MICA help you at your job now?
“I'm currently waiting for offers from graduate school. The major I applied to for my Master’s degree is centered around interaction design. I discovered during the design innovation process in my BFA courses that I always wanted to include some features related to apps that helped users control and manage the product in a smart way. Product design provides me with a strong base to use what I have learned to solve many real-life problems.”
The best advice you’d give your prior self now?
“The most important thing I've learned at MICA is time management. I found it really important because we have to face many invisible and unexpected deadlines in life. While preparing my portfolio for graduate school, I was not as rushed as I was in MICA. I have learned how to split up work into small pieces and work every day to complete the plan.”
What do you enjoy most about the work you are doing now?
“I believe people have different opinions on whether or not to apply for graduate school after college. I remember I had a long period of denying myself. At that time, I was baffled about the future. For me, 8 years of studying abroad have made me accustomed to learning at school. I don't know if I should escape this comfort zone and work first before graduate school. I think product design is my favorite major of all the design majors, and what I've learned can help me find a suitable job either in the U.S. or China. At the same time, I also feel my interest in UI/UX design growing. I talked to my friends, family, and my professors to ask for their advice, and finally decided to continue my studies. I am excited for what comes next!”
What is your favorite project you have worked on in your current position?
“Even though I don't have a job right now, I was doing projects for my portfolio for the past 8 months. One of the projects I want to share is a project inspired by news acid attacks on people. I was so scared at first because I was looking at the data on acid attack incidents, and learned that London was ranking at the top. But I was also inspired because I know that design can also apply to information and experiences. People who have survived acid incidents live in an endless abyss and can never restore their lives to their original state. This inspired me to design code to input a face into a program and convert it into colored particles in the P5 editor. Writing the code to makes the destroyed part of the colored particle fall from its original position, but when the mouse hovers over the place where it fell, the particle will slowly return to its location. I can see my project featured on organization websites, news articles, or some pop-up installation exhibition. My goal is to make people aware that many humans live in pain but to also serve as a call-out for people to stop acid attacks but also reduce discrimination against the acid attack survivors.”
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
“After I get out of graduate school, I want to find a job where I can gain some experience in the design industry. I probably have to try different kinds of work to figure out what I enjoy the most, but if there is a chance that I can start up my own company, that would also be a new adventure.”
What fun/funny/quirky aspect about yourself would you like to share?
“I found that I love cats more after my 4 years of studying at MICA. And my personality becomes more like a cat (not the lazy part of it). I joined the Public Welfare Animal Protection and Rescue Group in Beijing in 2018, but I wasn’t involved in many rescue activities at that time. After I got back to China this year, I found my passion for being a volunteer and helping stray cats find a warm home. I feel fulfilled when I make some effort to help locate stray cats and successfully find a suitable home for them. I don’t have any hobbies or other activities I engage in, but this is the one that I think I will continue doing throughout my life.”