Masters Degrees (Production Design)

The production designer plays a vital role in creating real or imagined worlds on the screen. This MA course in Production Design develops individual creativity and teaches technical skills essential for a career in film and television.

-Study in a collaborative filmmaking environment
-Design for live action shoots
-Use traditional and digital design techniques
-Work in fully-equipped design studios
-Work on both fiction and animation films
-Have opportunities and facilities for set builds
-Unlike other schools, all production costs are met by the School.

We welcome EU/EEA Students. Those accepted onto courses starting in 2018 will have their fees guaranteed at the UK rate for both years of the course. Postgraduate students can apply for a loan to help with their studies via the Student Loans Company Loans. A £ 10,000 loan is available to contribute to course and living costs. The Post Graduate Loan is only open to EU/EEA and UK Students who normally live in England. It is not currently available to Scottish, Welsh or Northern Ireland Students. Find out more here: https://nfts.co.uk/fees-funding/funding-guide

COURSE OVERVIEW

Uniquely in the UK, our MA Production Design students study alongside students of other filmmaking disciplines, engaging in a series of productions where working methods replicate professional practice.

The advent of digital technology has brought in new design tools and ways of working and this course promotes a lively interface between old and new methods. 3D and 2D computer techniques and Concept Art are taught alongside traditional skills such as set sketching, orthographic draughting, design geometry and model-making. The course offers the opportunity to specialise in Concept Art, particularly in the second year. Design students apply their skills to live action and animation films, television programmes and commercials, in the studio and on location, using built sets and green screen. Relevant business and management skills are also taught, equipping students to manage a small art department, its budget, personnel and logistical schedules, studio procedures and set decorating. Studio visits and placements familiarise students with a working art department and inspire them with actual film sets.

All staff, permanent and visiting, are Industry practitioners and students develop close links with the film and television industry while they train.

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This programme is grounded on the belief that architects should be thinking well beyond the constraints of market forces and the traditional disciplinary limits of the profession, towards forms, technology and spaces for a more sustainable future. This is a student-led programme, and you can have very different experiences within it depending on the choices of studios and courses you make.

Why choose this course?

Founded in 1927, the School of Architecture at Oxford Brookes has established an international reputation for the quality of both its research and its teaching. As one of the largest architecture schools in the UK, with around 600 students and 70 staff, it plays a leading role in defining the national, and international, agenda in design education and research. The school enjoys an international reputation in research, in areas ranging from sustainable design to modular buildings and from design for well-being to vernacular architecture.

Staff in the school regularly secure research funding from the UK's research councils and the European Union as well as industry, with an annual research grant income averaging £1m in recent years. This programme provides RIBA/ARB Part 2.

Professional accreditation

Accredited by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and the Architects Registration Board (ARB).

This course in detail

Year 1 - Research into design
This year has a very strong emphasis on acquiring in-depth knowledge of an architecturally important field of study and utilising that knowledge in design. This is achieved by taking one of the six 'design specialisations'.

You choose which design specialisation is best for you. The specialisations on offer are deliberately highly diverse to cater for the changing nature of the profession in practice. This course produces graduates for the global market and as such requires a high level of commitment from staff and students.

The design specialisations are:
-Advanced Architectural Design
-International Architectural Regeneration and Development
-Development and Emergency Practice
-Sustainable Building: Performance and Design
-Research-led Design
-Urban Design.

Each of the research specialisations offers teaching from experts within that subject area, and links, through teaching focus and staff, to the five research clusters that are an invaluable resource within the School of architecture.

The five research clusters keep the specialisations at the cutting edge in terms of a global agenda. They are, in general terms, environmental design, technology, development and emergency practice, humanities and architectural design.

Each of the design specialisations include a design project or projects, to which you will apply your detailed learning.

In addition to the design specialisation the first year will, through the Research Philosophy for Design module, widen your thinking in terms of what constitutes research, test your critical thinking and improved your analytical abilities. All of these are essential tools and their enhancement will place you in a stronger position to undertake the design studio in the second year.

Your ability to represent your ideas in a coherent and focused manner is the remit for the Representation module. This module will identify your strengths and build up your weaknesses, both in terms of visual and verbal communication methods. You will be able to dedicate time to fine-tuning techniques or building from basics in sketching, model making, 2D and 3D CAD. Your presentation of methods and actual practice will enable you to build confidence in verbal communication skills.

The Management, Practice and Law module in year one looks at the landscapes within which these issues are being informed. This module is taught by practising architects who have first-hand experience of the issues under discussion. Through a series of workshops you will work on topics that are essential to the practice of architecture. Management, practice and law is part of the design delivery of the programme and you will be expected to approach the coursework from a design position. This module asks that you approach this subject with a very different mind-set than the traditional position.

Due to the diverse and preparative basis of this year it is compulsory for all students to pass all compulsory components of the Research into Design year in order to be progress to the Design and Technology year.

Year 2 - Design and technology
This year is structured to enable you to synthesise a broad range of complex cultural, aesthetic, research and technical factors, and design-specialisation learning, into your major design project and portfolio.

The year is spent participating in one of six design studios. All studios have control over their own programme of projects, and each has a different view of architectural culture and promotes different design methods. The design studios are taught by some of the brightest designers and tutors in the country and consequently their programmes demand high levels of creative and intellectual endeavour from you, as well as high levels of productivity. Their aim is to raise your design thinking, skills and production to the highest possible standard.

All six units present their projects for the year in the induction session and you are asked to select all six in order of preference. This system is to allow for an even distribution of students across all six units. Most students are allocated to their first choice of studio although there is no guarantee of a particular design unit - normally at worst you are allocated your second choice.

During the design and technology year, your design work must develop into technically ambitious architecture and be the subject of your compulsory Advanced Technology for Design module. This module designs through technology and fully complements and parallels your work in the design studio. There is a very strong emphasis here upon the creative possibilities for architectural technology. We ask for an open and experimental approach to technology, but also a clear understanding of its context and aims.

The staff delivering the teaching in the design studio unit and the Advanced Technology for Design module are made up from academics and practitioners. This energetic mix will challenge you to think about design and technology in a new manner, building confidence in ability, enabling deep thinking, and aiding you to define a personal design spirit.

Sitting alongside the design and technology is the second Management, Practice and Law module. This module builds on the learning and skills from the first year module and prepares you for stepping back into practice. As in the first year module this is learning is delivered by practicing architects. Through focus groups with architectural practices, this module figures in the skills that are seen as highly desirable for the ARB part 2 graduate to have when seeking employment.

Throughout the two years of the programme there will be interim reviews. This offers an opportunity to receive feedback from outside of your design studio or design specialisation. We have strong links with practice and architectural institutions and can attract the most able people to sit on our reviews.

This is a programme that aims to give you the skills for international practice.

As our courses are reviewed regularly, modules may vary from those listed here.

Teaching and learning

The unique nature of the Applied Design in Architecture offers you the opportunity to select an individual pathway that will create a distinctive graduate profile that is unique to you alone.

The ability to choose modules from within design specialisations offers you the prospect of defining your own position. You will find that you are being taught with, in most cases, direct entry master's students from countries around the world.

This aspect is complemented by the Year 2 design studio where you will engage with a distinctive agenda and experience a diversity of design specialisation thinking from students within your unit.

Self-directed learning is highly supported by staff in the School of Architecture. Personal choice engenders motivation and a high level of commitment, and the programme has been designed to embrace this aspect whilst clearly building on skills, thinking, application and design production to achieve a final portfolio of the highest standard.

Careers and professional development

The modules Management Practice, and Law 1 and 2, include guidance on the necessary professional skills that are required both for ARB Part 2 and for preparation in commencing ARB Part 3. The design studio generates a portfolio of work that not only demonstrates the learning for ARB Part 2 but also written, research and visual skills. The design portfolio is intended as the vehicle for students to synthesise all facets of their learning in order to seek practice employment.

In addition the school maintains a jobs wall that advertises vacancies locally, nationally and internationally.

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About the course

The MSc in Integrated Product Design course focuses on the design of innovative products, emphasising the balance between the interest of users, industry and society. It covers the whole design process, integrating all aspects relevant to product development, in particular global new product design.

It meets industrial demand by integrating technology, management, aesthetics, environmental sustainability, ergonomics, marketing, business and design methods – to produce highly qualified and sought after designers able to cope with the challenges the global economy presents.

Specifically, the course aims to:

Provide an integrated programme of study across a broad range of knowledge and skills in product/industrial design
Develop design and technology research skills related to the design process through practicing applied research
Develop advanced design skills, enabling graduates to practice as an independent design professional and to further develop design and professional skills in product/industrial design engineering
Nurture scientific rigour as well as creativity to enable graduates to follow a successful career in product/industrial design and assume leadership roles in national and international companies and institutions.

Aims

Students master all aspects of integrated product design advancing their design skills and knowledge by applying systematic state-of-the-art theories and methodologies, and by integrating user, technology and business aspects. This not only opens up dynamic career options, but equips students with a comprehensive skillset to take into the commercial world.

The primary aim of this programme is to provide students with the practical knowledge and transferable skills required to be at the forefront of global product and services design research and development, in either an industrial or academic environment.
Graduates of this MSc will also have the independent learning ability required for both continual professional development and the acquisition of new skills at the highest level.

The course provides an integrated approach and promotes advanced studies in design theory, creativity and aesthetics, innovation methods, advanced design techniques, human factors and applied ergonomics, engineering, material and production science, sustainability and research methods.

Course Content

The first term includes three taught modules worth a total of 45 credits plus one double module of 30 credits which continues into the second term alongside three further modules. The thick module, Professional Design Studio, will include guest lectures, research seminars and group or individual project. The projects can be based on design research or product/industrial design.

The ‘Design Futures’ module will introduce the importance and potential value of future foresight techniques and develop a vision of the future and critically evaluate its implications for design, innovation and enabling technology.

The ‘Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing Techniques’ module will introduce CAD and graphics based design modelling, rendering techniques and tools, product design simulation techniques and tools, rapid prototyping and manufacturing techniques.

For the final four months of the programme (June to September), students can either continue their projects to greater depth as their dissertation project, or undertake a new subject. Students are encouraged to form industrial links as part of this project.

Typical Modules

Sustainable Design
Design Creativity and Aesthetic Awareness
Human Factors in Design
Professional Design Studio
Design and Innovation Futures: Seminar & Workshop
Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing Techniques
Strategic Design Management and Research
Dissertation Project

Assessment

Work in each module is predominantly assessed through practical project assignments including both individual and group work. The dissertation makes up a third of the overall degree and may include a substantial practical design element, but in all cases will be assessed through a final 20,000 word submission.

Special Features

High league table standings: Our courses are among the highest-ranking for Product and Industrial Design in the UK. In all the most recent university guides, as well as in the National Student Survey, Brunel Design is placed in the top four out of all UK Art and Design courses.

High employability: Design graduates enjoy excellent career prospects – see student graduate articles.

Accreditation

Brunel's Integrated Product Design course is accredited by the Institution of Engineering Designers (IED).

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MA Communication Design at Falmouth is a transformative, intensive studio based course, enabling you to develop your individual critical voice in communication design. The course prepares you for the demands of a rapidly changing, complex media world, where the ability to create meaningful and effective ideas is paramount.

Benefits:
- Learn from leading global design provocateurs and teachers in project challenges and study set
- Gain commercial experience through internships
- Work in a multi-million pound studio environment that mirrors leading contemporary design studios
- Specialist skills training, relevant for your project interests
- Final semester London show
- Digital final exhibition for global recognition and launch

Visit the website https://www.falmouth.ac.uk/communication-design-ma

How the course is taught

The course is structured over 45 weeks, across three semesters: deconstruction, reconstruction and reinvention.

You'll be in the studio most weekdays working on outcomes rooted in design process and the development of meaningful and innovative ideas. The experience is designed to be supportive yet provocative, so you can take your ideas and practice into new and exciting realms, that challenge you and the wider communications world.

Your learning is delivered across a mixture of set lectures, tutorials, workshops, and peer and tutor review.

Contact hours vary across the course, being most intensive during the first two semesters, with more self directed study as you develop your final project in the third semester. We expect some students to be away at points during the final semester, either working on research and project feedback, or attending internships.

Course outline

The course prioritises fresh and fearless thinking, developing students who see no boundaries to their work, curious to engage and discover while pursuing the highest level of innovation in communication design.

You'll gain an understanding of the global framework of communication design, and an approach to design process that delivers great ideas across diverse media platforms.

Mirroring the success of longstanding programmes at our School of Communication Design, you'll benefit from frequent industry contact, enabling you to stretch and question your practice, gaining inspiration from within and beyond your immediate boundaries.

Attracting a range of applicants, the course prepares you for independent or studio practice, in the applied creative industries, broader arts, or further academic research.

Our priority is to encourage your development by distilling and building your creative voice and ambition. We do so via three semesters, deconstruction, reconstruction and reinvention, with project outcomes mirroring a design process structure.

What you'll do

Semester 1: Deconstruction
- MACD 101: Process
(20 credits)
This module introduces the components of design process in relation to your own personal practice. Through provocation and critical debate you'll reflect on and challenge what you do, seeing how global, experiential and experimental insights can generate the most appropriate process models for a contemporary communications problem.

- MACD 102: Intersections
(20 credits)
This module examines the fundamental components to the production of design: human interaction and collaboration. Whether this interaction is between client and designer, object and user, or experience and emotion, it allows you to experience provocative challenges that hone your own standpoint. You'll learn how social engagement, polar tension or friction can inspire new thinking.

- MACD 103: Boundaries
(20 credits)
This module allows you to take more radical entry points into your understanding of practice; taking project interest into new forms or creating critical design response from more theorised or experimental catalysts.
Provocateurs will continue to challenge and stretch the limits of your enquiry, exploring new theoretical models and examining the debate of 'designer as author'; how works are translated or used; and how they or their work become the provocateur.

Semester 2: Reconstruction
- MACD 104: Curate and build
(40 credits)
You'll deep dive into your emergent interests, exploring how technology and an increasingly complex consumer and cultural landscape may effect your enquiry. Thinking by doing, you'll elect and develop skill sets and a depth of study in both practice and theory. With the module running across the whole semester, it allows you to fully prepare and test ideas and craft, sectors and media as you begin to prepare your main MA project.

- MACD 105: Compete
(20 credits)
Ahead of the final semester, you'll begin to look at avenues and insights for your own practice and from a business or funding perspective. You'll build professional skills relevant to individual need and examine components of design development including publishing, presentations, production and IP.

The module will also examine other methodologies of delivering work around the world, whether through commission or employment, working in known fields of the creative industries or with museums, arts organisations or universities and research bodies.
Student will also engage in competitive projects set by external bodies.

Semester 3: Reinvention
- MACD 106, MA project
(60 credits)
This module allows you to realise your final major project, in a largely self directed semester, bringing together practice, theory and an evaluation phase that provides reflection and potential industry or funding opportunities to be negotiated ahead of graduating.

The first phase leads to exhibiting at a key industry or cultural event, with an interim show. The second sees you gather insights, industry or critical feedback, or undertake an internship, or preparing for the launch of your project. This final phase sees the production of an essay or strategic report, depending on future plans.

Facilities

- Dedicated MA studio space
- Lecture theatres, design lab, break out spaces and meeting rooms
- Digital printing facilities, Risograph machine, woodblock printing and presses, workshop and negotiated access to screen-printing studios
- Apple suite, with Adobe CS and full collection of Monotype typefaces
- Extensive library facilities and digital collections
- Negotiated use of other facilities such as film, photographic, textiles and product design studios

Staff

You'll be taught by staff with backgrounds spanning design, academic, writing and research careers. They offer decades of experience teaching and working for leading studios, working with international clients, arts and cultural organisations, exhibiting and publishing work and research. They are enaged with many of the world's top creative universities and organisations as keynote speakers, external examiners and consultants. Overall they are all inspired by design, teaching, nurturing and encouraging great and motivated students.

Assessment

- Individual project briefs
- Design research journal
- Essay
- Oral presentations, individually and in groups
- Critical review or business plan

Careers

Communication design is a broad field of study, with career choices depending largely on your own personal project focus.

Options include:

- Graphic design
- Advertising
- Packaging and brand design
- Service design
- Photography and film
- Type design or illustration
- Editorial design
- Motion graphics, interactive or digital design
- Information or UX design
- Design criticism and writing
- Teaching, research or PhD study
- Allied fields: television, the heritage sector or exhibition design

Interview and selection process

Please apply via submission of an application form, an outline of your key interest or masters proposal and a portfolio. Details about our portfolio requirements can be found on the application form.

Interviews are held in person at the School, online via Skype or by phone.

Find out how to apply here - https://myfalmouth.falmouth.ac.uk/urd/sits.urd/run/siw_ipp_lgn.login?process=siw_ipp_app&code1=MACODEFC_SEP&code2=0001

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Mission and goals

The programme created by the cooperation in the educational project of the disciplinary areas of Design (School of Design), Mechanical Engineering (School of Industrial Engineering) and Materials Engineering (School of Industrial Process Engineering), has the objective of specialist training in three fundamental areas: Design, Process and Industrial Production; Design Materials; Representation and Prototyping.
This programme has the objective of preparing a design figure who integrates the Design and “engineering” cultures, a professional able to provide a complete project dossier comprising product concept, via final and working design, and preparation of the documents necessary to go into production; who has particular skills in the choice of materials, in design methodologies in a virtual environment and in the impact of the technological aspects of production systems on the project.

See the website http://www.polinternational.polimi.it/educational-offer/laurea-magistrale-equivalent-to-master-of-science-programmes/design-engineering/

Career opportunities

The Master of Science graduate in Design & Engineering is able to link design culture with the most advanced technological and manufacturing potential and thus is able to contribute to the growth and consolidation of the value of Italian and foreign companies.

This study programme accepts applications to the 2nd semester only from candidates who have completed the following single courses during the 1st semester: Product Development Studio; I.C. Materials for Design

Applicants with a background in Engineering are not required to provide a portfolio. Applicants with a design background must upload a portfolio on their profile.

Presentation

See http://www.polinternational.polimi.it/uploads/media/Design_Engineering_01.pdf
This programme results from the cooperation of three Schools: Design, Mechanical Engineering and Materials Engineering. It trains professionals who are able to provide a complete project: from the concept phase, through the development process up to the final product, including the making of the production drawings and documents. It trains designers who have particular skills in materials selection, design methodologies and assessment of the technological impact on item production. Graduates in Design & Engineering
will have all the means to link design culture with the most advanced technological and manufacturing potential, thus being able to contribute to the growth and consolidation of the value of Italian and foreign companies. Students can choose to apply in Product Development Studios that are more focused on product feasibility or product interaction. The programme is entirely taught in English; students may also choose courses that are taught in Italian.

Subjects

Among the available courses:
- Product Development Design Studio
- Mechanical Design
- Materials Selection Criteria In Design & Engineering
- Final Project Work
- Design For Manufacturing
- Reverse Modeling
- Virtual Prototyping
- Design Fundamentals
- Semiotics
- Cad - 3d
- Materials Experience
- Design History

See the website http://www.polinternational.polimi.it/educational-offer/laurea-magistrale-equivalent-to-master-of-science-programmes/design-engineering/

For contact information see here http://www.polinternational.polimi.it/educational-offer/laurea-magistrale-equivalent-to-master-of-science-programmes/design-engineering/

Find out how to apply here http://www.polinternational.polimi.it/how-to-apply/

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The Masters in Urban Design course combines students' existing strengths with focused design training to produce urban designers capable of managing the complex problems of development, urban space and form.

The certificate and diploma stages of the Masters in Urban Design course introduce theoretical concepts and practical methods of urban design. They will enable you to understand processes of urban design production and consumption, and to develop skills and techniques for communicating three-dimensional urban design.

Why choose this course?

Our graduates have very high success rates in gaining employment and have secured posts in both the public and private sectors, in planning, architecture, landscape and urban design practices; undertaking design, consultancy and research work. Several have also gone on to take up senior posts in universities in the UK and abroad. This is the longest established programme of study in urban design in the UK, and consequently has a vast network of graduates across the globe.

Staff are engaged in world-leading research (69% either world leading or internationally excellent in REF 2014) which feeds directly into the teaching and studio work. A major strength of the course is its multidisciplinary, collegiate, team-based approach to project work and presentation.

Based in Oxford, we are well located for access to both this historic city, to London and other urban centres in the UK.

This course in detail

The Masters in Urban Design is offered as a linked PGCert/PGDip/MA. The aim of the PGCert and PGDip stages is to provide a framework of current knowledge and skills in urban design and masterplanning.

The PGCert stage of the course focuses on the basic concepts and theory of urban design, establishing a solid grounding in the practical realisation of design qualities in a case site situation.

The PGDip stage increases the emphasis placed on the application of more specific design skills in differing contexts, through live projects and a more in-depth examination of design history. Theory and new research are provided through a series of history and theory lectures and seminars.

The aim of the MA stage is to provide an opportunity for developing urban design research skills through individually selected topics in theoretical and practical fields of study in urban design.

The MA dissertation gives students the opportunity to explore in depth a subject related to urban design, and to integrate the various elements of the course. Past topics for the MA include local identity, transport and design, public art and urban design, urban coding, environmental design, digital cities, and eco-towns.

The course is structured around nine modules.

Please note: as courses are reviewed regularly as part of our quality assurance framework, the module lists you choose from may vary from the ones shown here.

The PGCert stage of the course consists of the following compulsory modules and is worth 60 level 7 credits:
-Urban Design Studio I
-Urban Design Theory I
-Urban Design Practice I and II
-Urban Design Studio II

The PGDip stage of the course consists of the following compulsory modules and is worth 120 level 7 credits:
-Urban Design Theory II
-Urban Design Issues II
-Urban Design Development Seminars
-Research Methods in Design

The MA stage of the course consists of the following compulsory module:
-Master's Dissertation

Teaching and learning

Teaching and learning methods reflect the wide variety of topics and techniques associated with urban design in practice.

Lectures provide the framework, essential background and knowledge base for the course, while you are encouraged to probe deeper into different topics by further reading and review.

Analysis, synthesis and application of material introduced in lectures are demonstrated through studio sessions, workshops, seminars and practical project work. Site visits and a fieldwork component are an important component.

Careers and professional development

Our graduates have very high success rates in gaining employment and have secured posts in the public sector, private consultancy, the voluntary sector, and research and teaching areas.

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As a cultivated form of invention, design shapes, modifies and alters the world around us for better or worse, and the need for modern design to be more sustainable and ethically responsible has never been more important.

Many multinational companies, research centres, governments and individuals acknowledge that a change in attitude to the way we design products, spaces, communications and communities is a positive step and long overdue. Indeed, over the last 10 years, commercial understanding of sustainable design has transformed, shifting from being about risk and compliance to a dynamic leadership issue.

Our Sustainable Design MA helps you to rethink the parameters of good design in an unsustainable age. Working alongside experts in ecology, psychology, design and business, you will gain the knowledge, skills and confidence to focus your practice and become a more effective agent of change.

Why study with us?

• Interdisciplinary approach to sustainable design that incorporates ideas from ecology, psychology and business with a balance of theory and practice
• Campus in one of Europe's most progressive and creative cities
• World-renowned staff, including sustainable design expert Professor Jonathan Chapman
• Guest lecturers from industry including Louis Joseph (head of global strategy at Puma), Richard Gilbert (director of The Agency for Design) and Oliver Heath (founder of OH Designs)
• Diverse student body with backgrounds in graphic design, illustration, architecture, fashion, education, politics and product design

Areas of study

• Sustainable Design: Present(s)
Semester one, 20 credits

You start with a foundation in sustainable design principles, theories and methodologies. Themes include cradle to cradle, low-carbon building and production, design for recycling, biodegradability, biomimicry, alternative energy, ecological thinking, permaculture, and disassembly.

• Research Methods
Semester one, 20 credits

This module gives you an overview of design research methods and how they are used in professional practice. It enables you to construct the kind of research questions, hypotheses and methodologies that underpin innovative design, as you develop a more autonomous position in the process of critical inquiry.

• Studio
Semesters one and two, 60 credits

The Studio module spans two projects – ‘Behaviours’ and ’Matters’. The Behaviours project takes place in semester one and provides you with a theoretical context for the studio-based investigation, analysis and generation of essential design criteria that shape patterns of consumption.

In semester two, you undertake the Matters project, a studio-based experience that places emphasis on materiality and the nature of physical experience as mediated through the design, production and physical manifestation of things.

• Sustainable Design: Future(s)
Semester two, 20 credits

This module takes the form of a series of seminars, workshops and discussion groups where specialist practitioners, writers, researchers, manufacturers and theorists present their work on sustainability. It covers themes including consumer motivation, behaviour, phenomenology, deep ecology, temporality, consciousness, emotional durability, materiality, defuturing and experience-authoring.

• Master
Semester three, 60 credits

The Master project represents the culmination of your work throughout the course. It allows you to apply all of the experiences and skills that you have accumulated, as you choose an area of sustainable design that you want to pursue in detail.

You work is structured by an individually defined 'statement of intent' that provides the framework through which you will be assessed. This process enables you to explore distinctive areas of expertise with a unique approach to the ubiquitous issues of sustainability and design.

The final body of master work must be developed through practices relevant to you and your statement of intent. These might include the development and production of design proposals, a written thesis, a documentary, an ad campaign, an article for a leading publication, a touring exhibition or a combination of the above.

Our studio

From 2016, students will work in the new Masters Centre, which provides studio, seminar and tutorial space for all postgraduate students in the School of Architecture and Design.

Students on MA Sustainable Design will have dedicated studio space with access to workshop and digital model making facilities. More specialised materials and making requirements can be supported on an individual basis with colleagues in engineering, crafts and arts.

Careers and employability

After graduation, many students secure influential positions within major global businesses, charities and NGOs.

A number of our students establish independent design agencies, social innovation labs and research centres. Many decide to continue their research in the form of a PhD, and have a particularly strong record of achieving fully funded studentships, both here at Brighton and internationally.

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We welcome enquiries from anyone who would like to carry out research in any aspect of design or in technology in education- http://www.gold.ac.uk/pg/mphil-phd-design/

Current studies include:

eco-design and forecasting trends
the design of multi-sensory retail environments
curriculum development in design
the role of awkward space in cities
pupil assessment in design and technology education
reflexive drawing and the connection between representation and creativity
social theory in a world of designed objects
harnessing memes to disseminate design ideas
Find out more about research degrees at Goldsmiths.

Practice-based MPhil

The MPhil can be linked to design practice.

A practice-based MPhil explores new approaches to, or applications of, existing knowledge by means of practice.

In either case, your final presentation will include both an original, creative practice component and a thesis that will contextualise this practice.

Since the practice component of your research constitutes a significant part of the final examination, the thesis requirement is reduced.

The MPhil programme offers the opportunity for the student to continue their research to a PhD.

Assessment is by thesis and viva voce.

Design Star Centre for Doctoral Training

Goldsmiths is a member of the Design Star Centre for Doctoral Training, which brings the Department of Design together with other leading design departments at the University of Brighton; Loughborough University; The Open University; and the University of Reading.

It aims to develop future intellectual leadership in design: research leaders of the future who are equipped to make a difference to contemporary social concerns, knowledge production and creative practices. This requires an approach to research training that places diversity and interdisciplinarity at its core.

Design Star brings together world-class research in:

design for industry
interaction design
design process
communication design
sustainable design
design history
curation
creative practice.

Its spread of design disciplines is linked by a common approach to design that encourages the integration of history, theory and engagement.

Contact the department

If you have specific questions about the degree, contact the Department of Design.

Design at Goldsmiths is ranked:
-1st in the UK (The Guardian University Guide 2016)
-12th in the world (QS World University Rankings by subject 2015)

We’ve also been ranked by LinkedIn as one of the top graduate universities for designers, because so many of our graduates go on to find jobs in the industry.

Critique the status quo

We want you to go on to have your own self-sustaining practice that can change over time, so you’ll learn about design not just as a commercial enterprise, but also as a way to question and critique the status quo.

The freedom to experiment

You don’t have to know what kind of a designer you’ll be: we give you the time and the freedom to experiment, use tools, explore materials and discover different modes of making. Many of our students have already worked in the design industry and are keen to develop their theoretical understanding of the discipline, and have the opportunity to explore their practice without the confines of commercial restrictions.

Industry leaders

Our graduates are industry leaders: many have gone on to work at top organisations and design companies such as Pentagram, Dyson and Selfridges, while many others have set up their own studios and enterprises.

How to apply

Before you apply for a research programme, we advise you to get in touch with the programme contact, listed above. It may also be possible to arrange an advisory meeting.

Before you start at Goldsmiths, the actual topic of your research has to be agreed with your proposed supervisor, who will be a member of staff active in your general field of research. The choice of topic may be influenced by the current research in the department or the requirements of an external funding body.

If you wish to study on a part-time basis, you should also indicate how many hours a week you intend to devote to research, whether this will be at evenings or weekends, and for how many hours each day.

Visual portfolio

For the purpose of the initial application it is recommended that you prepare a portfolio of material documenting your previous work. This could be provided as a web link, DVD or whatever is the best way to disseminate your practice.

Research proposals

The proposal should typically between 1,000 and 2,000 words (not including references) long. The key consideration in drafting the proposal should be clarity.

Funding

Please visit http://www.gold.ac.uk/pg/fees-funding/ for details.

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Programme description

This programme encourages students to take a risk, to test the boundaries of the discipline and push their design ideas beyond personally predetermined limits. There is a strong international student input which introduces diverse experience and encourages wide-ranging thinking.

You will develop an enhanced research and design proposal, culminating in a new body of work that will showcase your heightened development and achievements.

This unique and convention-breaking programme has a strong emphasis on personal creative freedom and design innovation, ensuring you have the best chance of employment and career development upon graduation.

You will be encouraged to challenge your existing research and design knowledge and develop new skills and networks. You are expected to experiment and explore – independent study is paramount but underpinned by a number of supporting projects, workshops and events.

We expect collaboration within the School of Design, with the creative industries and where appropriate with external clients to allow you to realise personal and project possibilities to the full.

We encourage bold, lateral thinking, coupled with a clear understanding of process and technique, to produce innovative, emotive and enduring design from students who learn through intense, sustained involvement with the design process.

Programme structure

The curriculum is student-led with an emphasis on independent learning. With tutorial guidance, you will negotiate and develop a programme of study based on personal areas of practice and research, alongside set projects to support and inform your line of enquiry.

You will initially focus on the research and development of a study proposal. With support from our dynamic team of experienced tutors (all industry practitioners or researchers) you will be encouraged to expand on your preconceived ideas and let your findings dictate future development. We expect you to engage in sophisticated design dialogue to push your ideas to their full potential. There is a hotbed of debate and prototyping before any designs are taken into production.

The written context of the programme helps amplify and contextualise your understanding of process and this wider awareness of design feeds back into your practice-based work. You will produce one written context assessment per semester.

Career opportunities

We are committed to providing our students with enhanced career prospects and the ability to achieve at the highest level. Graduates are professionally vital and well-informed, and are able to enter the design industry with a freshness of approach and the flexibility and adaptability to be able to respond to change.

Our Graphic Design graduates work in a wide range of creative career paths. The variety of projects, approaches and opportunities on course enable graduates to apply their knowledge and experience of the design process and their considerable skills onto many disciplines. Typically though our graduates leave to become valuable members of a graphic design agency.

Our extensive links with industry built through industry-led projects and staff research, and our range of visiting speakers, ensures that graduates are aware of the full range of career possibilities and are provided with a strong footing from which to develop their chosen career.

Previous career paths have included experiential design, packaging, advertising, digital design, interaction design, exhibition design, design research, marketing, retail design, exhibition design, multimedia, design management, education. Graduates may freelance or seek employment within a company.

A specific scheme we run within the programme is the Design Agency project which, in 2013, won a Guardian University Award for Employability Initiative.

Design Agency is a flagship initiative that enables graphic design students to form their own design agencies. They create their own brand for the agency and work collectively towards a common objective based on ability, regardless of age or experience. Edinburgh-based design agencies act as ‘mentor partners’ to the student agencies. The long-term relationships that are built with mentors ensures that students have the chance to show, over an extended period rather than just a few weeks on placement, what they can contribute to potential employers.

In 2013, the ECA Design Agency won the Guardian University Awards 2013 prize for Employability Initiative, with the judges praising its ambition and said its risk-taking innovation “should be applauded.”

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*New for 2017, subject to final approval.

The MA in Sound Design is a forward thinking course, which invites you to explore the creative use of sound within film and other visual media at an advanced level. The course focuses on the more creative aspects of sound design and post-production while providing you with the necessary technical skills.

You’ll develop your work within your areas of interest without stylistic boundaries. The content areas include:

• Sound editing (production audio, dialogue/ADR, SFX, music)
• The language and aesthetics of sound design (narrative, dramaturgy)
• Foley
• Field recording
• Sound sculpting and processing
• Working with directors
• Post-production workflows
• Dubbing
• Surround sound
• VR audio
• Industry deliverables

COURSE STRUCTURE

The course delivers a mixture of advanced technical skills related to sound design and audio post production for film and other visual media. It also provides creatively-oriented insights into contemporary sound design practice and encourages students to push the boundaries of the field. Subject areas include:

• Sound sculpting, processing and synthesis
• The language and aesthetics of sound design
• Storytelling and dramaturgy

MA Sound Design is part of a suite of postgraduate courses available across music and sound, operating alongside ‘sister’ pathways in Sound Production and Sound Arts, which allow further specialism in these areas.

For more information on the course structure, please go to: https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/courses/pg-sound-design/

MODULES

In trimester one, you'll gain the skills you’ll need to fulfil the rest of the course. The Skills Portfolio module is built on the idea that you’ll already have technical skills in this area. It therefore allows you to choose a handful of skills projects from a large number of options – these cover skills right across the Sound Arts, Sound Design and Sound Production pathways and include (optional) elements of multimedia.

The Research Methodology and Context module develops skills in postgraduate-level research and writing.

In trimester two, the core module is the Sound Design Practice module. It explores the creative and practical application of Sound Design within a visual narrative and storytelling context.

Alongside this core module, you’ll be offered a wide range of options. The Post Production module explores an industry-level workflow for Audio Post within film and visual media and covers a wide range of associated skillsets. Intertextuality in Sound Production, from the Sound Production pathway, explores the overlap between Urban Music production and what are considered more experimental genres. The Visual Music module, from the Sound Arts pathway, explores the idea that musical thinking can be extended to the visual, and encourages students to develop multimedia projects that explore this idea.

There are also choices in Composition, Performance, Musicology and Professional Practice.

In trimester three, you'll complete the course with a independent research project, compromising of a large-scale practical project, supported by a reflective account.

For more information on modules please visit the course webpage: https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/courses/pg-sound-design/

TEACHING METHODS

The delivery of the course involves a mixture of teaching and learning activities, including lectures, workshops, seminars, online study materials and guest speaker sessions.

The workshop / seminar sessions will include ongoing peer review and tutor support opportunities. Some parts of the course are delivered using a ‘flipped classroom’ model, where students independently work through online study materials and tasks, which are followed up by practical support workshops.

ASSESSMENT

The assessment is majorly based around practical coursework, with the aim to build an extensive portfolio of sound design and post production work. Practical coursework is typically supported by a written commentary or evaluation. The Research Methodology and Context module is assessed through a more substantial written paper.

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

You can use the course to develop an individually-tailored portfolio of skills. This will equip you for the current employment landscape, where a combination of traditional audio post production roles are required alongside broader practice in sound, music and other media.

Our graduates have range of successful careers in production, composition, music for film and TV, sound design for moving image and games, sound art, software development, engineering, further education, higher education and research.

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About the course

This MSc in Advanced Engineering Design is aimed at high calibre and ambitious engineering graduates who want to gain expertise in systematically developing complex, multidisciplinary engineering design.

You will learn how to design products requiring embedded intelligence and comprehensive engineering analysis and how to use six CAE software packages.

The programme - accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineering (IMechE) - has been developed to fulfil the industry’s need for an integrated course that offers:
teaching of advanced theory, human factors and creativity tools essential to successful product development
training in software, research and applications
practical experience of applying your knowledge and skills through an integrating, real life group project.

Aims

Integration of mechanical, electrical, electronic and control knowledge into a single product is challenging – and this course allows you to appreciate the complexity of modern product design and to develop your expertise.

The Brunel programme aims to create the new generation of engineering designers who can combine knowledge from different areas and produce world class design.

Engineering design is the application of engineering principles, the experience of making, and use of mathematical models and analysis. The design and production of complex engineering products often require the use of embedded intelligence and detailed engineering analysis involving mechanical, electronic and control functions. Advanced theoretical knowledge and a wide range of computer driven tools, methods and methodologies are essential for this process – and the course provides graduates with these essentials.

Course Content

Continued design of modern complex products demands advanced knowledge in mechanical, electronic, manufacturing and control engineering disciplines and human factors in design, and an ability to use advanced engineering software packages, integrating application experience and a capacity to carry on learning.

The Advanced Engineering Design MSc has been developed to produce design engineers who can meet these demands. It contains six taught modules where advanced multi-disciplinary theory is taught. As part of the course, six engineering software packages are also taught. In order to give an integrating application experience in an industrial setup, 'Design Experience', a group project module with an industry, has been included as part of the curriculum.

The dissertation is aimed at providing training in carrying out an in-depth engineering task on a self-learning basis. By the end of the course you will become a confident design engineer equipped with high quality and advanced knowledge and skills to work on design tasks in an advanced computer assisted environment.

Compulsory Modules

Sustainable Design and Manufacture
Manufacturing Systems Design and Economics
Computer Aided Engineering 1
Computer Aided Engineering 2
Design Experience
Dissertation Project

Optional Modules (choose two modules)

Advanced Manufacturing Measurement
Human Factors in Design
Robotics and Manufacturing Automation
Design of Mechatronic Systems

Special Features

Special facilities

MSc Engineering Design students work in a well-equipped design studio with various experiential learning facilities, with computers available for your exclusive use of Engineering Design students.Our investment in laboratory facilities and staff ensures that we can provide an excellent experience in a friendly and supportive environment.

Industry-focused programme

The high standard of our research feeds directly into curriculum design and our teaching, ensuring our graduates are equipped with the most up-to-date techniques, methods and knowledge bases. Our teaching has an excellent reputation and is orientated to the expressed needs of modern enterprises and the industry.
The course is underpinned by the current research still being carried out by the staff in the former academic unit Advanced Manufacturing and Enterprise Engineering which promotes manufacturing as a discipline.  Thus the academics teaching on the Advanced Engineering Design which were part of this unit have strong research portfolios in manufacturing. This research has been judged world leading.  In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework, academics teaching on the course were involved with Brunel’s General engineering submission, one of one of the largest in the UK. The area’s percentage of world leading research doubled, with a significant increase in our research judged as internationally excellent as well. The impact of over 75% of this research was judged to be world leading or internationally excellent. This placed the discipline in the top 20% in the UK terms of research power.

Global reputation

With around 150 postgraduate students from all around the world and substantial research income from the EU, research councils and industry, we are a major player in the field of advanced manufacturing and enterprise engineering.
 
Women in Engineering and Computing Programme

Brunel’s Women in Engineering and Computing mentoring scheme provides our female students with invaluable help and support from their industry mentors.

Accreditation

The MSc Advanced Engineering Design is accredited by both the Institution of Mechanical Engineering (IMechE). This will provide a route to Chartered Engineer status in the UK.

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Objectives

By the end of the program, students will have acquired the key competencies to manage fashion, design and luxury companies successfully and will be able to evolve professionally within the cosmopolitan, culture-intensive and hypercompetitive environment typical of these industries.

LOCATIONS

Students have the opportunity to follow the MSc in Fashion, Design and Luxury Management program in the following locations:

- Grenoble - http://en.grenoble-em.com/grenoble-vibrant-and-welcoming
- Paris - http://en.grenoble-em.com/paris
- London

WHY CHOOSE TO DO A MSC IN FASHION, DESIGN AND LUXURY MANAGEMENT?

The MSc in Fashion, Design and Luxury Management is designed to provide international companies in these industries with the profiles they need to be highly competitive in a complex environment.

The fashion, design and luxury industries are design-intensive and innovation-oriented industries, providing very good opportunities for growth in a hypercompetitive environment. For this reason, companies in these industries are seeking to recruit experts aware of the specific dynamics of these fields, able to manage companies and develop brands in a successful way.

Students enrolled in the MSc Fashion, Design and Luxury Management will benefit from a high-level faculty with both academic and professional experience.

Taught entirely in English, this program offers students the international perspective and the industry-specific culture they will need in order to become skilled managers in these hypercompetitive industries.

Through their coursework, students will acquire the management tools and techniques and the overall industry culture needed to develop and govern fashion, design and luxury brands in a highly competitive global and complex environment. The course covers essential management skills as well as more industry-specific competencies:

- Principles of luxury and luxury brand management
- Luxury sectorial analysis
- Technology and innovation in the fashion and design business
- Creative fundamentals of fashion and design
- Sustainable design, luxury and fashion management.

Program

MANAGEMENT ESSENTIALS

- Intercultural Management and International Negotiations
- Global Leadership and People Management
- International Trade
- Marketing
- Branding and Brand Equity Management
- Strategic Management
- Finance and Accounting

FASHION, DESIGN & LUXURY MANAGEMENT

- Technology and Innovation in the Fashion and Design Business
- Industrial Design
- Interior Design and Merchandising
- Sustainable Luxury and Design
- Luxury Sectorial Analysis:
- Food, Wine and Hospitality
- Boats, Cars and Motorbikes
- Jewelry and Watches
- Perfumes, Cosmetics and Eyewear
- Accessories and Leather Goods

- Distribution Channels and Digital Marketing in the Fashion Industry
- Fundamentals of Fashion and Design
- Principles of Luxury and Managing Luxury Brands
- Integrated Communications Strategy
- Production, Operations, Purchasing and Supply Chain in the Fashion Industry
- Customer Management and Customer Intelligence
- The Legal Context of the Design and Fashion Industry

STUDY TRIPS

Students will take part in an international study trip of one week in one European Fashion Capital. They will have the opportunity to meet with leading industry professionals and visit companies in the fashion, design and luxury industries.

During the company visits students will work on a project relating to one of these industries and in alignment with their future career ambitions.

INTERNSHIP

Each student will undertake an internship of a minimum of three months in a company of their choice at the end of the classroom part of the program. The internship will contribute directly to the content of the Final Management Project and may take place anywhere in the world.

FINAL MANAGEMENT PROJECT

The second year of the program is dedicated to the Final Management Project which will be undertaken under the supervision of a GGSB professor.
Students will focus on a management aspect of the fashion, design and luxury industries; they are also encouraged to choose the subject of the Final Management Project in coherence with their future career goals. It is possible to complete the project in parallel with an employment or an internship in France or abroad.

FOREIGN LANGUAGES

Foreign language skills are essential in a globally competitive business environment. The program is taught in English, and no prior knowledge of French is required to attend the program. Students have the possibility of learning French or another foreign language such as Spanish or Chinese during the program.
This language component, although not compulsory, is highly recommended for students who intend to pursue an international career, since companies in the Fashion, Design and Luxury industry are currently recruiting personnel speaking the language of the country in which they are based, in addition to English and in-demand languages like Chinese or Russian.

LOCATION

The MSc in Fashion, Design and Luxury Management will be offered at the GGSB Grenoble, Paris and London campuses.

PROGRAM BENEFITS

Students enrolled in the program will:

- Acquire and develop the specific management skills required for a successful career in fashion, design, and luxury industries
- Benefit from teaching staff with extensive scientific and professional industry experience
- Enjoy study trips with visits to companies and industry-specific fairs and events
- Study in a multicultural and creative learning environment
- Understand the creation of value in the fashion, design and luxury industries

Careers

It is expected that graduates of this MSc program will either take up positions in multinational companies in the fashion, design and luxury industries or will become entrepreneurs able to found and develop their own companies.

The program will prepare graduates for positions in sourcing, purchasing, product development, product management, public relations, events, store retail management, people management and entrepreneurship.

Admission

Candidates should have excellent written and oral communication skills, as well as strong interpersonal skills and the motivation to pursue an international career.

No prior knowledge of the fashion, design and luxury management industries is required, but applicants should demonstrate a strong interest in this area and have a clear idea of how the program will help them achieve career goals.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

- Bachelor-level undergraduate degree in any subject with good grade average.
- Work experience is not compulsory.
- Fluency in English (see test requirements below).

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The Liverpool School of Art and Design offers you the space to explore your creative potential and understand how its application in design can interact with, adapt and change the landscape of cities and urban spaces and our experience within them.

•Course available to study full time (1 year) and part time (2 years)
•A new programme open to applicants from a wide range of first degree disciplines such as architecture, spatial design, landscape design, environmental art, geography and planning
•Join a strong research-focused academic community
•Prestigious Susan Cotton Travel bursary and the Michael Pugh Thomas and Julia Carter Preston Legacy postgraduate study awards available
•Develop your work in state-of-the-art workspaces and facilities within the RIBA award-winning John Lennon Art and Design Building

In a world of rapidly rising and migrating urban populations, there is a palpable need for smarter, more inclusive approaches to city planning, adaptation and spatial design.

Liverpool is a creative hub with a heritage of high quality civic design and creative urban engagement. The study of Urban Design is perfectly suited to the rich infrastructure of this truly global city. Read more about the outputs from the programme by visiting the Urban Design blog.

This programme has strong links with the RIBA North and the Liverpool Biennial which, every two years, delivers an international programme of exhibitions and projects that lead to a rediscovery of the city.

Based within the School’s Architecture and Urban Design subject area, this studio-based programme is nourished by the School’s burgeoning research in Urbanism and close association with the University's European Institute for Urban Affairs.

The curriculum has creative place-making at its core and we welcome applicants from a variety of educational and professional backgrounds such as architecture, planning, landscape architecture, art and spatial design.

What you will study on this degree

Please see guidance below on core and option modules for further information on what you will study.

Research & Practice 1

An introduction to some of the common principles of research in Art and Design, tailored to help you develop the skills required to become an effective independent researcher / practitioner.

Studio Practice (Urban Design)

Upon successful completion of an urban design project, you will acquire skills to analyse contemporary urban design themes through in-depth research and the intelligent development of a critical argument. You will also be able to evaluate innovative and visionary urban design theories and precedents in the context of the project work and synthesize knowledge and skills in the production of an urban design strategy for the redevelopment of a substantial piece of cityscape.

Research & Practice 2 (Urban Design)

You will be presented with an overview of urban scale sustainable design principles and objectives. You will then explore a range of contemporary sustainable best practice case studies. These principles will then be applied in practical project work, exploring urban design sustainability benchmarks and audit methodologies. You will thereby be provided with a range of theoretical tools to support independent conceptual and critical evaluation of sustainable urban design. Tools will be explored such as to enable students to understand and evaluate the environmental impact and ecology of urban design proposals

Collaborative Practice

Here you will be given the opportunity to think through, re-situate and re-imagine how the term ‘collaboration’ can affect and develop your own developing art and design practice in the broadest sense. A framework of teaching, study and assessment that will allow the student to develop a realizable collaborative project proposal that has the capacity to be developed into a fundable/sustainable project/collaboration.

Final Major Project (Urban Design)

Through a major project you will explore and apply a contemporary urban design theme through in-depth research and intelligent development of a critical argument or creative piece of work.

Further guidance on modules

The information listed in the section entitled ‘What you will study’ is an overview of the academic content of the programme that will take the form of either core or option modules. Modules are designated as core or option in accordance with professional body requirements and internal Academic Framework review, so may be subject to change. Students will be required to undertake modules that the University designates as core and will have a choice of designated option modules. Additionally, option modules may be offered subject to meeting minimum student numbers.

Academic Framework reviews are conducted by LJMU from time to time to ensure that academic standards continue to be maintained.

Please email [email protected] if you require further guidance or clarification.

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This course is for designers who want to pursue their passion for particular areas of design, at an advanced level and with professional support.

Course overview

This Masters is built around your personal design interests and aspirations. It allows you to push the boundaries of creativity, within a framework of academic rigour and contextual research.

You can choose to study any of the following areas:
-Advertising
-Animation
-Calligraphy and lettering
-Creative computational design
-Design thinking, innovation and ideation
-Design leadership
-Fashion, product and promotion
-Graphic communication
-Graphic design
-Illustration
-Interactive media
-Motion graphics
-Typographic design

Other specialised design disciplines will also be considered. Our specialist tutors will work with you as you create a portfolio of creative designs that will excite and impress potential employers.

The course includes a theoretical element which contextualises your chosen areas of study within the broader field of design.
By the end of the course, you will have completed a major project that has evolved from your practice and research. The project will be supported by a critical evaluation report.

At Masters level, the specialisms of tutors are an important factor. Our Department offers a wide range of research expertise within design. For example, we host the International Research Centre for Calligraphy (IRCC) which promotes and supports the development of calligraphy both nationally and internationally. We have excellent engagement with industry, locally, nationally and internationally and have several academic partners overseas including Hong Kong, Malaysia and the USA.

Graduates from Sunderland have gone on to work throughout the design industry around the world. A Masters qualification not only opens doors in the workplace but also helps you progress more rapidly once your career is underway.

This course can also be taken part time - for more information, please view this web-page: http://www.sunderland.ac.uk/courses/artsdesignandmedia/postgraduate/design-part-time/

Course content

The content of the course is shaped by your personal interests with guidance and inspiration from Sunderland's supportive tutors and industry speakers and visits.

Modules on this course include:
-Design Studies 1 (60 Credits)
-Design Studies 2 (60 Credits)
-Design Studies 3 (60 Credits)

Teaching and assessment

Compared to an undergraduate course, you will find that this MA Design programme requires a higher level of independent working. The course aims to stretch your creativity and maximise your sense of personal fulfilment.

We use a wide variety of teaching and learning methods, which include lectures, seminars, critiques, workshops and practical demonstrations. These are supported by a range of guest speakers from diverse academic and industry backgrounds. You will also have high levels of contact with tutors who give regular feedback and support.

Facilities & location

Our Design Centre allows you to develop your creativity while taking advantage of state-of-the-art facilities and, importantly, your own workspace. We provide well-equipped facilities and industry-standard design software so it's easy to make a seamless transition from your studies to the workplace. The Design Centre also attracts international exhibitions and conferences, and it provides a highly stimulating environment.

Facilities at the University include:
-Five computer suites incorporating the latest Mac Pros
-Digital design suites using industry standard software like Adobe Creative Suite, Maya and Toon Boom
-Digital SLR and HD video cameras
-Fully equipped Photography studio
-Fully equipped printmaking studio
-Laser cutting machine
-Large format colour printers
-Access to 3D printers and scanners
-Large format digital fabric printer and full garment design and making facilities

Arts and Design Library
Our Arts and Design Library has a specialist collection of over 120,000 books, videos, slides and one of the largest electronic information networks in the sector.

Journals and research
We subscribe to a comprehensive range of print and electronic journals so you can access the most reliable and up-to-date articles. Some of the most important sources for your course include:
-Art Full Text + Art Abstracts, which is a major resource for media and arts information
-Design and Applied Arts Index, which covers journals featuring both new designers and the development of design and the applied arts since the mid-19th century
-British Universities Film and Video Council (BUFVC), which provides resources for the production, study and use of film and related media
-JSTOR (short for ‘Journal Storage’), which provides access to important journals across the humanities, social sciences and sciences
-Lexis, which provides access to legal information as well as full-text newspaper articles
-Screen Online (BFI), which is an online encyclopaedia of British film and television, featuring clips from the vast collections of the BFI National Archive

Employment & careers

Postgraduates are highly employable and, on average, earn more than individuals whose highest qualification is an undergraduate degree. On completing this course, you will be equipped for roles throughout the creative industries.

Potential roles include animator, graphic designer, illustrator, calligrapher, lettering designer, typographic designer, interactive designer, lecturer or broad-based designer.

A Masters degree will also enhance career opportunities within Higher Education and prepare you for further postgraduate studies, such as MPhil or PhDs.

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Course Overview

It aims to produce successful individuals who can:
- Understand the whole of the professional design development process and how the initial phases flow to inform the latter stages.

- Appreciate commercial realities and the designer’s role in business.

- Design desirable products for bespoke, batch or mass manufacture.

- Understand sustainability, inclusively, and other important ethical and social issues that must be considered by today’s designers.

- Have traditional design skills such as sketching, dealing with form, communication and innovation.

- Are able to use design tools such as 3D CAD, CAM and rapid prototyping in order to optimise the design and reduce time to market.

The Cardiff School of Art & Design have substantial expertise in the delivery of courses at the interface of engineering and product design whilst the National Centre for Product Design & Development Research is one of the UK’s leading centres for rapid product design & development whose expertise covers the whole process from design management, concept and detailed design, ergonomics and CAD to prototyping, tooling and batch manufacture.

See the website https://www.cardiffmet.ac.uk/artanddesign/courses/Pages/mscapd.aspx

Course Content

MSc students take the following modules:
- APD401M Product Development Principles & Practice (20 Credits)
- APD403M Sustainability Issues in Design for Production (20 Credits)
- MAA7001 Research Methods in Art & Design (20 Credits)
- APD405M User Testing & Evaluation (20 Credits)
- APD406M Form Shape & Colour (20 Credits)
- APD407M Major Project (60 Credits)
- APD408M(A) Industrial Placement (20 Credits)

Each 20 credits is equivalent to 240 learning hours (80 typically are taught and 160 are directed study or independent study).

- Facilities
Dedicated studio space. Cardiff School of Art and Design offers an extensive range of spaces, workshops and equipment, creating a vibrant and creative learning environment, within a new purpose designed building and a fully renovated extension. Workshop and technical facilities include a foundry; and access to other workshops across the full range of Art and Design disciplines. Membership of the Fablab is included in the indicative coursework costs below. Cardiff School of Art and Design has a wide range of tools and equipment for use by students; necessary workshop training in their use includes access to materials used as part of timetabled workshop inductions. You also have access to and use of recycled materials within workshop areas.

Assessment

For each module, assessment is as follows:
- APD401M Product Development Principles & Practice (20 Credits) 6000 word equivalent assignment. This will normally be a written assignment.

- APD403M Sustainability Issues in Design for Production (20 Credits) 6000 word equivalent. This module will typically be assessed via a design project. A proportion of the assignment may however be awarded for written or presentatio​n work.

- MAA7001 Research Methods in Art & Design (20 Credits) Written submission, plus seminar presentation, typically 3,000 words plus a 10-20 minute presentation.

- APD405M User Testing & Evaluation (20 Credits) 6000 word equivalent. This module may be linked with others in order to provide a design project vehicle. In any case it will involve practical exercises and a proportion if not all of the assignment may be awarded for written or presentation work.

- APD406M Form Shape & Colour (20 Credits) 6000 word equivalent. This project is likely to be assessed through practical design activity, although a proportion of the assignment may be awarded for written or presentation work.

- APD407M Major Project (60 Credits). 18,000-word equivalent. Performance will be measured using the Final Report, Formal Presentation, Viva Voce examination and final product. Of the marks that are available for the project the allocation of the marks to each of the measures is as follows:

Final Report: 40%

Final Product (prototype): 40%

Formal Presentation: 5%

Viva Voce: 15%

- APD408M(A) Industrial Placement (20 Credits) 6000 word equivalent. A 3000 word ( maximum) report reflecting on the student’s experience within the professional working environment. A reflective placement Logbook (or Blog equivalent) recording critical reflections on events, activities and experiences. Important Note: Because of the difficulties of assessment in the workplace and the potential for disparity of treatment, this module is not awarded a mark other than “Pass” or “Fail”.

Support will be available through weekly small group seminars (normally no more than 16 students per group), exploring the theme of lectures and allowing students to clarify their understanding.

These sessions may also be workshops where practical demonstrations, involving student participation, are run. This may include, for example, communal writing or small group discourse analysis. Weekly tutorials will also be available.

Employability & Careers

Your year(s) of study with us enable you to develop professional contacts, observe how successful practitioners make their living, and hone your skills and ideas for commercial and professional advantage. Such cross-disciplinary collaborations prepare you for a world where you will inevitably work with people from all walks of life. Your live projects and assessments will get you accustomed to the importance of deadlines and working to specific briefs and tight specifications.

Over the next few years, CSAD will be developing opportunities for incubation of business proposals from its graduates and postgraduate training to get business opportunities up and running.

All students’ are expected to complete a portable ‘record of achievement’ and use their PDP to support employability and life-long learning, normally in the form of a blog, that integrates opportunities for self-reflection in programmes in order to help them develop as effective and confident learners.

Find information on Scholarships here https://www.cardiffmet.ac.uk/scholarships

Find out how to apply here https://www.cardiffmet.ac.uk/howtoapply

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