First-Year Student Courses and Credits

RISD students working in the Metcalf Building Furniture studios

During your first year, you don’t need to worry about registering for classes—you will be automatically enrolled in our Experimental and Foundation Studies (EFS) program for first-year students. For more information about EFS, as well as how to transfer eligible course credits, read more below.

Experimental and Foundation Studies (EFS)

Your first-year schedule consists of our Experimental and Foundation Studies (EFS) curriculum, as well as two introductory liberal arts classes per semester. Each of the three EFS studios—Drawing, Design and Spatial Dynamics—meets one full day per week per semester, and you will additionally take on a series of ongoing projects outside of class time.

Your liberal arts coursework includes two semesters of Theory and History of Art and Design, in addition to a First-Year Literature Seminar (fall) and Topics in History, Philosophy and the Social Sciences (spring).

Contact EFS

Transferring Liberal Arts credits

If you have earned credits in AP, IB, A levels or other college-level courses, we will assess whether they can count toward your liberal arts requirements. Please note that you cannot waive our required core liberal arts classes. Any credits we grant will go toward additional liberal arts classes needed to graduate.

For assessment of AP and IB scores and/or A levels, please send them to the Liberal Arts office. Send records of college coursework to Admissions  in the form of official transcripts.

Contact Liberal Arts