24/09/2026
As a new academic year begins, it's the perfect moment to revisit 𝘾𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚, 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙚, 𝘾𝙖𝙧𝙚: NCAD's five-year Strategic Plan (2026 to 2031), launched back in June with Minister James Lawless TD at our Dublin campus. For our new students, welcome; this is the vision guiding your time at NCAD. For returning students and staff, consider this your refresher.
We need this strategy - 𝘊𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦, 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘦, 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘦 - now because the world needs creative practice, purpose and skills more than ever. Students' lives have changed, so we must act now to give them the bold, relevant education they deserve, in a College and campus built for the future. Being a leading art and design institution isn't enough on its own. We want to work with partners in and beyond art and design to achieve real social progress. In this strategy, we articulate our:
Vision to change the world through bold and curious thinking, making, and doing.
Our Purpose: NCAD exists to foster, generate, and inspire imaginative, ambitious, and positive change through art and design for people, communities, and society.
Our Values: We live our values every day, in class, on campus, in our community, and through connected practice in Ireland and globally.
- Bold & Curious: We challenge perspectives and boundaries, and develop new forms of creative practice. When we take risks, we do so with confidence and agility.
- Brave & Care: We are ethical and clear-sighted in our decisions, and understand our responsibility to each other, our communities and the planet.
- Connect & Be Connected: We are inclusive, value connections across the College, and connect our teaching, learning and research to the world.
This builds on our last strategy, and the document was designed by NCAD students and is fully available in English and Irish, online and in print.
🔗 Read more: https://strategy.ncad.ie/en -purpose-values
