Course description

The highlights

• It’s for experimental and curious designers who want to broaden their practice and collaborate with people from all design disciplines. This approach is critical to the future of design — we need bolder ideas that go beyond conventional boundaries, if we’re going to help solve society’s big challenges
   
• You will take part in range of live design projects, which will involve working with industry and community stakeholders. This will develop and test your practice and help you build a professional network
  
  
• Develop a personalised design curriculum and shape your professional future, with optional modules, professional development seminars, and the freedom to develop your own design projects

• We’re using technology in innovative ways to provide an online studio environment as well as a physical studio on campus. So wherever you are, you will be able to interact with others.

A future-facing Masters in Design

This new MA/MDes Design will help you develop your creativity and grow into a more adaptable, resourceful and collaborative designer. It looks to the future of design and the big challenges facing global society and equips you with the core knowledge, skills and competencies you will need to face the uncertainties of the next few decades. The programme has been designed to prepare you for the challenges and opportunities provided by changing industries, economies, cultures and societies, and to develop a personal practice which makes a positive contribution to that future.

Choose your qualification

Uniquely, you can choose to graduate with either a broad MA Design qualification or an MDes in your preferred specialism: Graphic Design, Illustration, Fashion, Textile Design, Interior and Spatial Design, or Product Design.

The MA Design qualification is ideal if you want to craft a personal design identity and practice, which crosses the conventional borders between disciplines. However, if you are keen to graduate with a qualification rooted in a specific design discipline, then one of the MDes awards would suit you better.

Experiment, collaborate, reflect, evolve

We expect you to direct your own learning throughout this MA/MDes and think critically, always questioning and testing the subject. We encourage creative disruption, risk-taking, innovation and originality across a range of situations, contexts and practices in design.

The programme integrates theory, research and practice, guiding you through a process of personal-development and self-awareness. We begin with a diagnostic module, called Design Propositions, in which you will re-evaluate your knowledge, skills and competencies and propose a direction for the rest of your programme and your professional future.

Throughout the course, you will have regular professional development seminars, critiques and concept panels, where you will review your work with fellow students, academics and professional partners, and have the opportunity to review and readjust your practice and professional direction in the light of that feedback and reflection.

You could then develop some of this work through the Design Synthesis module, which is an independent study module running over two semesters. It’s where you bring together your practice, research and all you have learnt so far, into an integrated design project and thesis, which captures your personal and professional ambitions, and sets a clear direction for your future.

Work on live design projects

You will be able to choose from a variety of Design Lab modules, which focus on different themes such as ‘experiencing the past’ or ‘creative futures.’ During these, you will collaborate on live design projects with industry, academic and/or community stakeholders, which will test your own practice and research methods in a new environment. These will help you develop your portfolio, experience and networks.

Develop your own enterprise

The optional module, Creative Entrepreneurial Business, supports the development of your ideas into a viable business proposition. It is taught in collaboration with the University Enterprise services which include the incubation units at Banks Mill Studios. This provides a foundation and support for you to develop your proposition further during the Design Synthesis module to be an active business by the time you graduate.  

A multi-skilled teaching team

You will be learning from a multidisciplinary teaching team made up of academic and technical staff with expertise in critical practice, experiential design, interior architecture, fashion and textiles, illustration, animation, graphic design, and product design. You will be exposed to a wide range of perspectives and approaches, which enable original and exciting work.

Get involved in research

As a postgraduate student, we will encourage you to join our Civic Lab research group, which focuses on how participatory culture, creative dialogue and experiential design can be used for social impact — particularly in the City of Derby. It considers how we build communities, and how we create the conditions in which those communities can sustainably develop, innovate and thrive within the social, economic, environmental and cultural challenges of the 21st century.

Through this and other research groups, you could get involved in a wide range of multidisciplinary creative research activities, working with external cultural partners, public, commercial and third sector organisations, educational institutions and international networks.

How you will learn

You will learn mostly though integrative studio practice, which involves collaborative thinking and production. You will be able to use a range of facilities, including dedicated Apple Mac suites, the Digital Design Hub, wood and metal workshops, 3D printing equipment, fashion studios, textile workshops, print studios, plus digital and photographic equipment and industry-standard software.

There will also be regular live design projects, professional development seminars, and concept panels to ensure you are regularly challenged and asked to articulate and reflect on your learning. Through these you will develop and refine your design practice for a dynamic professional future.

How are you assessed?

We’ll use a range of assessment methods, including:

• design outputs and portfolios
• visual / textual essays
• leading seminar discussions and presentations