Programme Overview

The Masters in Design Innovation & Citizenship at The Glasgow School of Art explores the relationship between design practice and contemporary society and encourages a design-led critique of the present. The programme asks design practitioners to step beyond their traditional professional and occupational role and to consider the broader application of design practices, as a means of formulating and articulating social change.

In challenging the purpose, methods and ambitions of current design practice, you will identify opportunities for new design activity, pioneer innovative forms of engagement and collaborate with citizens to generate responses to emerging problems, political issues and social phenomena.

Citizenship means being part of a community that has the power and capabilities to enact change when it is needed. We look at ways of helping people to take control of circumstances and processes that directly affect their everyday lives through the intelligent application of design thinking.

Graduates of Design Innovation & Citizenship will deploy their creative capacity beyond the world of consultancy or in-house design, embracing challenges within areas as diverse as public policy, private sector enterprise, citizen or social advocacy, public sector service provision, social enterprise and/or the voluntary sector.

The programme will bring its focus to bear in these specific areas:

• Contemporary civil society and its engagement with the Social, Public, and Private Sectors;
• Emerging issues in society - the challenges provoked by new scientific, technological, economic constructs and/or material possibilities;
• Extending the epistemological framework of design practice and the engagement with contemporary culture and the lives of its inhabitants.

You will also have the opportunity to engage with peers from international schools as part of the annual Winter School held at the campus in Forres. This seasonal event brings together students and faculty from leading institutions around the world for a two-week programme of lectures, workshops and networking opportunities that offers an insight into what a career in design as a global activity looks like.

Assessment

The assessment combines written work, visual and project material produced both by groups and individuals. The assessment formats are designed to develop analytical thinking, creative synthesis and a rigorous capacity for reflection and self-evaluation. There is an emphasis upon collaborative studio working combined with individual exploration and analysis of theoretical positions and discourses. Students will also achieve PgCert and PgDip exit awards during this course.