Product Design (BA)

All seminars in the area of design basics take place across degree programmes and semesters, i.e. together with students from interface and product design who are in their first three semesters. We recommend that you complete the seminars in this module group at the beginning of your studies.

Elementary Design

The seminars in the area of »Elementary Design« are concerned with teaching elementary, i.e. decidedly not (yet) applied, design basics through the development of representational and technical skills (11EG-B, Basics = Basic Representational Techniques), through the development of an understanding of formal-aesthetic-contentual interactions (11EG-K, Context = Perception and Differentiation) as well as the creative and methodical ability to act for designing (11EG-P, Process = Design Processes and Methods).

Our professors for elementary design Prof. Klaus Keller, Prof. Alexandra Martini (focus on »3D«) and Prof. Myriel Milicevic (focus on »form and process«) teach here. In the elementary design modules, three certificates of achievement must be completed in the first stage of study.

Studio

In the »atelier« area of the design fundamentals, artistic representation techniques are trained and creative explorations are undertaken. In the studio area, we draw, paint, collage on site - it's all about experiencing composition, proportion, situation, body, space, body, light, colour. ...

Our academic staff members Maria Kleinschmidt and Anna Rosinke (drawing and colour) teach here. In the studio area, two certificates of achievement must be completed in the first part of the course.

This is where it is applied: All eight teaching areas of the product design degree programme teach their respective subject-specific basics here. The aim is to try out the essential design and analysis methods of a subject. In addition, you will gain a first perspective insight into the field of activity of product design.

Technology + Product

In the module »Technology + Product«, students learn how to deal with the basic building blocks of form and product development as well as basic knowledge of materials and their processing.

Form + Purpose

The module »Form and Purpose« deals with the topics and conditions of contemporary product culture in order to interpret the knowledge gained in a creative way in exemplary »application«. In this case, »application orientation« means exclusively the concrete relationship between the phenomenon, i.e. the investigation of design developments in relation to the respective socio-cultural conditions and the theoretical and design interpretations to be derived from this.

Space + Context

The module »Space + Context« spans the range between different design disciplines: from room and shop design, exhibition and trade fair design to the design of virtual spaces. Topics of interior design, visual interior design, the staging of events, are taught in a practical manner both in terms of design, conception, technology and organisation with regard to concrete requirements.

Object + Intention

In the module »Object + Intention«, socially relevant questions are presented as the starting point for the conception of possible products, systems, services and scenarios. The reflection of economic, ecological, social or cultural effects of product design is central. The subject of the teaching is the introduction of essential tools for scenario development, conception and the translation of the development results into concrete designs.

Prof. Silvia Knüppel (Design and Perspective), Prof. Hermann Weizenegger (industrial design), Prof. Holger Jahn (mobility and design), Prof. Dr. Sebastian Meier (design of knowledge transfer), Prof. Jörg Hundertpfund (product design) teach here.

In the module group design fundamentals, 5 credits must be completed in the first stage of study, at least 3 of which must be from the student's own degree programme. Our speciality in Potsdam: The other credits can also be obtained in seminars from interface and communication design.

In the module group »Theory«, the basic professional-scientific knowledge is taught and tested. The goal is a basic knowledge of analytical, historical, contextual as well as operational (strategic, economic, procedural, legal) methods, practices, facts and theories. The seminars are offered across all degree programmes.

The subject canon of the theory module group offers an analytical approach with the modules Design Media Theory (13Th-DMT), a historical-sociopolitical approach with Design/Cultural History (13Th-DKG) and an operational approach with Design Management and Design Law (13Th-DMR).

In this module group, our colleagues Prof. Dr. Marion Godau (design, art and cultural history), Prof. Dr. Rainer Funke (design theory), Prof. Dr. Nico Heise (design law) and Prof. Dr. Enrico Sass (business start-up and management techniques) teach full-time.

In this module group, 2 certificates of achievement must be provided.

Our workshops – like the entire degree programme – are interdisciplinary per se, but there are, of course, workshops that are strongly associated with the respective degree programmes and teaching areas. Here, the technical and craft basics of the respective trades are taught. Each student can take an individual workshop portfolio that also extends beyond the boundaries of their own subject area.

Modelling Workshop / Plastic Design

The subject of the module »Modelling Workshop« is modelling and moulding techniques as the basis of creative design development and presentation. Using classical materials such as clay and plaster, classical additive methods of three-dimensional object construction and the translation into plaster models are introduced and practised.

Analogue Model Making Workshops / Wood, Metal, Finish

In the module »Analogue Model Making Workshops«, the variety of classical applications in model making is illustrated. A wide variety of materials such as wood, metal, plastic and textiles are presented here on the basis of traditional as well as contemporary materials and techniques. Based on concrete tasks, the various model functions from quick mock-up model construction to prototype construction are presented and practised.

Digital model making workshops / CAD, CAM

In the module »Digital Model Making Workshops«, CAD-based model making techniques (rapid prototyping) are presented. Based on concrete tasks using digital design development, the interface topic as well as the range of technical and design possibilities, such as 3D print, CAD-based milling techniques, among others, will be explored and implemented in a trial and error manner.

The following colleagues lead our workshops in product design: Anne Boenisch (model-making workshops) Jörg Misch (plaster workshop), Sebastian Reichel (CAD / 3D print workshop), Samira Akhavan-Malyer (Tex-Lab), Peter Kerscher (Mac-Lab).

From this module group, 12 ECTS credit points are required in the first study section, which means the equivalent of 3 to 6 credit points, depending on the course intensity. Some workshop courses are offered in combination with design subjects and are additionally credited.

»Perspectives and Social Skills« are our little »disruption machine«, because here we specifically promote thinking outside the box.

The module group »Perspectives and Social Skills« includes the module Project Weeks, (15PSs-PW), which is the first course for students in the first semester as one of the few compulsory courses at the beginning of the winter semester. In addition, events are developed and carried out in interdisciplinary teams in the module Project Organisation (15PSs-PO). The flex module (15PSs-FM) enables students to participate in university-wide, interdisciplinary courses - i.e. also from other departments of the university of applied sciences.

The »Colloquium« is a cross-module examination in which the students critically reflect on the subjectively central results of the 1st study section, document them and present them to a commission. The subject of the assessment is not the quality of the work shown, but the quality of the presentation, reflection and documentation. The presentation leads to a personal discussion between the candidate and the commission with critical feedback as well as recommendations for the further course of studies.

The colloquium is developed independently - the department organises an information event in preparation. The examination is taken in front of a commission of three lecturers from the design department and lasts about one hour.

We understand »designing« as a cultural practice that allows different approaches through design: product design as problem solving, as speculation, as design research and as artistic practice. All four design approaches move thematically in the domains of »Society and Public Sector«, »Mobility and Urbanism«, »Culture and Transformation«, »Consumption and Production«, »Science and Technology« or »Economy and Commerce«. This allows for additional alignment of one's own course portfolio to specific knowledge areas.

The subject of the module product design as problem solving is the topic of the practice-oriented and thus central requirement for designers to be able to respond to concrete questions with competent, practical designs. In contrast, the module product design as speculation addresses questions of the time in a more general and, as the title already suggests, speculative form. Here, social and cultural developments and requirements of the future are to be anticipated and translated into imaginable and representable scenarios and products. In the module product design as design research, design is at the same time an instrument, object and method of gaining knowledge and generating knowledge: design itself as an object of research interest as well as an enablement for connection or integration in research processes of other disciplines. Product design as an artistic practice focuses on the aesthetic issues of design in the formation of a design language and in mediation competence as a contribution to a contemporary discourse on reception and identity culture.

Prof. Silvia Knüppel (design and perspective), Prof. Hermann Weizenegger (industrial design), Prof. Holger Jahn (mobility and design), Prof. Dr. Sebastian Meier (design of knowledge transfer), Prof. Jörg Hundertpfund (product design) teach here.

Although the module group is called »Theory«, it usually comes across as quite practical: The subject canon of the module group »Theory« offers an analytical approach with the modules design and media theory (13Th-DMT), a historical-sociopolitical approach with design/cultural history (13Th-DKG) and an operational approach with design management and law (13Th-DMR). The seminars are offered across all degree programmes.

In this module group, our colleagues Prof. Dr. Marion Godau (design, art and cultural history), Prof. Dr. Rainer Funke (design theory), Prof. Dr. Nico Heise (design law) and Prof. Dr. Enrico Sass (business start-up and management techniques) teach full-time.

In this module group, 3 certificates of achievement must be provided.

A 6-month internship is integrated into our curriculum; however, the timing within the second degree programme as well as the internship location can be freely chosen. For quality assurance, the internships are »reviewed« by the respective internship supervisors.

In this module group, 2 credits must be achieved; one for the internship itself (28 CP) and another for the internship report (2 CP). Both certificates are ungraded.

This module group is a kind of »disruption machine«. Here there is the possibility of earning credits within the project weeks with offers (24PSs-PW - one is even compulsory!): with interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary offers from the Flex programme of the FHP (24PSs-FL), with the organisation of one's own (design ) projects (24PSs-PO) as well as with in-depth offers from the area of workshops (24PSs-HT) or in the studio formats (24PSs-AT). In addition, there is the possibility to offer and receive credit for initial small teaching formats (accompanied by a professor) with tutoring (24PSs-T).

A total of 8 CP must be earned in this module group; three to four certificates of achievement are necessary for this, because the credits can be measured differently depending on the course-specific scope of work.

The bachelor's thesis, the individual final paper, is represented by a cluster of three modules: the conception and draft within the framework of the bachelor's thesis itself (25 BA), the personal work overview within the framework of the bachelor's portfolio (25 BP) and the presentation and argumentation within the framework of the bachelor's disputation (25 BD).

The processing time is 3 months; the topics for the bachelor's thesis are chosen by the student and coordinated with the supervisors, who are also chosen by the student, in advance of the registration deadline.

"Design and Attitude"

"Design and Attitude" poses the question of the ethical dimension in design. In this sense, designing the future means designing perspectives. Design is always geared to the future and, in order to be taken seriously, must be "appropriate" in time; it must detach itself from a monovalent optimism of progress and understand the signs of the times.

By means of design, paradigm shifts become visible and liveable. But the applied design itself must also readjust. The development horizon has expanded. An isolated understanding of problems and issues is not compatible with a global perspective. Questions of the development context, development perspectives and possible effects beyond the design object move to the centre of the discourse. "Product & Perspective" understands the product as standing in context, as part of an option, but also as part of an issue: design as the result of a transformational process of negotiating technology, application and social perspective.

"Design and Transformation"

"Design and Transformation" deals with the role of product design against the background of new development, communication and manufacturing scenarios. On the one hand, this refers to the exponential development of new materials and technical processes and the effects on the classic product development and production context. On the other hand, it refers to corresponding, mostly web-based developments that describe new design, production and distribution horizons (e.g. open source, internet of things, manufacture 4.0, space lab, construct lab, co-working, digital prototyping). These processes in particular, which are emerging alongside traditional development contexts, outline a space of possibilities that is already becoming concrete, both culturally and economically, and which has a considerable influence on product design. In this context, among other things, the resources of industrial and artisanal production are renegotiated in relation to technical-semi-craft approaches. The classic service provider designer in the expert debate is being replaced by a new type of designer. This new type of designer is no longer confronted with users, but with critical prosumers who first want to be convinced of a special design competence. Designers must be able to recognise the possibilities of the new conditions and translate them into modern design statements through the use of contemporary media and technologies. By taking up initiatives, recognising avant-gardes, not only in product development, they must prove themselves to be experts in cultural development, as well as in communication and the use of current strategies of product conception.

"Design and process

The understanding of problem solving usually associated with the term design process is no longer sufficient against the background of current development scenarios. The development of new materials and technical processes have an impact on the classic product development and production context. In addition, web-based developments describe new design, production and distribution horizons that suggest new methods and instruments for controlling product development processes. Designers, as the ones who are supposed to translate a project into a product, increasingly have the role of linking multi-process aspects of a development and translating them across disciplinary and communication boundaries - away from a doctrine of feasibility towards a discourse of plausibility. They must be in a position to formulate, organise, integrate or themselves perform many aspects of development, from post-industrial production to critical reception. They have the role of mediating contemporary product development.

Lecturer:
Prof. Jörg Hundertpfund

"Material & Material Culture"

Material culture refers to the totality of devices, tools, weapons, buildings, clothing, jewellery and other material things produced by a culture or society. Historical artefacts give us information about ways of life and cultural techniques. Material creates identification for people, e.g. in professions and regions. Material must be thought of holistically, i.e. its origin, properties, processing possibilities and recyclability should be included. In particular, it is about which atmospheres and which old and new aesthetic qualities can be created by material. Material is always an indicator of a social mood and should be seen as anthropological. Material has narrative qualities and appeals to all the senses.

"Object/Series & Production Society" or "Autonomy of Production".

Objects and products can be created in different contexts - in the studio, start-up, craft, manufacture, in industry and research institutions. Production takes place in a wide variety of social and cultural spaces. Objects and goods are created by hand, with 3D printers, robots and CNC-controlled machines. A cultural space is attached to productions, they are subject to a production atmosphere and are guided and judged by experts. Questions need to be asked about this: How are production and production relations changing in the age of digitalisation? Which new production strategies and tools are available to designers and which do they have to reinvent (maker culture)? In which interdisciplinary constellations can innovation take place without values? What new spaces for action and experimentation must be developed for the future? What new understanding of the role of designers will result from this?

Lecturer:
Prof. Hermann Weizenegger

"Experimental Design"

Experimentation is an indispensable tool in the laboratory kitchen of contemporary design education. It opens up new spaces and creates new expressive possibilities to see or do things in a way they have never been seen or done before. Experimental design methods offer the opportunity to develop new forms, perspectives and their combinations, to put the forgotten and the traditional into a new context and to overcome known boundaries to explore new fields.

"Textile & Design"

Contact with textiles is an integral part of our everyday lives. In a product design degree, the examination of and knowledge about textiles cannot be missing. Textile products have always been an important area of product design as well as an important economic factor with great potential and many future-oriented dimensions.

Healthy Materials & Circular Economy

As designers, we have a special influence on the manufacturing processes and thus also on the sustainability of products. Cradle to Cradle is a design concept in which products are always returned to the cycle, thus saving CO₂ and producing as little waste as possible. Healthy materials are the prerequisite for a functioning circular economy. Material compositions and manufacturing processes of our everyday consumer goods must be made more transparent to enable self-responsible purchasing decisions.

Lecturer:
Prof. Silvia Knüppel

Mobility

The car and other fossil-based mobility solutions have left a lasting mark on our society and our built environment. In the sense of a holistic mobility turnaround, we need radical solutions that rethink mobility from the ground up. For a mobility that is oriented towards people and the environment, we need innovative concepts that range from new means of transport to mobility platforms to social change and are dedicated to a holistic mobility turnaround.

Sustainability

What does it mean to design products - especially in times of climate change, conflicts over raw materials and environmental pollution through waste? Design has made a significant contribution to the emergence of our current consumer culture. How can we as designers show new ways of producing and using products? What do concepts like cradle-to-cradle or the circular economy mean for the design process? How can we promote sustainable user behaviour through the design of products and services?

One Planet Design

The artefacts and processes we designers are involved in shape our physical world and our society. The lifestyle of industrialised nations is pushing the planet to its limits (planetary boundaries). Not only on an ecological level, but also socially, we are facing major global challenges for an inclusive and sustainable future.

How can we as designers take a stance in this discourse and contribute to the path towards a better future through our work?

Lecturer:
Prof. Holger Jahn

»Digital design process«

Modern design processes are completely digitalised. The digital presents itself to us as a space of endless innovative possibilities. But the real potential of the digital is reserved for those who know how to shape the space through data and code. Digital sovereignty in design is based on a deep understanding of digital structures, limitations of the digital and an empowerment to shape the digital space in a self-determined way.

»Knowledge transfer in form and space«

In times of abstract topics like climate change, financial crises and globalisation, we need new forms of knowledge transfer - formats that go beyond unidirectional educational offers, holistically designed mediation offers that address us humans with all our senses and needs. How can we, as designers, make a positive contribution to the conception and design of innovative mediation formats and techniques?

»Product as interface«

Physical and digital space are ubiquitously interwoven. The devices we use, the vehicles that transport us or even the buildings we enter are equipped with sensors, displays and controls. How can we shape the interplay between the physical and the digital? What influence do the two dimensions have on each other?

Lecturer:
Prof. Dr. Sebastian Meier

Online registration for the qualifying examination

• Registration for the artistic-design aptitude test is possible from 01 January to 01 April.
• No proof of university entrance qualification (e.g. certificates) is required for registration. This is only required upon enrolment.

After registration

• You will receive the date of the examination and the topic of the homework assignment. You should work on the assignment independently and present it during the qualifying examination.
• Fill out the enclosed application form and return it in a correctly addressed envelope (0.85 euros).
• For the aptitude test, create a portfolio with a maximum of ten of your own creative works or recent work samples.
• Work on the homework assignment. Be creative , avoid clichés and convince with your concept. Formalities are important, but your innovative ideas are of particular interest.

Note on the portfolio

In order to get to know your creative abilities and get a clear idea of your interests, your portfolio should present an authentic picture of you and show that you are able to communicate your ideas effectively. The following are accepted as work samples:

• Visual material up to DIN A0 format or digital: drawings, sketches, photographs, paintings
• Three-dimensional visual objects: Models, sculptures, installations
• Computer representations: Renderings, web designs, websites, computer codes, graphic software
• Films, games, videos, animations, music pieces, stories

Insights & Tips

On the website of the campus ambulance you will find many helpful tips and answers to questions about the aptitude test in the field of design: What should be considered for the homework? What are the requirements for the portfolio? How does the examination proceed?

The campus ambulance team, consisting of students, offers you advice and is on site during the exams to ensure a pleasant atmosphere between all the new impressions.

The artistic-design aptitude test takes place online. You can find the dates for the aptitude test on the page about the organisation of studies at the design department. In the aptitude test, you will have an interview with the responsible examination board and present your homework as well as the portfolio with your work samples.

Assessment criteria

• Creativity, intensity
• Ability to reflect and abstract, problem orientation
• Technique and craft
• Motivation and identification
• Communicative skills
• Design-specific talent

After the aptitude test

After the aptitude test, the individual examination boards will confer and decide whether aptitude has been established. In the following weeks, you will receive a letter informing you of the result. If you have successfully passed the aptitude test, you can apply for enrolment.

For detailed information on determining the artistic aptitude for the bachelor's degree programmes in interface design, communication design and product design, please refer to the statutes for determining the aptitude for the degree programme, which you can find on the page of the module handbooks and study and examination regulations of the design department.

Do you have a university entrance qualification and have passed the aptitude test? Then you have the opportunity to submit an enrolment application for the upcoming winter semester from 15 June to 15 July on the MyCampus university portal of the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam.

Once you have submitted your online application for enrolment, please submit the printed and signed application together with all required documents in paper form by the deadline. The day of the enrolment deadline is decisive for the submission of the documents, whereby the date of receipt by post at the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam is decisive.

Documents to be submitted

Submit the following documents with your enrolment application:

• Officially certified copy of the university entrance qualification or the university degree certificate
• Proof of health insurance coverage for students or proof of exemption from compulsory health insurance coverage: Information on health insurance for applicants
• Proof of payment or order confirmation of semester fees
• Photo for issuing the Campus.Card
• Exmatriculation certificate from the last university attended, if applicable

Please refer to the enrolment application form to find out whether you need to submit any further documents.

Do you have questions about the enrolment process at the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam? We have compiled frequently asked questions and answers regarding enrolment and admission.

Start your studies

After you have successfully completed the application process, we recommend that you take a look at the start of studies page of the design department. There you will find important information and dates regarding the start of your studies at the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam.