DEA offers an integrative, flexible undergraduate cur­riculum that is student-centric. Students complete a common core of foundation courses then choose to build expertise within a focus area utilizing electives from the broad course offerings within Human Ecology and at Cornell to sup­port their individual goals. Students can also elect to complete a minor, honor's thesis, or pursue an off-campus study experience. Students will develop expertise in their chosen area and interface with students and faculty who have expertise in the other two areas through collaborative studios and interdisciplinary project teams. Working with faculty from a broad range of disciplines, they combine academic course work, field experience and applied research to solve problems. Strengths of the program include studio-based training in creative process and innovation, research-based training for understanding human-centered design and university foundation courses for intellectual breadth to inform design process, thinking and decision-making.