Design for Development

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The Design for Development MA focuses on the value of design as a vehicle for addressing social and ecological concerns in both the developed and developing worlds. It equips you with the knowledge and skills you need to create and lead the required design projects, businesses and organisations, whether you are already a trained designer or not.

You will be taught by leading academics, design thinkers and organisations in sustainable design and participatory design, corporate social responsibility, entrepreneurship, environmental management and other connected topics. We work closely with organisations such as the Design Council, Sorrell Foundation, ThinkPublic, and Audi. There is also the opportunity to participate in Greengaged activities and events.

What will you study?

The Design for Development MA is about the need to change to a more sustainable and equitable society. The course content focuses on building a road-map to get there. You will be undertaking your studies in a number of faculties and schools across the University.

Socially and ecologically considered design urges:

* innovation;
* participatory design thinking;
* project and stakeholder identification;
* sustainable development models;
* entrepreneurship; and
* an anticipation of the consequences of communications, products and services.

This approach requires new knowledge, skills and collaborative partnerships.

We will examine ways to inspire and challenge organisations with positive, real-world solutions for a sustainable future through design interventions. It's about exploring innovative and practical ways to help realise those visions, emphasising design, innovation, entrepreneurship, leadership, communication and campaigning.

Please note that this is an indicative list of modules and is not intended as a definitive list. Those listed here may also be a mixture of core and optional modules.

.module-description { display: none; }.module-title-link { display: block; } Core modules

* Visioning a Sustainable World
* Visioning a Sustainable World
This module looks at public service design and other conceptual and operational techniques. Through group and individual work, you will explore the idea of designers as facilitators and the role of design as a tool for developing sustainable solutions.

You will:

* generate ideas for possible solutions;
* visualise, argue through and contextualise them in scenarios; and
* present them in concise, visual and potentially participatory forms.

You will also develop the skills and knowledge you need to undertake primary social research for such design projects.


* Entrepreneurship in Context
* Entrepreneurship in Context
This module is designed for students who want to learn about entrepreneurship in their context, develop a proposal for an enterprise idea, and develop their entrepreneurial capability.

The module aims to:

* develop your understanding of context-specific (national and international, large or small firm) entrepreneurship drivers;
* encourage the identification and development of enterprise or innovation opportunities in contexts of interest;
* provide knowledge and understanding of concepts of planning for new enterprises or organisational innovations; and
* develop your entrepreneurial capability through idea-generation, project planning, networking and engaging with the entrepreneurship community.


* Sustainable Design Principles, Perspectives and Practices
* Sustainable Design Principles, Perspectives and Practices
This module guides you through the key principles, perspectives and practices informing the various articulations of 'sustainable development' and more specifically 'sustainable design' in a variety of developed and developing world contexts. This will include:

* exploring how design and designers can contribute to achieving sustainable development; and
* contemporary examples of successful sustainable design practice.

You will also develop the skills of researching and writing essays, and making oral presentations.


* Managing Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainable Development
* Managing Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainable Development
This module considers the key theoretical and practical aspects of managing corporate social responsibility and sustainable development. Tutorial exercises on ethical dilemmas, lectures, guest speakers and case studies will be used to support the learning process.

The aims of the module are to:

* explain the key features of corporate social responsibility (CSR), and sustainable development (SD);
* challenge you with the main concepts, issues, and practices of corporate social responsibility, and to enable you to manage organisations in a socially responsible way;
* enable an appreciation of the history and development of CSR and SD policies at global, national and local levels; and
* analyse and evaluate CSR and SD practices as applied to different business functions.


* Major Design Research Project
* Major Design Research Project
You will undertake a self-directed major design research project in this module, producing either a body of completed design work or a design management project report.

We will encourage you to work in association with an external organisation or your employer. This provides you with a wider experience of the practical development, management and implementation of a sustainable design project. You will devise and manage the project but focus on either designing or managing the design solution.



Option modules

* Biodiversity and Conservation
* Biodiversity and Conservation
This module aims to:

* review the concept of biodiversity and examine current conservation strategies and issues;
* examine the application of biodiversity concepts and conservation strategies at local, regional, national and global scales; and
* introduce ecological fieldwork for rapid site appraisal.


* Marketing
* Marketing
This module introduces you to marketing, explaining the importance of a marketing orientation. It aims to:

* take you through the stages of developing, testing and implementing a marketing strategy, and
* develop an understanding of the key marketing concepts and how these relate to organisational performance.

You will learn how to:

* conduct detailed environment analysis;
* develop appropriate segmentation, targeting, and positioning strategies; and
* prepare marketing plans with appropriate mix activity and control mechanisms.

The course includes the financial implications of marketing mix activity and the assessment of risk.


* Managing Creativity and Innovation
* Managing Creativity and Innovation
This module aims to develop entrepreneurial management behaviours, encouraging an approach to learning that copes with and enjoys uncertainty, risks and complexity.


* Meaning and Protection of Human Rights
* Meaning and Protection of Human Rights
This module covers:

* the scope and content of core human rights; and
* conceptual issues involved in fundamental debates about human rights.

You also develop a critical understanding of a set of contemporary human rights problems. The teaching and learning strategy will involve a mix of lectures, debates and seminars. The assessment for this module is an essay.


* Media, Public Policy and International Politics
* Media, Public Policy and International Politics
The main aims of this module are to:

* develop a sound knowledge of an emerging multi-disciplinary field, which draws on public policy studies, media studies and sociology;
* develop an understanding of some of the key factors, agents and interactions informing public policy debates, processes and deliberations;
* develop a critical understanding of the contributions and limits of the media to public policy debates and vice-versa; and
* enable you to apply critically frameworks and models to different public policy types, cultures, contexts and current situations.


* Sustainable Cities
* Sustainable Cities
This module is a critical appreciation of urban society and its future as it becomes the norm for the majority of the world's population, it is an essential requirement for the built environment professional.

The module provides an opportunity to debate the theoretical concepts of sustainable cities, allowing critical analysis of the drivers, legislation and processes governing sustainable urban environments. The ability to consider issues from a variety of perspectives and evaluate strategies for spatial planning is engendered.

The module intends to encourage a commitment to social, economic and environmental issues, which influence the creation, delivery and maintenance of sustainable cities.


* Sustainable Environmental Management

- Applicants should have a good BA(Hons)/BSc(Hons) degree or an equivalent British or overseas qualification.- Both design trained and non-design educated professionals are considered equally.- We will also consider applicants with relevant work experience.- A portfolio of work, preferably on CD, can accompany your application.- International students must have an IELTS score of 6.5 or equivalent.InterviewsWe will invite all shortlisted applicants for interview. We can make alternative arrangements for international students based overseas.Prior learning - AP(E)LApplicants with prior qualifications and learning may be exempt from appropriate parts of a course in accordance with the University's policy for the assessment of prior learning and prior experiential learning. English Language Requirements CAE score: (read more) Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) is part of the Cambridge English suite and is targeted at a high level (IETLS 6.5-8.0). It is an international English language exam set at the right level for academic and professional success. Developed by Cambridge English Language Assessment - part of the University of Cambridge - it helps you stand out from the crowd as a high achiever. 75 (Grade B)