Jacobs Institute Student Newsletter: March 12th, 2026
Jacobs Institute Student Newsletter
UPCOMING@JACOBS
Jacobs Institute-organized events, news, and announcements—straight from the source.
SU26 BERKELEY ENGINEERING DESIGN SCHOLARS APPLICATIONS EXTENDED
The Berkeley Engineering Design Scholar Program is a 10-week, in-person summer research residency (June 1 – August 7, 2026) for UC Berkeley undergraduates focused on increasing diversity in design innovation. Scholars receive a $6,500 stipend for a minimum 20-hour weekly commitment, during which they engage in faculty-led research, professional workshops, and hands-on making via the Maker Pass. Interested students can submit their application by Monday, March 9, 9AM PST Monday, March 16th, 9AM PST. For inquiries, please contact Janrey Javier at janrey...@berkeley.edu.
Design Field Notes Lecture Series
Tuesday, March 17 ⋅ 6:30 PM - 7:30 PM ⋅ 310 Jacobs Hall (3rd Floor)
Join us for a lecture with Lucille Tenazas, renowned graphic designer, educator, and former national president of AIGA, current Henry Wolf Professor at Parsons, and Founding Chair of the MFA in Design at California College of the Arts.
Drawing from decades of practice and leadership in design education, Tenazas will explore how designers adapt their methods, values, and critical frameworks as the conditions of making continue to shift. At a moment when change reaches the foundations of authorship, process, and professional responsibility, she reflects on what in design should endure—and what must be reconsidered at its core.
Come for the talk, stay for refreshments and conversation.
Learn more & RSVP for this and other upcoming Design Field Notes lectures.
From Interface to Agency: a New Discourse for Design and AI
Friday, March 20, 9:00 AM - 5:45 PM
From Interface to Agency: a New Discourse for Design and AI examines the rise of Agentic Systems & the emerging design practice required to shape them.
Treating agents as consequential actors rather than neutral tools, this symposium asks what is automated, for whom, and at what cost. We bring together adjacent fields - cybernetics, ontological design, critical making, generative design, service design, critical data studies, and STS - to articulate methods, histories, and standards for an emerging practice we call Agent Design or Design for Agentic Systems .
This event is organized by the University of California, Berkeley’s Master of Design (MDes) faculty, and will feature speakers such as Andrew Pickering, Maggie Gram, Bruce Sterling, Terry Winograd, Liz Danzico and more. For a complete program and to request an invitation to attend, check the Forum website.
EXPAND YOUR SKILLS WITH WORKSHOPS in the Jacobs Makerspace
Become acquainted with a new skill, learn more about the resources and materials available at Jacobs, and connect with our community! FREE but Maker Pass required. Learn more and reserve your spot today!
3/12: Advanced RoboDRAW - More with the Kuka robot
3/18: Making a Chess Set - Create using laser cutting, 3D printing, and more
DESIGN OPPORTUNITIES DIGEST
non-Jacobs Institute-affiliated events, opportunities, and programs—at your fingertips.
Autodesk Graduate Research Fellowship
The College of Environmental Design is pleased to announce a new research and design funding opportunity that will be available to continuing master’s and doctoral students for summer research and design!
Thanks to a generous philanthropic gift from Autodesk, a global leader in design, engineering, construction, manufacturing, and entertainment software, CED will award four $15,000 stipends to continuing master’s and doctoral students across Architecture, City & Regional Planning, and Landscape Architecture & Environmental Planning. Students graduating in May 2026 are ineligible for this award.
The stipend will support summer design and/or research projects focused on one (or more) of the themes below:
Net-Zero Buildings
Human-Centric Building and Urban Design
Industrialization of Construction
AI Applied to Environmental Design
Please find the full RFP attached, including eligibility requirements, proposal guidelines, and submission instructions.
Applications are due Monday, April 6, 2026 by 11:59am (noon). For questions, please contact ced-re...@berkeley.edu.
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This newsletter was created with assistance from artificial intelligence to help summarize events and programs.
To add your event to the Jacobs Student Newsletter, please contact Janrey Javier at janrey...@berkeley.edu.
Get your Jacobs Maker Pass and get access to a world-class prototyping and fabrication facility — training and mentorship by professional staff included.
If you require accommodation for a disability for effective communication (ASL interpreting/CART captioning, alternative media formats, etc.) or information about campus mobility access features in order to fully participate in this event, please contact Jacobs Institute staff at jacobsi...@berkeley.edu with as much advance notice as possible and at least 7-10 days in advance of the event.
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