Studying Design in Bozen - Bolzano

The study model adopted by the Faculty is innovative and exciting: its study schemes comprise projects based on an interdisciplinary approach including both theoretical and practical subjects. This innovative model is simple in its design – it is based on current work practices in which graduates engage once they have finished their studies. Thus, project work is the primary component of the degrees followed in the Faculty. Students have to deal with complex practical problems in the projects, which requires students to research and investigate individually, creating solutions to the problems posed. Project work is amply supported by seminars whose theoretical content consolidates the work undertaken on the projects. Project work is fully consolidated through courses that take place in our specially equipped workshops as well as through further specialized courses.

Workshop courses encourage experimental work. The workshop is a place where students are able to create and innovate, realising their ideas and learning through their mistakes.

The teaching staff is international, young, innovative and motivated. The staff include professionals hailing from the world of work who are able to transmit the experience they have gained through work with our students. There are no classes in the traditional sense, but workgroups consisting of a maximum of twenty students, coming from the first, second and third year of the course. It is an excellent way to work, guaranteeing students direct contact with their lecturers and thus ensuring that they are treated as individuals. Nowadays, the profile of a designer can no longer be distinguished between product design and visual communication. This profile has changed greatly due to the opportunities offered by digital technology, thus becoming an interdisciplinary profile where 2D and 3D are fully integrated. Product designers now also work in the area of interface design creating web pages as well as in the area of interior design where product design and visual communication skills all come together to produce even better results than before. A designer is no longer a solitary individual – he or she is a mixture of various skills. A designer is no longer a specialist, but rather a “generalist”, who in the future will have an ever-increasing social responsibility. An example of this would be in the use of materials, where the designer also has to consider the ecological implications of his or her choice of materials and whether they are recyclable. So, who should study design? What characteristics does a design student have? Certainly he or she should be open to the world and demonstrate curiosity, an ability to analyse and understand possible problems. The design student should also observe and be creative, be able to work effectively in a team, have a transversal vision, be able to “cope”. Studying design is not limited to classroom hours – a designer is a designer 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.