Degree programmes at Design School Kolding
Please note that in order to apply for the Bachelor Programme, you must be proficient in Danish.
The design programmes at Design School Kolding are higher education programmes at Bachelor’s and Master’s level. The school trains professional designers in communications, fashion, industrial design, textiles and accessories design. It takes five years to qualify as a designer with the right to use the title MDes (Master of Design).
The programme is divided into a three-year Bachelor’s degree and a two-year Master’s degree. It is also possible to pursue a PhD programme of three years. In collaboration with the University of Southern Denmark, Design School Kolding offers a Master’s degree in design management.
An independent study
Design School Kolding offers an artistic-creative, experimental environment where students can develop insights into design as a profession, and the skills and attitudes necessary to work in the design industry, both in professional and interdisciplinary and national and international contexts.
A design education is an independent course of study that places great demands on the student’s motivation and independence. A major part of the education is project based, and here you will either work alone or in collaboration with other students and/or companies to develop design concepts or products. This method of working requires a great deal of students in respect of their ability to collaborate and to work effectively under deadlines.
On a daily basis, students encounter five principal types of instruction:
Design discipline instruction, theoretical instruction, cross-disciplinary instruction, cross-disciplinary project instruction and external project-orientated instruction.
The design discipline instruction qualifies students with a specific set of skills and knowledge that relates to the area of study in which they have chosen to specialise. The theoretical instruction provides students with a broad theoretical grounding and methodological terminology as well as a historical perspective on the development of the design discipline. The cross-disciplinary instruction qualifies students in the more general design skills of, for example, the theory of form, design methods, visualisation, sketching, etc. The cross-disciplinary project instruction enables students to work across the various design disciplines. The external project-orientated instruction develops students’ ability to work with tangible design assignments for and in collaboration with external partners from companies or other educational institutions.
Design School Kolding is in constant motion and in ongoing dialogue with its surroundings. It is natural for the school that the development of the design programme takes place in dialogue and encounters with other education institutions, politicians, the business world and the design industry – across national borders. During their studies, it is possible for students to pursue some of their education outside Design School Kolding, either as part of an exchange programme or together with their team at one of the school’s outposts in, for example Shanghai.
Company collaboration and internship
During the course of their studies, there will also be many opportunities for students to collaborate with companies as part of their education. Business collaborations provide students with the opportunity to work under conditions and with issues that actually exist in the design professional’s world and which are part of the curriculum. In other words, business collaboration can lend substance to a student’s CV, which, after graduation, can help to ensure solid, academically relevant employment. From the company’s viewpoint, a design student can provide the enterprise with new knowledge and inspiration, including fostering innovation and talent development.
The design education programme concludes with a graduation project. For the graduation project, the student gets to collaborate with an external partner in order to showcase and develop his/her design talents. The graduation project is developed and evaluated as the final element of the 2-year MA programme and is subsequently exhibited in the School’s annual Graduation Exhibition.