Professor Hans van Dijk, a native of The Netherlands, came to the USA in 1969 to further his studies in design. He did post-graduate work at Carnegie-Mellon University and received his Master of Art degree in Visual Communication Design from the Ohio State University. From 1973 until 1978 and again from 1991 until today Professor Van Dijk has been a full-time faculty member in Graphic Design at the Rhode Island School of Design. In the interim period, from 1978 through 1989 Van Dijk was a partner in the New York City design group Works.

From 1993 until 2000 Van Dijk was Department Head of Graphic Design. He played a critical role in the establishment of the RISD Research Foundation of which he is a board member. He chaired the faculty committee creating the new Graduate Department in Digital Media.

Professor van Dijk’s expertise is in design methodology and strategy, design theory (semiotics), and typography. His research interest concerns Universal Web Design: Web access for people with visual and cognitive disabilities.