enroll now for june 2026

Innovation Certificate
+ Mentorship

ENROLL NOW āž

LEARN BY DOING āž”

A Fast-Paced, Hands-On Creative Experience

This intensive program starts with a fun, fast-paced, ā€œlearn by doingā€ experience that gives students concrete tools and strategies to be more creative in solving complex problems. Students experience design thinking by working on a series of challenges that help them develop a specific mindset or strategy that is essential to the practice of design.

From there students move into subsequent weeks of a guided design studio experience, where they demonstrate that they possess the character and skill set to be an innovative and positive contributor to their community.

EARN College Credits āž”

From Design Challenges to a Meaningful Project.

This program runs in a studio format where an experienced design teacher guides students to complete a design thinking project addressing an important issue that students see in the world around them. Simultaneously, students get a few sessions of 1 on 1 mentorship from industry or design professionals. These mentorship sessions are meant to support students in creating a stellar prototype.

Upon successful completion of this program, participants will receive 3 units of Pre-College credit from UC San Diego Division of Extended Studies.

This program meets for a total of 48 hours. January - April, class sessions are Tuesdays & Thursdays from 4:30-6:30pm Pacific Time. In June - July classes meet Mondays-Thursdays from 9am-12:30pm or 1-4pm Pacific Time.

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Video Interview

Nicole Cerra, Director of Innovation talks about the Innovation Certificate.

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Meet Some of Our Mentors

  • Piotr Garbaczonek (he/him)

    Current role:
    Mastering Engineer/Producer

    Background:
    d.tech founding student, Class of 2018

    LinkedIn Profile

  • Rikako Ono (she/her)

    Current role:
    Bilingual Audit staff at EOS Accountants LLP

    LinkedIn Profile

  • Kian Thompson (he/him)

    Current role:
    Student & Intern

    Background:
    Born in San Carlos, California, Iā€™m an aspiring entrepreneur and sales strategist focused on building scalable ideas, developing talent, and driving meaningful growth through disciplined execution and mentorship

    LinkedIn Profile