Print Programme syllabus
Syllabus - Master's Programme in Innovation and Design
Scope
120.0 credits
Programme code
AMM06
Valid from
Autumn semester 2016
Decision instance
The Faculty Board
School
IDT
Registration number
3.1.3-2015/0047
Ratified
2013-09-12
Revised
2015-03-18
Specific requirements
A completed Bachelor's degree from an institution of higher education of three years or more, equivalent to 180 credits, within the fields of innovation management, information design, product and production development, industrial economics and management, industrial design, engineering design, interaction design, mechanical engineering, or entrepeneurship. Graduates with Bachelor's degree in other fields are required to have at least one year of working experience in the related fields of design or innovation. A TOEFL test result, with a minimum score of 575 with a TWE score of at least 4.5 (PBT) or 90 with a TWE score of at least 20 (iBT) or an IELTS test result with an overall band score of at least 6.5 and no band score below 5.5 or equivalent is required.
About programme syllabus
The programme syllabus applies to the entire education period, starting with the academic year and the semester you started your education. The programme syllabus contains goals for the programme, contents and arrangement, but also requirements for special qualifications, etc.
Outcomes
Innovation and Design is an international master’s programme functioning as a bridge between undergraduate studies on the one hand and, on the other hand, research studies in innovation and design within the Mälardalen University third-cycle study area Innovation and Product Realization. The aim of the programme is for students to develop more in-depth knowledge of innovation and design and to thus prepare themselves for qualified leadership work in the private and public sectors as well as become eligible for third-cycle (postgraduate) studies. The programme is based on the first-cycle subjects information design, innovation technology as well as product and process development.
Knowledge and Understanding
On completion of the degree programme the student shall:
- demonstrate knowledge and understanding of innovation and design, including broad knowledge within the area as well as substantially deeper knowledge within certain parts of the field, and also a deeper insight into current research and development work, and
- demonstrate in-depth methodological knowledge of innovation and design.
Aptitudes and Accomplishments
On completion of the degree programme the student shall:
- demonstrate the ability, critically and systematically, to integrate knowledge and to analyse, assess and deal with complex phenomena, problems and situations even with limited information,
- demonstrate the ability, critically, independently and creatively, to identify and formulate problems, to plan and carry out, using adequate methods, advanced assignments within given timeframes, thereby contributing to the development of knowledge and also to evaluate this work,
- demonstrate the ability, in national as well as international contexts, to clearly account for and discuss, orally and in writing, the conclusions arrived at and the knowledge and arguments that form the basis of these in dialogue with different groups, and also
- demonstrate such skills as are required to participate in research and development work or to work independently in some other advanced activity.
Ability to Evaluate and Assess
On completion of the degree programme the student shall:
- demonstrate the ability, in Innovation and Design, to make assessments with regard to relevant scientific, societal and ethical aspects, and also demonstrate awareness of ethical aspects of research and development work,
- demonstrate insight into the possibilities and limitations of science, its role in society and the responsibility of human beings for how this is used, and also
- demonstrate the ability to identify his/her need of further knowledge and to take responsibility for his/her own knowledge development.
Language of instruction
The language of instruction is English, and the course literature is in English.
Contents
The Master’s Programme in Innovation and Design is an interdisciplinary education based on the three first-cycle subjects information design, innovation technology as well as product and process development. In the courses included in the programme, students will work with innovation and design from different perspectives regarding technology, the social sciences, the humanities and the arts, which are brought together to promote opportunities for innovative processes. In the programme, the focus will be on innovation and design processes in interdisciplinary projects and in cooperation with private companies or the public sector.
In the first year, students acquire more in-depth knowledge within the main field of study, innovation and design, by defining and identifying challenges. Students are expected to be able to position themselves in the subject area and master the processes and models applied in the main field of study, for example regarding the planning, management and realization of projects, including risk management, as well as techniques for innovation and design processes. In addition, students will learn to apply research methods, mostly qualitative ones, that are of relevance in the main field of study. Students are expected to be able to motivate and problematize the choice of theories and methods for the collection and analysis of data.
In the second year, there will be an opportunity to pursue one’s studies abroad. Students wishing to do so – or wishing to study elsewhere in Sweden – will plan for this during the first year of the programme. Those who wish to continue studying at Mälardalen University will be offered elective courses corresponding to a total of 30 credits. These will make it possible for students to acquire, within their degree, a more pronounced knowledge profile within innovation and design. Finally, students are expected to carry out an independent degree project, which includes the critical and creative identification and formulation of research questions and the completion of qualified tasks with adequate methods and within given time frames.
Year 1
Innovation and Design:
Challenges in Innovation and Design, 15 credits
Project Management in Innovation and Design, 7.5 credits
Research Methodology in Innovation and Design I, 7.5 credits
Early Phases of Innovation, 7.5 credits
Research Methodology in Innovation and Design II, 7.5 credits
Project Methodology for Innovation and Design, 15 credits
Year 2
Innovation and Design:
Master Thesis Work, Innovation and Design, 30 credits
Elective, 30 credits
Innovation and Design:
Communication in Complex Organisations, 7.5 credits
Project course in co-creation from a Human Centered Design perspective, 7.5 credits
Innovation Technology:
Innovation and Creativity Management, 7.5 credits
English:
English, 7.5 credits
Or an optional course in competition with other applicants at Mälardalen University or other higher education institution.
Choices within the program
In the second year of the programme, students freely choose courses corresponding to 30 credits, either at Mälardalen University or at another university in Sweden or abroad.
University degree
The degree programme is so designed that the studies will lead towards fulfilment of the requirements for the following degree:
- Master of Science in Innovation and Design
If the programme contains elective or optional components, or if a student chooses not to complete a certain course, the choices made can affect the possibility of fulfilling the degree requirements. For more information about degrees and degree requirements, consult the local degree regulations which are published (in Swedish only) on the university website.