NEW Residential Session now available! On-campus housing is now available for UCLA Arts 2026 High School Summer Institutes ages 15+. Check back soon for details and registration information on the Arts Summer Programs at UCLA page. Registration opens February 18th, 2026.

The Department of Design Media Arts (DMA) at UCLA is one of the nation’s top design media arts departments, offering a comprehensive, multidisciplinary education in media creation, which fosters individual exploration and innovative thinking.

Geared specifically for high school students, the department offers the DMA Summer Institute, a three-week program with morning and afternoon classes introducing design practices in the contexts of image, net, worlds, and video. The program is taught by professionally trained and well-experienced instructors using the most current software and technology. It culminates in a final exhibition and the creation of a portfolio-ready body of work that students may include in their college applications in related fields. It also provides students with a rare opportunity to sample college life while earning four units of pass/no pass UC credit.

The DMA Summer Institute curriculum is based on materials covered in the department’s undergraduate curriculum. Students rotate through our four courses—2D Image, Net, 3D Worldbuilding, and Motion Design—in morning and afternoon studio blocks. Taught by an instructor and program assistant in small classes a maximum of 25 per course. Every student completes work in each course, creating projects broadly addressing a shared theme that contributes to an integrated, multi?media final exhibition at the end of the program.

Each course will be led by a faculty instructor and a teaching assistant, with additional staff to provide support. All faculty and teaching assistants are practicing artists and educators affiliated with UCLA Design Media Arts, each with extensive experience and expertise in their respective course subjects.

2D Image
Students explore the enduring power of the image through a series of fun and fast-paced exercises for print and digital media. Students develop their own workflow and visual vocabulary while honing their skills in graphic design and typography. Each project integrates foundational principles of design such as form, data, composition, hierarchy, and creative intent.

Net
This course explores online networks as a medium for creative expression and artistic intervention. Through hands-on tutorials, students study the web in the traditions of interactive art, activism, and creative coding. Using techniques like collage and appropriation to reimagine the browser window, students critically engage the aesthetic and social potential of digital connectivity.

3D Worlds
Game engines originally developed for mass entertainment offer an exciting mode of interactive storytelling. Virtual spaces can immerse us in striking imagery and evoke complex emotions. In this course, students learn the basics of Unity and 3D modelling, while practicing "worldbuilding" as a form of visual narrative, playfulness, and participatory experience.

Motion
From cinema and television to music videos and animation, motion is an essential property of time-based media. Students explore technical and experimental approaches to cinematography, animation, editing, and sound, gaining an understanding of video-making and motion graphics as powerful tools for storytelling and communication.

Session A3: Residential Program
June 21 - July 8

Session B3: Virtual (synchronous) Program
July 13 - July 30

All meeting times will take place in Pacific Daylight Time (PDT), unless otherwise noted on program schedule and syllabus. Participants must log-in to virtual sessions at the times indicated on the program schedule.

FINAL EXHIBITION AND CLOSING RECEPTION
The three-week program culminates in a final exhibition of students’ works and a closing reception. This event is held on the last day of the residential program in Broad Art Center room 1250. Family and friends are encouraged to attend.

GRADES AND TRANSCRIPTS
DMA Summer Institute students earn four quarter units of UC credit on a pass/no pass grading basis. Transcripts can be ordered online through MyUCLA; they are not automatically sent to students.

The residential program option provides on-campus, supervised housing for all students–including weekends–starting the first Sunday of the program (residential hall check-in and campus orientation day). Students will be able to walk or take a campus bus to and from their residential hall to classes, and breakfast and dinner in a nearby dining hall are also provided every day (including weekends). Note: Students will need to bring money for lunch every day, which can be obtained at various campus food courts and local businesses. Complete details about campus life will be provided through an email welcome packet in June 2026.

Participants will be housed in one of the UCLA residence halls, comfortably furnished and conveniently located within easy walking distance of classrooms, libraries, and recreational facilities. For a virtual tour of the UCLA residential halls, click here.

DMA Summer Institute includes the curricular component, hereinafter referred to as “required activities,” which allows participants to experience the academic rigor of UCLA. Required activities are listed in the schedule section and include class time, work sessions, and the final exhibition. Participants may plan their time and travel on- or off-campus independently or choose to participate when there are no required activities, so long as they abide by the terms of the Participant Agreement.

Precollege Summer Institutes are intended for highly motivated, mature high school students. Participants are considered to be maturing adults, capable of making their own decisions, as well as accepting the consequences for those decisions. As such, only limited supervision will be provided. While optional evening and weekend activities will be supervised by residential staff, the whereabouts of each participant outside of the program’s required activities will not be monitored.

A skilled team of UCLA undergraduate students and staff will be assigned to students in the residential program. All staff have undergone an extensive background check and training. Their duties include: Enforcing evening curfews, Coordinating and facilitating optional evening and weekend activities (see Residential Activities section), Responding to incidents and emergencies in a timely manner

To see more information about rules and regulations, medical responsibility and insurance, student conduct, and sexual violence prevention and response, please visit the UCLA summer session website.

Please visit the Arts Summer Programs website to find details about program fees and payment for DMA Summer Institute offerings.

Registration for Summer 2026 will open on February 18 on a first-come, first-served basis.

For inquiries about the program, advice on if your student is a good fit, or general logistics questions, please contact the Program Director at dmasummer@arts.ucla.edu

Stay updated by following @ucla_dma_si on Instagram!