Information about IDeATe

IDeATe, the Integrative Design, Arts, and Technology network at Carnegie Mellon, offers undergraduate minors and courses in Game Design, Animation & Special Effects, Media Design, Sonic Arts, Design for Learning, Innovation & Entrepreneurship, Intelligent Environments, and Physical Computing. These areas merge technology and creativity and provide learning opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration. IDeATe minors and courses are open to all majors. We welcome students from every discipline to the unique learning environment that exists at Carnegie Mellon.

IDeATe offers several types of courses:

  • Portal courses serve as prerequisite, cross-training courses for interdisciplinary work, enabling you to understand the disciplinary competencies and perspectives of the students you will be collaborating with through a design inquiry process.
  • Collaborative courses are project-based courses that IDeATe has developed within departments. They focus on creating together in emerging, complex, and unstructured problem-solving domains and are structured to accommodate students from any discipline who have passed the portal courses.
  • Supportive courses are departmental courses that existed prior to IDeATe. They have these collaborative elements and are options for your IDeATe work. Please note that the supportive courses tend to have other prerequisites and may have registration restrictions.
  • Micro courses are short but intensive skills-based experiences that give you a basic understanding of some of the techniques and equipment used in many IDeATe courses.

IDeATe is not its own department. Rather, Carnegie Mellon’s departments contribute faculty and courses to the IDeATe curriculum. Therefore, IDeATe does not have its own course number prefix. You can find the IDeATe course offerings for the upcoming semester by going to the Courses section of https://ideate.cmu.edu/.

If you have questions or need advice about IDeATe minors or courses, please get in touch with Kelly Delaney, the Assistant Director of IDeATe. Her office is in Hunt 246 and her email is kellydel@andrew.cmu.edu.

Facilities: Most IDeATe facilities are located in Hunt Library. Lending, Physical Computing Lab, Media Lab, the laser cutters, 3D printers, woodshop, and CNC router are on the lower level. Some of the equipment requires special training which you will receive either in the class that requires it or in a micro course. If you are unsure of how to operate any of the equipment or are unsure how to use the equipment safely and effectively, please send email to help@ideate.cmu.edu.

Safety: Report all fires and emergencies immediately to University Police at 412-268-2323.

  • Emergency response: University Police — 412-268-2323
  • Building maintenance: Facilities Management & Campus Services — 412-268-2910
  • IDeATe-related inquiries — help@ideate.cmu.edu

IDeATe Lending: Once you are enrolled in an IDeATe course, you will have access to IDeATe Lending. You will maintain your access through the rest of your time at Carnegie Mellon. You must present your CMU ID each time you borrow an item. You will also be able to purchase a limited number of consumable items (such as plywood and acrylic) for projects. Please visit https://resources.ideate.cmu.edu/lending/ for more detailed information on available resources, to review the IDeATe Lending Borrower Policy, and to find hours of operation.

Classroom and Lending access: If you are enrolled in an IDeATe class at least a week before the start of the course, you will have access to IDeATe Lending and (if applicable) have keycard access to the classroom door on the first day of class. If you add a course during the Add Period, you may need to wait a few business days to receive access while the lists are updated. If you add a course after the last day of the Add Period, email help@ideate.cmu.edu with your name, Andrew ID, and course number so we can add you to our systems.

Laser cutter access: If you are required to use the laser cutters for this class, you have provisional access for the duration of the class. Until you have been trained on the use of the Rabbit laser cutters and have completed the fire safety requirements, you may only use the laser cutters under the continuous supervision of your instructor, TA, or other qualified person. To maintain access to the laser cutters after your class is over, you must complete Environmental Health & Safety training on Fire Extinguisher Use, Parts 1 and 2, available at https://cmu.bioraft.com/.

IDeATe advising: If you have questions or need advice about IDeATe minors or courses, please get in touch with Kelly Delaney, the Assistant Director of IDeATe. Her office is in Hunt 246 and her email is kellydel@andrew.cmu.edu.