Alumni Usage of Labs at MIAD

MIAD is proud to be one of the few art and design colleges that provide its alumni community continued access to its labs after graduation. MIAD welcomes its alumni to use its lab facilities in support of their continued creative and professional growth. Having alumni in our labs working along with our current students, helps MIAD cultivate and enrich a culture of diverse making base practices in our community.

The MIAD student population is growing rapidly, needing access and first priority to the labs. This lab request policy helps ensure that lab access is fair, equitable, and sustainable to all that use them.

How requests are reviewed:

Each request is reviewed by the Alumni Lab Committee and are evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Safety – Based on your experience and technical proficiency with the lab equipment.
• Lab capacity and Scheduling– Considering student priority usage of the labs.
• Amount of staff support needed for the project request.

How to complete a lab request:

1. All access is managed through a request process described below.
2. Once the request is received, a usage fee for the request is determined.
3. You’ll be notified of fees and payment process by the Director of Alumni Relations & Annual Giving.
4. Once the lab fee is paid and a photo received, an alumni ID card can be issued.
5. You will then have lab access for the duration of the project as agreed upon in the request.
6. Additional/different use of the lab requires another project request.
7. Get started by submitting your request here.
   (Alumni lab requests are currently on pause. Check back here in Feb. 2025 to submit your project request)

How fees are determined:

• The alumni lab access standard fee is $25 annually, which is a donation that directly supports Alumni Senior Thesis Awards.
• Additional fees may be required for consumables, materials, or equipment usage, and will be determined based on the scope of each request.
• In some cases, additional supplies can be purchased in the labs during the duration of the project.

Conditions of usage:

• It is expected that you arrive with technical proficiency in the processes you are intending to use.
• Prior to usage of the lab, a safety and lab usage orientation can be scheduled with the appropriate lab staff.
• Storage of works in progress is limited and should be arranged before the project begins.
• A list of materials and supplies available for incidental use will be provided at the lab orientation.
• Commercial and/or Production use of the labs is allowed under specific circumstances as determined on a case by case basis.
  • Types of appropriate use could include, but are not limited to:
    ▪ Use of the labs to create work for exhibition.
    ▪ Supplemental use by an alumni working as an independent contractor to occasionally expand the capabilities of their studio-
    (for example, using a laser cutter as a part of a prototyping project).
    ▪ The creation of a single prototype before committing to production.
    ▪ Testing a process.
  • Types of use that cannot be accommodated include, but are not limited to:
    ▪ Using the labs to provide discounted services to an employer.
    ▪ Using the labs to engage in production work (creating significant numbers of multiples for direct sale).
    ▪ Making regular use of the labs in lieu of maintaining an independent studio or workspace.
    
    This guidance is put in place as recognition that the primary role of all MIAD labs is that of education, and to support growing the skillset of the MIAD community. MIAD’s labs cannot sustainably subsidize economic support of commercial enterprise. If any alumni are looking to enter into a commercial relationship with MIAD, they are encouraged to reach out to MIAD’s Lubar Innovation Center to explore options.

Failure to follow this policy, or the instructions provided by any member of MIAD’s lab staff may result in an immediate revocation of lab access.

Contact alumni@miad.edu for any questions.