RISD named best design school in world

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) -- The Rhode Island School of Design is the best school in the world for design, according to blog Business Insider.

• Related: Business Insider: The World's 25 Best Design Schools

The blog sent out a survey to product designers, art directors and others to see how valuable the programs at design schools are. "85.1% of respondents agreed that RISD's programs are top-notch," the school said in a news release Thursday.

Startup companies are finding design critical in products and user interface, or UI, the school said. Among such "design-driven" startups are Airbnb, an accomodations sharing website run by a RISD 2004 alumnus.

"Art and design will drive innovation in the 21st century like science and technology did in the last century," RISD President John Maeda said in the release.

RISD prepares students for success in a wide array of fields with "artrepreneurship," the release said, where design is at the core of new small businesses -- including companies like credit-card application Square and Web content sharing service Pinterest -- as well as established Apple.