Prerequisite/Recommended prerequisite for participation in the module

Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design, Media Technology, Interaction Design, Art and Technology, IT Communication and New Media or similar.

Content, progress and pedagogy of the module

The aim is to familiarise students working professionally with the theories, tools and methods required for the pre-product development phase in which the focus is on what to design and why in terms of specifying both product/service and target group.

Learning objectives

Knowledge

Students who complete the course module will obtain the following qualifications

• Understand design-oriented problem solving approach and compare it with mathematical/analytical methods,
• Apply appropriate analytical and synthetic tools in order to adequately frame wicked problems.
• Understand, and be able to describe and explain a range of user-oriented methods, which are applied to establish the basis of projects and to verify and test assumptions made during the design process.
• Understand and be able to explain ways of segmenting and profiling users from both user-centred design and marketing perspectives.
• Analyse, understand and compare the type of knowledge created by using various user- and market-oriented research methods.
• Extensive knowledge of the design process and be able to explain the various approaches and phases of the design process.
• Knowledge of how to define the value base and business proposition of a given design concept.

Skills

Students who complete the course module will obtain the following qualifications

• Apply user and market research and segmentation methods to establish specifications and success criteria.
• Understand and describe the specification for a product or service, practical and theoretical market positioning and presentation as part of the branding and communication of the product.
• Able to rapidly conceptualise and roughly sketch a product or service on the basis of a set of defined values (synthesis), including the principles which lie behind its aesthetic expression, use and construction.

Competences

Students who complete the course module will obtain the following qualifications

• Ability to select and apply appropriate user-centred design and market research methods depending on the type of knowledge required for the design of a product or service.
• Able to define a clear value basis and business case for a product/service to be developed and to position and present it accordingly (synthesis).

Type of instruction

See general description of the types of instruction described in the introduction to Chapter 3.

Exam

Exams

Name of exam	Designing the Value
Type of exam	Written or oral exam In accordance with the current Framework Provisions and directions on examination from the Study Board for Media Technology: Individual oral (based on presentation and discussion) or written (based on a report) examination with internal censor. The assessment is performed in accordance with the 7-point scale.
ECTS	5
Permitted aids	With certain aids: See semester description
Assessment	7-point grading scale
Type of grading	Internal examination
Criteria of assessment	The criteria for evaluation are provided in the Framework Provisions.