The Designation returns as its founder heads back to class

When we last left Kevin Yun, the college senior and founder of The Designation, he wasn’t sure if there would be another round of the digital design course. He also didn’t know if he’d return to U of I in the fall.

Yun is going back to campus (“Just one last year — get it out of the way”), and a second session at The Designation is a go too.

For Yun and his team, some lessons were learned during The Designation 1.0. For one, the school will no longer handle Adobe software for each student “due to logistical nightmares,” according to an email last week announcing the new classes, which start Sept. 16. Students will need to bring their own Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.

The email announcement was also upfront about the cost of the program going up $1,200, to $4,200 for 10 weeks (a week longer than the first session).

And the coursework is changing. This time around Yun — who will be working remotely from Urbana-Champaign — is omitting certain aspects of front-end development to focus more on design strategy, user experience and branding.

“It’s not just about making things look pretty,” he says. “It’s about why you’re designing things for the end user.”

Photo of Kevin Yun by Sara Mays