ASSESSMENT

Arts in STEAM: Career Design and Pivot Guide

Arts play a critical role in STEAM to integrate aesthetic insight, cultural understanding, and creative expression with scientific and technical problem-solving, ensuring solutions are both functional and meaningful.

Below is an broad, yet practical guide—organized by fields of study, industries, and roles—to help you determine if you are deeply within STEAM or STEAM-adjacent.

Fields of Study

Visual and studio arts

  • Drawing, painting, printmaking

  • Sculpture, ceramics, glass, metals/jewelry

  • Photography

  • Installation art, mixed media

  • Public art, mural arts

Design

  • Graphic design

  • Communication design

  • Information design

  • Interaction design (IxD)

  • User experience design (UX)

  • User interface design (UI)

  • Product/industrial design

  • Design strategy + management

  • Design research

  • Human-centered design

  • Motion design + kinetic typography

  • Design systems

Media and digital arts

  • Digital art, new media art

  • 2D/3D animation

  • Game art and game design

  • Immersive media (AR/VR/XR)

  • Creative coding / generative art

  • Digital imaging, compositing

  • Sound design for media

Performing arts

  • Music (performance, composition, theory)

  • Theatre (acting, directing, dramaturgy)

  • Dance (performance, choreography)

  • Musical theatre

  • Opera

  • Performance studies

Film, video, and audio production

  • Film studies + cinema arts

  • Cinematography

  • Editing + post-production

  • Documentary production

  • Broadcasting

  • Audio production

  • Recording arts

  • Podcasting (production-focused)

Writing, language, and narrative arts

  • Creative writing (fiction, poetry, nonfiction)

  • Screenwriting, playwriting

  • Storytelling + narrative design

  • Technical writing

  • Rhetoric and composition (applied communication)

Architecture and the built environment

Often overlaps with Engineering.

  • Architecture

  • Interior architecture + design

  • Landscape architecture

  • Urban design

  • Architectural studies

  • Architectural technology

  • Exhibition/spatial design

  • Lighting design

Crafts and applied arts

  • Fashion design, textile design

  • Costume design

  • Fiber arts

  • Furniture design

  • Book arts

  • Culinary arts

Industries

Creative and cultural

  • Museums, galleries, cultural institutions

  • Performing arts organizations (theatre, symphony, dance companies)

  • Arts education organizations and nonprofits

  • Public art programs, arts councils

Design and creative services

  • Graphic design studios and agencies

  • Branding/identity agencies

  • UX/UI and product design firms

  • Service design/innovation consultancies

  • Creative strategy and communications agencies

Media, entertainment, and content

  • Film/TV/streaming production

  • Animation and VFX studios

  • Game studios (indie to AAA)

  • Music industry, recording studios

  • Podcast networks and audio media

  • Publishing (books, magazines, digital media)

Architecture, interiors, and environment

  • Architecture + interior design firms

  • Landscape architecture

  • Urban design

  • Exhibit + experiential design firms

Fashion and consumer goods

  • Apparel and fashion houses

  • Footwear + accessories

  • Textiles and materials innovation

  • Product/industrial design for consumer goods

Advertising, marketing, and communications

  • Advertising agencies

  • Digital marketing studios

  • Content studios

  • Social media creative teams

Roles

Visual arts

  • Artist (studio, public, interdisciplinary)

  • Illustrator

  • Photographer

  • Sculptor, ceramicist, fabricator

  • Art educator

Design

  • Graphic + visual designer

  • Brand + identity designer

  • UX/UI designer

  • Product (industrial) designer

  • Interaction designer

  • Service designer

  • Information designer

  • Data visualization designer

  • Motion designer

  • Design/UX researcher

  • Content designer (UX writing)

  • Design systems designer

Media and digital

  • Animator (2D/3D)

  • Character animator

  • 3D artist, environment artist

  • VFX artist, compositor

  • Game designer

  • Narrative designer

  • Technical artist

  • Creative technologist

  • AR/VR experience designer

Performing arts

  • Musician, composer, conductor

  • Sound designer

  • Actor, director, stage manager

  • Choreographer, dancer

  • Scenic/lighting/costume designer

Film, video, and audio

  • Producer, director, cinematographer

  • Editor, colorist

  • Production designer

  • Audio engineer, mixing/mastering engineer

  • Foley artist

  • Podcast producer

Built environment

  • Architect

  • Interior designer

  • Landscape architect

  • Exhibition designer

  • Lighting designer

Cultural and heritage

  • Curator

  • Museum educator

  • Conservator/restorer

  • Arts administrator and program manager

Whew! 😅 That's was a lot, we know. But we want you to have enough information to make a strategic and informed decision. Whether you've determined that you're fully within STEAM or you're STEAM-adjacent, we've designed our membership options to meet you where you are.