MA in Design Futures, Goldsmiths, University of London

MA in Design Futures

The MA in Design Futures aims to broaden and deepen your understanding of design practice in its full context, introducing deep ethical and ecological perspectives into the design agenda. You will be encouraged to challenge the existing boundaries and purposes of design as both a professional discipline and creative practice.

"The professors in this course are trying to teach us some new design theories, combined with philosophical ones in order to extend our point views on design. Design, as I learned in the course, is not just making something beautiful, but it’s about the way we live and our care for the environment, such as Ecological Design or Meta Design."

Hsuan-Hui, MA in Design Futures

Length:
1 year full-time or 2 years part-time.

Applying:

Apply now

1 March (although late applications may be considered). Please send 12 images (on CD, disk or photographic slide) of practical work with your application, as well as an essay, or an illustrated report of no more than 1,000 words indicating your current and relevant interests and aims. Please make sure that slides and any supporting material are clearly labelled with your name and address: Goldsmiths cannot accept responsibility for any loss or damage.

Find out more about applying

Entrance requirements:
Normally an undergraduate degree in a design-related subject, and some experience in an area of professional practice. If your degree is in an unrelated field, you may need to take a qualifying examination. If your first language is not English, you should normally have a minimum score of 7.0 in IELTS (including 7.0 in the written element) or equivalent. Find out more about our English Language requirements.

Funding:
AHRC

Careers:
We produce graduates of consistently high calibre, including many who have become leaders in the creative industries of a number of countries, including China, Japan and Korea. Our students have won numerous awards (including UK Young Designer of the Year and Eco-Designer of the Year) and their shows have attracted positive attention in the media and achieved great acclaim in the design community. A number of graduates are now working in top London design consultancies (Fitch, Thomas Heatherwick Studios, Imagination, Pentagram) and major UK companies (John Lewis Partnership, Eden Project, Harvey Nichols).

Fees:
Please see Tuition fees.

Further information:
See some current Research activities by teaching staff.

Staff research interests:
Please see Staff research interests.

Contact the department:
Contact the Department of Design

About the department:
Design

Download a booklet [PDF, 573KB]

In this sense the programme offers a ‘metadesign’ approach that helps you to question design as we currently know it, reconcile your creative aspirations with your responsibilities as a designer, situate your design thinking and practice within a multicultural and interdisciplinary discourse, develop a theoretical framework, and acquire a working design knowledge to develop and articulate subtle ideas to relevant stakeholders.

The MA provides a safe place for taking risks and asking difficult questions. We aim to enhance your ability to address practical design problems in the future by encouraging you to discuss, map, write and ‘pitch’ your futures-focused design proposal to specific audiences. Our unique approach to thinking and writing enables you to find a deeper meaning and value in things that really interest you.

The programme highlights a range of shared issues that are intended to act as thematic ‘filters’ through which you can explore individual concerns. The following four seminar themes correspond to four 5,000-word design proposals required for assessment: Ethics and the Environment; Knowledge and Communication; Society and the Individual; Culture, Technology and Change. By the end of the programme, you submit a 15,000-word dissertation. This can address any design-related issue of your choosing. Part of its purpose is to give you the opportunity to reflect upon your existing design concerns and beliefs in more depth.

Assessment

You attend four interconnected and overlapping seminar courses exploring contemporary and emerging design issues; we encourage you to reflect on your independent, design- related practices within terms introduced via the seminar topics. The courses cover widely differing perspectives derived from, for example, philosophy, anthropology, management and psychology. These tend to overlap as they begin to highlight common practices and to encourage speculation about the future of design itself. Compulsory courses cover: knowledge and communication; society and the individual; technology, culture and change; ethical practices and the environment.

Register your interest

If you register your interest in this programme we will keep you informed about open days and send you relevant further information. If you subsequently decide to apply for this programme you will be able to use the same login details to apply.