Creative, hands-on learning
Develop a resume and a portfolio.
Are you a creative, hands-on learner? Enjoy using your mind and your hands? Excited by working with new technologies in the visual space? Develop visual, creative and technological skills through hands-on, studio experience as you explore the power of the image and its critical role in creative industries.

Courses & Requirements
Program Overview
The Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in Visual Studies prepares students for a broad range of visual careers in various creative industries. The curriculum emphasizes hands-on studio courses to develop and apply creative, technical, and visual skills in both traditional and digital spaces. In addition, all Visual Studies majors take a core foundation of liberal arts, business, and industry specific courses and complete internships which provide real-world experience.
College Core
Required Courses - 10 Credits
- FASH 1110 - Introduction to the Fashion Business credit(s): 3
- LIMS 1000 - First Year Experience credit(s): 1 or
credit(s): 1
- TECH 1310 - Business Spreadsheets credit(s): 3
- MRKT 1550 - Marketing credit(s): 3
General Education Requirements
Required Courses - 18 Credits
- ENGL 1100 - English Composition credit(s): 3 or ENGL 1095 - English Composition with Essentials credit(s): 3 and ENGL 0795 - Essentials of Composition credit(s): 2* or ENGL 1060 - English Composition for International Students credit(s): 3 or ENGL 1055 - English Composition for International Students with Essentials credit(s): 3 and ENGL 0755 - Essentials of Composition for International Students credits(s): 2*
- COMM 2010 - Critical Thinking: Reading, Writing and Research credit(s): 3
- COMM 2025 - Digital Culture in Business and Life credit(s): 3
- COMM 1400 - Communicating Across Cultures credit(s): 3
- ENGL 3110 - Global Themes for Writing credit(s): 3
- MATH 1050 - Mathematics for Professional Studies credit(s): 3 or
credit(s):3 and
credit(s): 2*
* Institutional credits - do not count toward total credit requirement
Required Courses - 13 Credits
- CARE 1300 - Internship Prep: Designing Your Career credit(s): 2
- CARE 1620 - Internship 1 credit(s): 2
- CARE 2620 - Internship 2 credit(s): 2
- CARE 4800 - Senior Co-op Prep: Launching Your Career credit(s): 1
- CARE 4820 - Senior Co-op credit(s): 6
Required Courses - 12 Credits
- ACCT 2700 - Accounting credit(s): 3
- BUSN 3310 - Business Law credit(s): 3
- ECON 1503 - Social and Political Foundations of the U.S. Economy credit(s): 3
- MNGT 2310 - Management credit(s): 3
Required Courses - 33 Credits
- ARTS 2215 - History of Art credit(s): 3
- VIST 1010 - Visual Communication credit(s): 3
- VIST 1510 - Color and Design credit(s): 3
- VIST 2601 - Digital Design I credit(s): 3
- VIST 2710 - Visual Literacy and Creative Process credit(s): 3
- VIST 4960 - Visual Studies Senior Capstone (6cr) credit(s): 6
- Visual Studies Electives credit(s): 12
General Electives
21 Credits
General Electives are any courses numbered 1000 or higher (except CARE 1890 - Micro-Internship (Optional)) which are not specifically required for the student’s degree program.
Liberal Arts & Sciences Electives
9 Credits
Liberal Arts Electives are any non-remedial courses offered by the Arts & Sciences department with the following prefixes: COMM, ECON, ENGL, ARTS, HIST, LANG, MATH, NTSC, PHIL, POLS, PSYC, and SOCI plus INTD 2511 , not specifically required for a major and vary depending upon major course requirements.
LIM College offers the following minors** for each major, which are intended to provide an additional focused area of study:
Fashion Media Minor:
- Fashion Media
Fashion Merchandising Minors:
- Beauty
- Event Planning
- Fashion Merchandising
- Fashion Styling
- Retail Buying And Planning (For Non-fashion Merchandising Majors)
- Retail Buying And Planning (For Fashion Merchandising Majors)
- Sustainability
Liberal Arts Minors:
- The Arts: History and Performance
- English
- Global Studies
- Society And Culture
Marketing, Management, And Finance Minors:
- Digital Business
- International Business
- Management
- Marketing
Visual Studies Minors:
- Digital Design And Photography
- Interior And Residential Concepts
- Photo Styling And Set Design
- Visual Studies
- Visuals For Social Media
Not all courses are offered every semester.
Note that the LIM College Diploma will not display minors (only degree and program will be displayed). However, minors will be shown on the LIM College transcript.
*Not available online.
**Students must take two of the five courses required for the minor at LIM College in order to declare a minor at LIM College (students may transfer in a maximum of three courses into a minor). There is no limit to the number of minors that students can declare. Students may use the same course to qualify for multiple minors. Students are limited to applying one required course as part of their minor. Exceptions are made at the discretion of each department chair.
All undergraduate students who enroll at LIM College are assessed in the areas of writing and mathematics to ensure they receive adequate support while completing required coursework*.
Students are assessed by either:
- Submitting ACT or SAT scores for review
- Completing the LIM College placement tests
In addition, college-level English composition and mathematics courses will be reviewed for equivalency and used when determining placement test requirements.
Students will be placed based on any of the above submissions. If multiple submissions are made, LIM College will use the placement criteria that demonstrates the highest level of proficiency. Students who choose not to submit ACT/SAT scores and who do not take the LIM College placement test will automatically be placed into corequisite developmental courses in Writing and Statistics.
Corequisite developmental education courses do not carry credit towards the degree, but do carry hours which count towards full-time status. See Undergraduate Credits and Hours for further information.
*Students accepted into the Fashion Scholars program are qualified out of developmental education course work.
All Fashion Scholars are required to complete the following:
All Fashion Scholars are required to complete a minimum of 21 credits at the honors level, achieving a minimum final grade of B in each course (substituting for the non-honors equivalent). The 21 honors credits include:
- MATH 2760H - Honors Applied Data Analysis credit(s): 3
For the remainder of the credits, students can choose from the following:
- ACCT 2700H - Honors Accounting credit(s): 3
- BUSN 3310H - Honors Business Law credit(s): 3
- COMM 1400H - Honors Communicating Across Cultures credit(s): 3
- COMM 2010H - Honors Critical Thinking: Reading, Writing and Research credit(s): 3
- COMM 2025H - Honors Digital Culture in Business and Life credit(s): 3
- ECON 2100H - Honors Economics credit(s): 3
- ENGL 3110H - Honors Global Themes for Writing credit(s): 3
- FASH 1110H - Honors Introduction to the Fashion Business credit(s): 3
- FNCE 3410H - Honors Finance credit(s): 3
- LIMS 1000H - Honors First Year Experience Seminar credit(s): 1
- MATH 1300H - Honors Introduction to Statistics credit(s): 3
- MNGT 2310H - Honors Management credit(s): 3
- MRKT 1550H - Honors Marketing credit(s): 3
Students accepted into the Fashion Scholars program are qualified out of all developmental education course work.
*Not available online.
Students enrolled in the Global Pathway to Fashion Program will complete the following:
Level 3A
- FASH 1110 - Introduction to the Fashion Business credit(s): 3
- PATH 030A - The Language of Business and Fashion I credit(s): 9
- PATH 0410 - Undergraduate Support Lab credit(s): 3
- PATH 0490 - Undergraduate Pathway Special Topics credit(s): 3
Level 3B
- MRKT 1550 - Marketing credit(s): 3
- PATH 030B - The Language of Business and Fashion II credit(s): 9
- PATH 0410 - Undergraduate Support Lab credit(s): 3
- PATH 0490 - Undergraduate Pathway Special Topics credit(s): 3
In order to proceed to the next level and/or complete the program, students must earn a Global Pathways GPA of 2.00 or better.
PATH course credits are institutional credits - they do not count towards total degree program credit requirements.

Opportunities at LIM
Careers in Visual Studies
With a Visual Studies degree, you can pursue a career in a wide range of areas, including visual merchandising and display, set design and photo styling, exhibition design and installation, and art and creative direction. Some job titles of recent Visual Studies grads include 3D Design Coordinator, Visual Content Editor, and Visual Merchandising & Experiential Designer.
Explore Careers in Visual StudiesInternship Experiences
You'll gain priceless experience — and make important connections — through required internships. Visual Studies majors have done internships in everything from visual production and display to interior styling and social media at companies such as Fendi, Valentino, Alexander Wang, and 3.1 Phillip Lim.
Browse Internship OpportunitiesClubs & Organizations
There’s more to college than attending class. Enhance your experience (and your resume) with co-curricular and extracurricular activities. Make the most of your time and get involved.
See how you can get involvedStudy Abroad
Explore a different culture and expand your world view. Choose a short-term travel program or semester abroad to add an invaluable experience to your education.
View all Study Abroad ProgramsA record that speaks for itself
Approximately 800 companies in fashion and its related fields provide opportunities for our students.
Our undergrad Class of 2019 had a 94% post-graduation employment rate.
Ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s list of Best Online Graduate Business Programs and Best Online Bachelor’s Programs. (2019)
Our 2019-2020 tuition and fees were 25% lower than the national average for private 4-year colleges.
Among Fashionista’s Top 25 Fashion Schools in the World.
One of the Best Fashion Schools in the World according to The Business of Fashion.
A Georgetown University study of 4,500 colleges put LIM in the top 25% for long-term (40-year) return on investment.
Visual Studies Faculty
Laurel Lueders
- Chair / Associate Professor
Grailing King
- Senior Lecturer
Leonora Loeb
- Lecturer

Interested in taking the next step?
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Our 2019-2020 tuition and fees were 25% lower than the national average for private 4-year colleges.
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