B.S. Imaging Science

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Imaging Science is a field of study that uses physics, mathematics, computer, and cognitive sciences to better understand the many factors that influence and make possible the capture and analysis of imagery.  

Where can you turn in society today and not encounter a recorded image?  Your phone, your vehicle, your doctor’s office, your family room, your favorite sports venue; wherever you turn there is a device or printed material that contains recorded or live imagery.  Imaging scientists produce these media sources, and learn about the world through the use of them. Imaging Scientists possess the theoretical, applied, and working knowledge of how imaging devices work; discover what innovative technologies in development today will give us new capabilities tomorrow; and are crucial contributors to the future of what we’ll be able to accomplish with imagery.

The multidisciplinary nature of imaging science demands that your education span a variety of academic fields.

Your first two years will consist of courses in fundamental sciences: physics, calculus, as well as statistics, computer science, and liberal arts courses. In hands-on imaging science courses you'll study imaging systems and their applications - learning how images are formed, recorded, manipulated, and transmitted - and the important role that imaging science plays in society.

In your third and fourth years, you'll integrate your understanding of science and math with specialized imaging science courses. You'll acquire the tools to analyze any imaging system from end to end. A senior research project gives you the chance to work one-on-one with a professor of your choice researching an aspect of imaging science or an imaging system that intrigues you.

If you are interested in graduate work, you can pursue an MS in imaging science. RIT also offers the only Ph.D. in imaging science in the nation!

What makes the Center for Imaging Science at RIT a wonderful place to study, grow, and learn is the community that it creates on the RIT campus.  

Our class sizes are small; the number of faculty we have is large; the students receive very personalized attention.

Our faculty and research staff are active in many diverse laboratories performing imaging-related research, including the Digital Imaging and Remote Sensing (DIRS) laboratory, the Multidisciplinary Vision Research Lab (MVRL), the Biomedical and Materials Multimodal Imaging Laboratory, as well as laboratories specializing in astrophysics, space weather, and astronomical imaging, nanoimaging, magnetic resonance imaging, and document restoration.  Our extended faculty reach across campus with members in nearly every department.  What does this mean?  It means that anyone can find a place where they fit, where their interests are sparked, where they feel comfortable with the people around them.  Undergraduate students in the Center are a crucial factor in the research, discoveries, and innovation that occur every day.  

The early involvement with state-of-the-art research makes our undergraduate students some of the most in-demand students on the RIT campus.

In fact, the Center for Imaging Science's strength in research allowed it to be the first program at RIT to offer the pioneering Innovative Freshmen Experience, which represents a whole new way of learning. IFE consists of a unique student-centered, free-form learning environment that exemplifies hands on, experiential learning and real world preparation. There are NO lectures, NO textbooks, NO exams, instead focusing on researching, designing, and building a complete imaging system in time to exhibit at Imagine RIT. Students, who come from multiple majors across campus, build interpersonal and teamwork skills in addition to knowledge of advanced imaging concepts.

Imaging Science students come away with a skill set unmatched by any first year students at RIT. Their knowledge extends far beyond what's possible under traditional classroom settings, and the students share a personal bond that lasts for years to come - not only with each other, but also with the faculty, staff, graduate students, and upperclassmen who serve as their mentors. 

Check out our digital information booklet!

If you have any questions regarding the curriculum or the Imaging Science program in general, please feel free to contact us:.

Maria Helguera, Undergraduate Coordinator
Sue Chan, Academic Coordinator
Bethany Choate (RIT Imaging Science '06), Outreach Specialist