Bachelor in Design, get to know the newest program
IE University and the IE School of Architecture and Design have recently launched the Bachelor in Design, a state-of-the-art program that goes along with the evolution and transformation of this field. In order to understand the essence of this degree we had the pleasure of interviewing Edgar Gonzalez, the creator and director of the program.
Edgar’s limitless curiosity has led him to work in very diverse and prestigious companies and studios such as Zaha Hadid, Arco Design, The Economist and The Guardian. He has collaborated for 9 years with the MediaLab-Prado in Madrid and taught in several universities. In addition, he has dedicated for the last 13 years to highlight the trends of architecture, design and innovation in his blog edgargonzalez.com
Edgar Gonzalez, Director of Undergraduate Studies in Design
- What is the Bachelor in Design at IE University about?
The Bachelor in Design aims to generate a design mindset over a strong platform that holds the foundations of the design today. During the first years, the program will explore all areas within design so the student can experience the different approaches to this discipline being able to solve problems with an analytical mindset. After exploring and having seen all these possibilities, students will choose the area of specialization or master they are more passionate about.
We want our students to develop an approach to problems with an unprejudiced but analytical and purposeful look that allows them to practice design in several areas, from the most abstract to the most tangible. From Service Design, User Experience Design (UX), Visual Design (online and offline graphic design), Digital Product Design, to Product and Interior Design:
- What makes it different?
Besides the new approach to design, this program has some elements that combined, make this degree unique. Design as a craft or as a profession, is one of the fields that is having a deeper and quicker transformation and it’s becoming more and more useful for society. We base our learning experience on designing functional and valuable things for people and communities… hence, for business. To achieve this, the structure of the program is based on 3 strong areas: 1) design (functional, emotional, and experiential), 2) business (to consider the financial and economic factors in the process of designing) and 3) social sciences (since we are designing for people, we need to know how to study their needs, their feelings and frustrations). In this way, we aim the students to be prepared to design things that really matter
Another key aspect or element of this degree is the project-oriented methodology: the Design Studio courses that are the backbone of the program. Throughout projects, from the first half to the last, students will integrate all practices and all the knowledge acquired in other classes.
- You mentioned before that the field of design is having a crucial transformation, can you explain us how?
Yes, sure. I like to put the example of the famous User Experience (UX) that has now become popular but did not exist three years ago. UX is the design of the experiences you have with a digital interface; it can be web page or it can be an application. These interfaces were being designed by programmers but perhaps they weren’t the most qualified people to do it. There was no discipline before, and in only 3 years, has become the most demanded area in terms of job positions.
In Fastco Design magazine, they mention that graphic design is evolving into “visual design”. This means that the offline aspect of graphic design is being combined with an online component to complete the “look & feel experience”. This is why I speak a little more of Visual Design, which includes not only the physical component, but also this explosion in the digital formats.
Another interesting part of the UX (and also did not exist as a discipline) is the digital product design. Before, we had the conception that a product was a physical object; a bottle of shampoo, a chair, a table ... that we conceived as "product design". But since the digital revolution has come to us, a great part of the products have become intangibles and digital, for instance, an application like Airbnb is a product… a digital product. The digital product design conceives this factor, in which the user interact with it, so here comes UX.
- Who should study the Bachelor in Design at IE University?
People with creative intentions, restless people, people who are very curious and that not take things for granted. People who like to seek the afterlife that are not entirely satisfied with the reality that surround them, they believe that things can be improved.
This degree is for catalysts, people that have a special sensitivity to detect what does not work in a situation and have the ability to propose alternatives of improvement.
- Where will our students could work after graduating?
I see our graduates working on various profile types: first, obviously in a design studio, which will be the most natural step. They either will start working for someone, establish their own design studios or in areas of consulting for innovation. I see them working in design driven companies such as AirBnb, Apple, Google or Dyson.
It can also be extended to more conventional companies that will require profiles like this to survive with design and innovation.