Qualifications
Overview
Industrial Product Design is one of three majors of the Bachelor of the Product Design degree combining creative innovation with technical and business skills.
Products such as mobile phones, mobility-assist devices, automatic espresso coffee machines, microwave ovens or bicycles all have elements in both design and usability. This major will teach you how to design products that solve problems, as well as create interest for consumers.
You will also develop skills in product design methods such as sketching and computer-aided design, fluid flow, power and energy, and materials selection that is ergonomic, functional, and appealing. You will gain a practical understanding of the product design lifecycle – from idea generation to prototyping and commercialisation.
Industrial designers are imaginative, have good artistic skills, innovative, able to work well under pressure, and be good communicators who are open to criticism. They are also persuasive at selling their ideas to clients.
Why study Industrial Product Design at UC?
- UC’s Te Kura Hanga Otinga | School of Product Design brings together creative design, science, engineering, and business studies. There are opportunities to apply your learning through team-based projects, entrepreneurship courses, and the use of dedicated, hands-on product innovation spaces.
- UC has a range of state-of-the-art facilities to assist students through the product design process, including an industrial 3D printer, and testing laboratories.
- UC is ranked 240th in the world for Engineering and Technology, and in the top 250 universities in the world for Business and Management Studies (QS World University Rankings by Subject, 2020).
Recommended preparation
Students should ideally have at least 14 credits in Level 2 NCEA science and mathematics (or the IB/CIE equivalent of these).
Courses
UC offers a major in Industrial Product Design as part of the Bachelor of Product Design.
At all levels, students will undertake significant hands-on projects, working in teams and individually, to design and test prototypes to the level needed to launch or pitch a new product concept to a client or investor.
Industrial Product Design major
To complete a major in Industrial Product Design within the Bachelor of Product Design, you will need to take the following courses throughout the degree:
100-level
- PROD 111 Materials Science for Design
- PHYS 101 Engineering Physics A: Mechanics, Waves, Electromagnetism and Thermal Physics or PHYS 111 Introductory Physics for Physical Sciences and Engineering
200-level
- PROD 211 Materials Engineering and Selection
- PROD 212 Thermofluids
- PROD 213 Industrial Product Design 1A
- PROD 214 Industrial Product Design 1B
- ENME 201 Design Communication
- ENME 221 Engineering Design and Manufacture
300-level
- PROD 311 Drawing and Solid CAD Modelling
- PROD 313 Industrial Product Design 2A
- PROD 314 Industrial Product Design 2B
- One 200-level Engineering or Science course
- One 300-level Engineering or Science course
Career opportunities
Graduates will be able to develop creative product ideas based on their knowledge of related sciences and engineering disciplines, as well as practical business skills to commercialise these ideas.
Combining engineering and science with creative arts and business will help you shape a career with unlimited possibilities, as industrial designers work across many different industries. You can work in design departments of large manufacturing companies, design or engineering consultancies, architectural practices, or have the possibility to be self-employed with your own company.
Other example areas include furniture, electronics, packaging, medical appliances, consumer goods, vehicles, ergonomics, and recreational and sports equipment.
Find out more about what you can do with a degree in Industrial Product Design.
Contact us
School of Product Design | Te Kura Hanga Otinga
Phone +64 3 369 4271 or +64 3 369 4272
Email [email protected]
Location
Len Lye Building – see the School’s website for up-to-date location details.
Postal address
College of Engineering | Te Rāngai Pūkaha
University of Canterbury | Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha
Private Bag 4800
Christchurch 8140
New Zealand