Global Innovation Design

The MA/MSc Global Innovation Design programme consists of three core phases across the two years. You will spend the first phase (two terms) in London, the second phase abroad (two terms) with partner institutions either in Tokyo and New York or in Beijing and Singapore (attending in person unless extreme circumstances prevent travel) and the third phase back in London (two terms).

Terms 1 & 2

Phase 1 is made up of a series of units where you will gain confidence exploring the GID transdisciplinary and cultural landscape and in developing your core skills, knowledge, strategies and practices. These lay the foundations for the future stages of the programme by exposing you to new ways of thinking and working and helping to grow personal toolkits.

Terms 3 & 4

For phase 2, you will be based at overseas partner institutions gaining new skills and conducting immersive cultural design research. Through each of these institutions you will experience a unique culture and mode of teaching, and be exposed to a unique set of local expertise that will challenge and enrich your global education experience. With the partners you will learn as part of the local curriculum, and so will study alongside local students to experience the local cultural and disciplinary differences.

To develop your professional agency as you travel, you will be given a number of opportunities to work on open brief solo projects. In each location you will also have an opportunity to work on a project supervised by the local academic team and in the local academic style. To support this, the cultural units and the Process Metamorphosis units will be led by the RCA and ICL teams to act as an anchor in your cultural experience. In these you will consciously reflect on your experiences in a new culture, and on your own personal development.

Terms 5 & 6

In phase 3 you will further develop your individual and professional agency, vision, leadership, knowledge and skills through self-directed work. Three units (Context Exploration, Impact Experimentation and Action) will take you through different stages of the innovation process to help you develop your ideas and vision into an innovation that can have a positive impact in the world. In addition, you will be able to choose an elective unit to develop specialisms in particular areas of interest to you.

Our GID international partners are selected as they are top universities in their fields and their respective countries. As part of the exchange therefore, you will experience a breath of learning styles considered to be the leading edge across the world.

Keio University, Tokyo

The host department is Keio Media Design (KMD) Graduate School at the Hiyoshi Campus of Keio University, Tokyo, Japan. KMD’s mission is to develop media innovators who have the ability to innovate on their own to create social value, and to go beyond specific disciplines and national borders.

The Pratt Institute, New York

The host department is the Industrial Design Department (Pratt ID) Graduate School at the Pratt Institute Brooklyn Campus in New York City. Pratt ID aims to develop designers with a deeper understanding of the design process from research through concept creation and design skills. The curriculum is founded on the common pursuit of creativity, experimentation, and innovation, explored through a series of projects, large and small that translate ideas into a wide variety of new forms, systems, and structures.

Tsinghua University, Beijing

The host department is the Academy of Arts and Design at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China. Tsinghua is one of the best performing universities in China. Designers on the GID programme at Tsinghua take part in a customised programme that explores the intersection of social design, designing for manufacture and cultural transfer. As the rest of the school teaches in Mandarin, GID students are unable to select classes or work directly with local students, but they often have the opportunity to work alongside other exchange students such as those from the Politecnico di Milano. However, the custom curriculum has been developed with the aim of providing a unique multidisciplinary educational experience for postgraduates of exceptional ability who aspire to become key innovators and leader of innovation for a globalised world.

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

The host department is the School of Art, Design, and Media (ADM) at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore. ADM is host to a range of inter-disciplinary courses are designed to mould creative individuals into outstanding artists, designers, animators, new media performers and even business leaders. Their aim is to liberate imaginative minds to unleash breakthrough design as an integral part of life.

Please note: Wherever possible you will attend in person with our partners, however, there are a number of factors which may impact your ability to physically travel to a partner institution. This may include, but are not limited to, international politics, visa complications, global travel restrictions, and medical complications resulting in lack of fitness to travel.

If you cannot travel or attend a residency, an alternative curriculum will be provided to enable you to meet the learning outcomes of the programme and continue to grow your practice