Design Academy & 1
Design Academy is Design Council s new programme for UK design students at leading universities. It will deliver world-class training so that by the time students graduate and move into the job market, they have gained an invaluable competitive edge. The four-day module is based on our System for Innovation which we currently deliver on MBAs, to civil servants, small and mediumsized businesses and large corporates and their supply chains. Each year, the module will tackle a major societal challenge that Design Council is currently working on. In our inaugural year, the focus of the programme will be Design for Care. We d love your students to take part in this exciting new programme. 2
Design Academy is for design schools that want: 1 2 3 4 5 6 To optimise student employability and versatility To place greater emphasis on strategic design and design for innovation To break down subject boundaries and enhance interdisciplinary practice To provide students with enhanced leadership opportunities and promotional platforms A competitive edge within a crowded market place An affiliation with Design Council 3
The Challenge The UK is world renowned for its design capability 1, with the largest design industry in Europe, and the second globally, after the USA. According to the latest government statistics, the sector grew 10.8% each year from 2008-13, compared to 4.2% for the rest of the economy 2. We have some of the best design schools in the world, attracting students from across the globe. While this is reason for celebration, we shouldn t become complacent. The number of design schools opening up overseas is increasing all the time China has over 1,000, compared to 78 in the UK and the quality of those schools will only improve. In the past decade, some UK institutions have created Masterslevel design programmes. These are very attractive to overseas students but in time, such postgraduate courses will become more prevalent overseas. As other countries improve their design education, they ll become greater competitors to the UK. We must continue to invest in UK design capabilities to retain our global relevance, build on our competitive advantage and keep the pipeline of design talent strong. Design Academy aims to complement design courses. It gives students an additional edge by exposing them to material often not encountered till masters level programmes. 1 Our plan for growth: Science and Innovation December 2014, HM Treasury and Department for Business, Innovation & Skills 2 Creative Industries Economic Estimates January 2015, Department for Culture, Media & Sport 4
Why is the module needed? The war for talent highlights the challenge in talent recruitment. Despite the close relationship between universities and industry, industry can still find it difficult to recruit young designers. Some cite a lack of fundamental skills (for example, Jonathan Ive s recent critique of product design courses 1 ). Other employers believe that the attributes they look for when hiring a designer are often lacking such as commercial awareness, critiquing, working collaboratively and dealing with complexity. This programme provides an experience that serves to complement the core design skills taught at university with some of the more strategic design skills we know industry seek. The UK will benefit from a more diverse design workforce and designers working in a greater range of sectors. As research from McKinsey 2 shows, the most diverse companies are the most successful. By enabling design students to become aware of the job opportunities available beyond the creative industries, we hope to eventually encourage a more diverse range of students onto design courses. In addition, there is a growing market for design thinking in the public and third sectors, as well as in business and international consultancy. Design Academy will provide further knowledge of design in these contexts - and therefore help students be confident and articulate when applying for such sectors. With a sizeable and competitive market with up to 65,000 students studying design at any one time in the UK design schools need to stand out. By helping students future-proof their investment, our module makes universities more competitive and able to attract the best talent to their courses. 1 http://www.dezeen.com/2014/11/13/design-education-tragic-says-jonathan-ive-apple/ 2 http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/organization/is_there_a_payoff_from_top-team_diversity 5
Virtually every industry sector is recognising the need for an increase in multidisciplinary collaboration to drive innovation. However, universities sometimes find it difficult to break down internal silos, both within and across faculties. Design Academy aims to facilitate this type of learning by breaking down the boundaries between design disciplines. Cutting-edge design research from industry or academia often isn t filtering back into teaching. Some institutions feed their own design research findings back into taught programme curricula but this tends to be the exception, not the norm. The courses themselves are full of invaluable content, but emerging practice on design for innovation doesn t always find a home. This module, with its focus on applying innovative design thinking from industry and academia to existing challenges, makes leading research available to students. 6
Why Design Council Design Council s work enables ambitious leaders, managers and teams in the public and private sector to use design thinking, processes and methods to get closer to what people need. The resulting insights drive new ideas to rethink, redefine, develop and deliver better solutions and experiences. We build new markets for strategic design. However, looking to the future we are aware that the new and emerging clients of strategic design cannot always find designers with the requisite skills to apply it. Working in this field enables us to better understand the long-term skills needs of the design sector, putting us in a strong position to support the future-proofing of design education. Our latest research Leading Business by Design (looking at aerospace, construction and automotive industries) and Designing our Future, focusing on trends in design and implications for the sector (eg ethics in design, design for urban billions, shifts in global competition) will be incorporated into the Design Academy course. Since Design Academy, I am now more confident about my future as I feel design is extremely important to everyone in life. I can do anything with my degree not just design wallpaper like my dad thinks! 2 nd Year Textile and Surface Design student 7
Course information Following consultation with universities, students and industry over the last year, we have developed a dynamic and interactive four-day module for design students. Initially, we are offering Design Academy to a mixed cohort of students in design schools. Our ultimate goal is to extend the offer to students from a range of disciplines (eg, mixed cohorts from design, social science, business and technology). No. of contact hours: No. of students: Level of study proposed: Credit points: 30 (across four days), plus 10 hours of additional independent study 30 (from a minimum of three design disciplines) Level 5 (penultimate year of study) Not accredited Delivered when: During academic year 2015 16 Delivered how: Delivered where: Delivery method: Assessment method: How much does it cost? Across a semester (see page 14 for further details) A minimum of two days at your institute, one day off-site plus remote support (to be determined with individual institute) Blended (75% face-to-face / 25% online) Will be discussed with individual universities pending their assessment schema 15,000 (equivalent to 500 per student, ex VAT) 8
Who will deliver the module? The module leader will be a Design Council Design Associate, with additional teaching provided by the Design Council team and industry experts. What is a Design Associate? A Design Associate is an experienced design management specialist - recruited by Design Council via a rigorous seven stage process - who provides handson, independent guidance. Our network of Design Associates comprises professionals with a wide range of expertise across disciplines and experience working with some of the world s leading companies. 9
Module overview This module focuses on the development of strategic design capabilities. Strategic design capability is a fundamental requirement for design practitioners today and in the future, as the needs of business and the public sector become increasingly complex and the challenges they are tackling require a more integrated response from design. The module will introduce students to Design Council s System for Innovation, which provides a comprehensive way for individuals and organisations to respond to innovation challenges. The three core components that underpin the System for Innovation are: Framework Our framework supports exploring an innovation challenge within a market or sector, with reference material to support a diagnostic process. Process Design Council s Double Diamond design process model is globally recognised. The way we use this supports the shaping, definition and management of innovation projects. Methods Three key principles underpin design-oriented projects: being people centred, being visual and working collaboratively and iteratively. Each principle has well established and proven methods in delivering innovation. Bringing students from a range of disciplines together, the module will incorporate concepts related to user-centred design, technological understanding and business sense. We believe the best learning happens in context, so each year our module will be themed around a real life challenge that Design Council is working on. For 2015 16, the theme will be Design for Care. We are likely to set design briefs which will feed into the programme and/or set a research and scoping task to further define areas of focus. 10
Within my course we get taught that collaboration is essential, however I feel having an external voice really highlights the point. After Design Council training I feel more confident that design thinking is the skill you really need and you can apply this to any specialist and relevant field. 3 rd year Interior Design student 11
Learning outcomes On successful completion of the module, students will be able to: Understand how design can provide a framework for innovation when addressing private and public sector challenges Apply design frameworks, processes and methods to real world problems Identify and frame new opportunities that directly tackle these problems Practice shaping projects that will deliver successful outcomes Demonstrate collaborative and team-working practices relevant to modern organisational needs 12 The training made me aware that I could use these skills within any area of design, not just graphics. Through these tasks, I found myself using skills to answer problems that a product designer would usually tackle, for example. 3 rd year Graphic Design student
About Design for Care Over the next three to five years Design for Care will apply world-renowned design talent in a drive to invent and develop new systems, processes, products and services to increase wellbeing, to help reduce unnecessary hospital admissions and to help people stay in their own homes. We wish to create a care system that is more personalised, more connected and more preventative. To meet this demand we will need to broaden the notion of care from eligibility-measured services to the responsibility of the community. It s a challenge of wider collaboration between individuals and carers, family and friends, neighbours and volunteers and professionals. This more radical approach requires real imagination. We therefore see great value in partnering with design students to develop the programme. 13
Design Academy overview A four-day learning programme delivered over the course of one academic semester* WEEK 1/DAY 2 Independent study Independent study WEEK 1/DAY 1 Kick off: Strategic value of design to organisations. Key principles of design for innovation. Frameworks and techniques to apply the principles. Opportunity identification: Creating a Design for Care project that takes advantage of framework and principles. Pitching project ideas and developing detailed project plans. Presentations with facilitated group critique. WEEK 5/DAY 3 Progression clinics: Surgeries to support project development. Industry expert webinars (eg, with Philips) to help provide additional contextual information. WEEK 10/DAY 4 Demo day: Project showcase and review with invited audience from industry academia and Design Council. Review and reflect on module and how to embed in studies and future career planning. Guest speaker from industry. University University Online Off-site** Ideally the module will be delivered across a period of 10 weeks. However we can deliver it as an intensive programme. The module can be stand alone or integrated into one of your existing programmes. * Exact timing and locations will be discussed with each University to ensure optimal student experience and alignment with course schedules and learning objectives of module ** Either at Design Council or other Design Academy university 14
Five key benefits to you 1 2 3 4 5 Promotion through partnership Your university is welcome to promote its affiliation with Design Council. In fact, we will actively talk about the design schools we work with as examples of good practice. First mover advantage We ll be working with a limited number of institutions in year one, building the programme slowly over time. By being part of our pioneer group, you ll be ahead of the pack. A point of difference Students take a lot of universities into consideration when applying for a course. An affiliation with Design Council could help you stand out from the crowd. Enabling interdisciplinary approaches Although some universities do this already, many still find it difficult to get students to work in an interdisciplinary way. We will provide the framework to enable this to happen. Flexibility There is enough flexibility within the core four-day module for it to fit into most university timetables. 15
Five key benefits to your students 1 2 3 4 5 Uniqueness Of the 65,000 students studying design every year in the UK, only 300 will have been through Design Council s unique Design Academy programme. A competitive edge From our pilot, we know that students get noticed when they put Design Council s module on their CV. Students will also get a direct connection to relevant and celebrated industry players through the programme. A higher grade average Based on our pilot, where we integrated the four day programme into an existing university module, the average grade for the module was 67%, higher than the average grade for other modules on the same course. Promotional platforms Being part of Design Academy will open doors for students. They will develop a relationship with our core work through their interaction with the Design for Care programme and gain the opportunity to be part of our youth sounding board. Additionally, students will be given the chance to blog for Design Council as well as access other promotional platforms. Peer networking and international opportunities They will become part of a globally recognised UK and international alumni community and get to embark on exciting funded trips to exclusive design networking events in the EU (subject to bid approval). 16
Other considerations Cap on numbers We have capped student numbers at 30 per module. From previous experience, we know this is the maximum amount of students who should take part for the module to be workable. However, if you would like to offer the module to more students, we can speak to you about any discounts that might apply. Student selection and readiness Student readiness is a key factor in success of the module (and we can give you guidance on this). We therefore suggest undertaking an open application process whereby students can self-nominate, and then you select the students to go on the programme. Additional cost We are an enterprising charity, and therefore need to bring in income to deliver our programmes. The current cost of this programme will enable us to break even for year one. We understand departmental budgets are incredibly tight, but we hope that there will be opportunity for you to invest in the module. Accreditation The module is not independently accredited. However, we would be happy to work with you if you would like it accredited by your institution. 17
Payment Payment terms are 50% of the fee in advance, at time of booking, and the remaining 50% in the first semester 2015-16. Assessment We have not yet defined the mode of assessment as we think it would be best to work within your existing frameworks. If you have clear criteria that need to be included, let us know and we will look into how we can best integrate this into the programme. In this pilot year, we re keen to work with you as closely as possible to get things right. Do let us know if you have any questions or concerns that haven t been addressed above. 18
The training has given me an understanding of the way design is used in business, how the business is structured with its personnel, how the personnel has contact with their customers, how the services are provided to the customers and how the services are provided within the structure of a building. 1 st year Product Design student 19
How do I sign up? If you want to be part of our pioneer group for the academic year 2015 16, please contact: bel.reed@designcouncil.org.uk. Design Council Design Council champions great design. For us, that means design that improves lives and makes things better. We stimulate innovation in business and public services, improve the built environment and tackle complex social issues, for example our ageing population and obesity. We inspire new design thinking, encourage public debate and inform Government s policy to improve everyday life helping to meet tomorrow s challenges today. As an independent charity, we are an authoritative, passionate and challenging voice on the role and practice of design. We continue to be the UK Government s advisor on design and our research and campaigns have influenced policy since 1944. Design Academy Design Council Angel Building 407 St John Street London EC1V 4AB bel.reed@designcouncil.org.uk +44(0)20 7420 5200 designcouncil.org.uk/ our-services 20