Master of Design

Summary

Build on your existing industry experience and deepen your design practice. Research and explore a new area of design—and take your career further.

Develop your design practice through research

Give yourself the space and time to expand your practice. With a Master of Design, you’ll explore the area of design you are most passionate about while strengthening your research skills.

You’ll be working with expert guidance from deeply knowledgeable academics who are leaders in their disciplines.

Choose your area of research

Because the MDes is a research degree, you’ll need to choose an area of design to focus on and then find a supervisor to help guide your work.

Use the School’s Design Research Groups to help you decide. Choose a group that fits with your current knowledge, career goals, and planned research portfolio topic.

You may also do your research within these Design Research Groups. You’ll work alongside students and academics with similar design interests in a stimulating and supportive environment for inspiration and discovery.

To find out about the School of Design Innovation’s research areas and supervising staff, visit the School's Research site.

Get the postgraduate Architecture and Design Innovation handbook

Find out more about your study options. Fill in a form to download our Wellington Faculty of Architecture and Design Innovation handbook.

Download the handbook

How you'll study

The Master of Design is a portfolio-based Masters qualification that you can complete in one year, or 9 to 12 months. Expect a workload of 40 to 45 hours a week for much of the year. You can start your study at any time.

You may also be able to study by distance. Talk to the programme director to discuss this option.

Duration and workload

You can study for an MDes part time, over 18 to 24 months. You have up to three years from enrolment to complete and present your research portfolio.

You will need to do around 20 to 23 hours of work a week. Make sure you take this into account if you are working.

Duration and workload

The MDes can be completed within three trimesters of full-time study.

Studying full time, you can expect a workload of 40 to 45 hours a week for much of the year.

Resources and expertise

At our Te Aro and Miramar campuses you’ll have access to workshops and dedicated design resources that include:

• woodworking, metalworking, and hand tools
• a specialist photography studio and equipment
• a purpose-built fashion studio with digital and traditional pattern-making resources
• 3D printing digital fabrication suites with Stratasys voxel printers and a large-scale BigRep 3D printer
• facilities for recycling used plastics into 3D printing filament
• facilities for working with bio-based materials
• a robotic arm
• film editing suites.

Our specialist technicians will help you to get the most out of the resources available, whatever your previous level of knowledge.

Find out more about our facilities and take a virtual tour.

Master of Design Innovation

If you are moving directly into postgraduate study from a Bachelor’s degree in design like the Bachelor of Design Innovation, the Master of Design Innovation (MDI) is a better option for you.

You’ll develop research skills, build a portfolio, and get a head start on your new career.

Scholarships for international students

We are currently offering a NZ$10,000 VUW Postgraduate International Scholarship to all eligible international students enrolling in a Master’s degree or Postgraduate Diploma programme. Your scholarship will be processed automatically when your programme application is accepted, and the amount will be deducted from your tuition fees.

Future careers

When you graduate with an MDes, you’ll have strengthened your research skills as well as deepened your knowledge in a specific area of design. You’ll be ready to take the next step in your design career.

You could find work as:

• an industrial or product designer
• an interaction designer
• a visual effects artist
• a digital animator
• a tabletop or video game designer
• an illustrator
• a service designer
• a web designer.

Graduates from the School of Design Innovation work across the breadth of design in New Zealand and overseas. They work at organisations like:

• Wētā FX & Wētā Workshop
• Fisher & Paykel Healthcare
• Lego
• the Australian Centre for Social Innovation
• Nike.

Your research project may even lead directly into a new business. Recent graduates from the School of Design have founded startups directly out of University—like the Bra Project, and Utilize NZ.

Scholarships

You may be able to get a scholarship to help fund your studies. We have postgraduate and doctoral scholarships available, as well as specialised scholarships for different groups and subject areas.

Research grants

You may be able to ...