FINAL SELF-ASSESSMENT & LETTER TO NEXT COHORT
Complete both assignments and submit them via the Google Form by Thursday, December 18th at 5PM EST.
This exercise helps you consolidate your learning and allows me to see if your perception of your growth aligns with what I have observed. Answer honestly! Your responses also help me improve the course for future semesters.
Answer every question to the best of your ability, but take the time to write at least 2 complete sentences per numbered question, more if you feel compelled.
DESIGN PROCESS & METHODOLOGY
1. Process Evolution: Compare your design approach in Project 1 (Logo) versus Project 2 (Digital Collection Interface). Be specific about- How your ideation process changed
- How you made decisions between iterations
VISUAL LITERACY & TECHNICAL SKILLS
2. Technical Competency in Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, & Figma: For each tool, assess your current level (Proficient / Confident / Functional / Struggling) AND identify one specific skill you still want to develop.3. Growth in Visual Perception
Answer at least two, giving specific examples:
- What do you notice now about existing designs that you didn't notice at the start of the semester?
- How has your understanding of color relationships changed?
- How has your awareness of typography choices evolved?
- What compositional principles do you now see everywhere?
CRITIQUE CULTURE & COLLABORATION
4. Evolution as a Reviewer: How did your ability to give useful critique evolve? Compare one piece of feedback you gave early in the semester versus late in the semester. What's different?5. Receiving & Integrating Feedback: Describe the most valuable piece of feedback you received this semester
- What was it?
- Who gave it? (peer, professor, external to class, during what project/phase)
- How did you integrate it into your work—or if you didn't, why not?
CONNECTIONS & CAREER PREPARATION
6. Integration Across Coursework and Career Goals: How does this course connect to- Other courses you're taking/have taken in the IDM program?
- Your specific career goals after graduation?
Be explicit about what skills, concepts, or portfolio pieces matter for your trajectory.
COURSE DESIGN FEEDBACK
7. Reading Impact: Which readings had the most impact on your design thinking? Which were least useful? Be specific—this helps me improve the curriculum.8. Assignment Structure Effectiveness: What assignment structure helped you learn most effectively? Consider:
- Group critique vs. individual desk critiques vs. written feedback
- Early phase deliverables vs. final presentations
- Phased project structure (graded with rubric) vs. smaller exercises (full credit for completion)
- Anything else about how the course was structured
SELF-ASSESSMENT ALIGNMENT
9. Honest Performance Self-Evaluation: Based on the course grading criteria in the syllabus, how do you think you performed?Projects (Logo + Digital Collection):
- Expected grade: ___
- Why? What were your strongest and weakest aspects?
- Expected grade: ___
- Did you complete all exercises and readings? Were they thoughtful or rushed?
- Expected grade: ___
- How present and engaged were you? Be honest!
10. Goals Assessment: At the beginning of the semester, what goals did you set for yourself? Did you accomplish them? If not, what got in the way?
OPEN REFLECTION
11. Most Significant Learning: What's the one thing you learned this semester that you'll carry forward? This can be technical, conceptual, about process, about yourself—anything.12. What I Wish Had Been Different: If you were designing this course, what would you change? Be constructively critical.
The purpose of the Letter to the Next Cohort is to provide genuinely useful orientation material for future students based on your own experience.
Format as a one-page maximum PDF, professionally designed (you're designers now, after all).
Choose at least 2 of these 5 prompts to address:
- One Thing I Wish I'd Known on Day One
- Something specific and actionable that would have helped you hit the ground running
- How to Get the Most from Critiques
- Your methodology or mindset for both giving and receiving critique effectively
- Time Management Reality Check
- Honest assessment of workload and how to handle it
- How many hours per week outside of class did you really need?
- When did you struggle? What would you do differently?
- One Thing NOT to Stress About
- Something that seemed intimidating or difficult at first but turned out to be manageable, or wasn't as important as you thought
- One Concrete Resource or Strategy That Saved You
- A specific tutorial, workflow, study method, or tool that made a real difference