The knowledge required for today's graphic design students to become well-rounded communication professionals is changing due to new technologies and new communication media. Revising educational curricula to satisfy these new needs must be addressed in the undergraduate graphic design programs that are currently being offered by art schools, colleges, and universities.
A review of the literature, along with surveys of selected design firms in the Washington, DC area and professors at institutions offering undergraduate graphic design degrees, shows that communications studies and a background in the history of technology are two additional curriculum areas that would help to better prepare students for the professional tasks that await them upon graduation.
