Product Design and Innovation

Product design and innovation is concerned with how new products come into existence, from the initial identification of a human need or market opportunity through concept development, prototyping, testing and refinement to a final design ready for manufacture. It is a discipline that bridges artistic and engineering thinking, asking you to be visually creative and technically rigorous at the same time. Good product design is not simply about making things look appealing; it is about understanding how people use objects, how materials and manufacturing processes constrain and enable design choices, and how to create things that are genuinely useful, sustainable and commercially viable.

This three-year full-time degree at the University of Portsmouth includes a sandwich year with a work placement and a year abroad, giving you substantial professional and international experience built into the programme. You will develop skills in design thinking, CAD, model making, materials science, manufacturing processes, ergonomics and user research, alongside the creative and communication abilities that product designers need to present and develop their ideas effectively. The emphasis on innovation means you will be asked to engage with emerging technologies, new materials and changing user needs, developing the mindset that professional designers need to stay relevant in a fast-moving field.

Graduates work in product design, industrial design, user experience design, design consultancy, manufacturing, engineering and retail. Roles in consumer goods, furniture, medical devices, transport, packaging and digital hardware are all relevant destinations. Many graduates combine technical design skills with roles in project management, design strategy or entrepreneurship.

Further study at postgraduate level in product design, design engineering or innovation management is an option for those who wish to develop specialist expertise or move into research and advanced practice.