Product Design
Product Design is about shaping the world around us. Most objects, from toys to medical devices and from furniture to consumer electronics are subject to product design. This is possible because product design is a versatile process that can be applied to many different contexts.
| Award Name | Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) |
|---|---|
| NFQ Classification | Major |
| Awarding Body | University College Dublin |
| NFQ Level | Level 8 NFQ |
| Award Name | NFQ Classification | Awarding Body | NFQ Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) | Major | University College Dublin | Level 8 NFQ |
Duration
3 or 4 years full-time
Specific Subjects or course requirements
Leaving Certificate Minimum Requirements
Subjects* 6
Honours 2 x H5
Subjects must include:
Irish** O6/H7
English O6/H7
Maths*** O6/H7
3rd Language/Art/DCG O6/H7
Portfolio Submission 09.02.2024
Portfolio submission guidelines are available to view at www.ncad.ie/study-at-ncad
Restricted Application: No
* Full details on minimum entry requirements (matriculation) and regulations concerning exemption from the subject Irish can be found at www.nui.ie
** Foundation Level Irish is not accepted.
*** The Maths requirement can also be met by one of the following subjects at Grade H7 on a Higher Level paper or O6 or Higher on an Ordinary Level paper: Applied Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Physics with Chemistry, Engineering, Construction Studies, Agricultural Science, Technical Drawing, Biology.
NCAD does not operate the Leaving Certificate/ CAO points scheme for programmes requiring a portfolio submission. Offers are made based on portfolio score to applicants who meet minimum academic entry requirements.
Leaving Certificate General Entry Requirements
NCAD is a Recognised college of UCD, a Constituent University of the National University of Ireland (NUI). Matriculation requirements including information on obtaining an Irish language exemption are set out on the NUI website www.nui.ie.
Age at entry to NCAD
The minimum age for admission to NCAD is 17 years by 15 January the year following entry.
Leaving Certificate results may be combined.
Foundation Level Maths may be counted as one of Ordinary Level subject requirements.
Studio Based programmes requiring a Portfolio submission are restricted on the CAO system. Late applications will not be accepted.
Leaving Certificate Vocational Progamme LCVP
QQI FET Applicants General Information
Undergraduate Degree
Programmes First Year Entry 2024
FETAC Level 5 or 6
5 Distinctions
Full Award
Other Requirements
Must satisfy Maths leaving cert subject requirements.
Portfolio Submission 09.02.2024
Portfolio submission guidelines are available to view at www.ncad.ie/study-at-ncad
Careers / Further progression
Opportunities after graduation
Product Design graduates have a wide range of local and global opportunities open to them. Designers may choose to specialise in a particular area, such as consumer electronics, furniture or medical devices, but many of the skills acquired are transferable between projects and products. Many graduates find employment with manufacturers or design consultancies. Some graduates have strong entrepreneurial skills, which will enable them to strike out on their own, designing and making their own products or providing design services for others. Increasingly, graduates progress to further study at postgraduate level to refine their creative abilities and approach. The School of Design offers a range of innovative masters programmes, as well as a practice-based PhD programme.
Further information
Mature Students
NCAD welcomes applications from mature students to all our programmes. A mature student is any EU/EEA student who will be 23 years of age on the 1st of January of the proposed year of entry to NCAD.
Mature Applications: Studio Programmes
As a mature student you should apply in the same way and at the same time as any other applicant. You will be informed of the outcome of your portfolio submission at the same time as other applicants. Mature students who do not meet the minimum academic entry requirements should include with their CAO application information on previous learning and/or any relevant work or other experience that might support your application. Please send any supporting documentation such as transcripts or CVs to the CAO marked clearly with your CAO number. Mature students who achieve a sufficient portfolio score to warrant an offer but who do not otherwise meet minimum academic entry requirements will have an opportunity to matriculate on the basis of mature years. These applications will be reviewed based on information and documentation submitted to the CAO and you may be invited to attend for interview.
20
Entry 2024
Early online application (discounted): Fee €30 Closing Date: 20 January 2024 at 5pm
Normal online application: Fee €45 Closing Date: 1 February 2024 at 5pm
Late online application - restrictions apply (see page 3 2024 CAO Handbook): Fee: €60 Closing Date: 1 May 2024 at 5pm
Change of Mind - restrictions apply (see page 3 2024 CAO Handbook): Fee: Nil Closing Date: 1 July 2024 at 5pm
Exceptional online late application (see page 34 of the 2024 CAO Handbook): Fee €60 Closing Date: 22 July 2024 at 5pm
Be sure to complete any action well in advance of closing dates. You should avoid making an application close to a closing date. No extensions to closing dates will be allowed and all application fees are non-refundable.
LATE APPLICATIONS
Late Applications are those which are received after 5pm on 1 February 2024. The closing date for late applications is 5pm on 1 May 2024, subject to the restrictions listed on page 3 of the 2024 CAO Handbook. The online facility for late applications opens on the 5 March 2024 at 12:00 noon - a fee of €60 applies.
Exceptional Late Applications (Exception to the timetable)
The exceptional closing date of 22 July at 5pm applies only to applicants who are registered as an undergraduate student on 1 May 2024 in any year in any one of the participating HEIs (subject to the exclusions listed below). In order to avail of the Exceptional Late Application facility you must have entered the HEI through the CAO system. This is an exceptional late closing date and all steps must be completed by 5pm on 22 July. No changes may be made after this date.
If you did not enter your current course through the CAO system, you must first contact the Admissions Office of the HEI to which you wish to apply and they will inform you if you may submit an application direct to the institution.
Exclusions:
You may submit a late application only for entry to courses other than your existing course. If you wish to repeat the year in the same course you must arrange this within your HEI.
Mary Immaculate College Limerick, Marino Institute of Education, Trinity College Dublin, University of Limerick and Maynooth University have special procedures in place in the case of current or previous students who wish to apply for entry to another course in the same HEI. Such applicants must contact their Admissions Office to determine the application procedure. However, if you are a student in another HEI and you wish to apply to any of these five HEIs, you should apply through CAO.
Refer to page 34 of the 2024 CAO Handbook on how to make an Exceptional Late Application.
Restrictions
As a CAO applicant you may experience one or more of the following restrictions based on your course choices, your category of application, or restrictions imposed by the HEIs that you wish to apply to. Please read the section on 'Restrictions' on page 3 of the 2024 CAO Handbook carefully. This section includes information on:
General Restrictions
1. Making a late application
2. Making changes to your course choices
Restricted Courses
3. Applying for a restricted course
Mature Applicants
4. Mature applicants
Supplementary Admissions Routes
5. Applying for DARE and/or HEAR
Product Design is about shaping the world around us. Most objects, from toys to medical devices and from furniture to consumer electronics are subject to product design. This is possible because product design is a versatile process that can be applied to many different contexts. At its core, product design is about understanding people and how they experience and interact with their surroundings. This kind of training enables graduates to help make the world a fairer, more inclusive and sustainable place.
What will I study?
Studying Product Design at NCAD will enable you to develop your abilities within a creative design school environment. The core priorities of the course are to foster technical skills, innovative thinking and social responsibility. The curriculum has been designed to introduce you to the latest tools and methods employed at various stages of the design process. Recognising the value of true innovation, it will encourage you to research thoroughly, to challenge conventions and to think about problems in new and exciting ways. Our program is built around a core belief in design as a potential force for good; the design we teach is human-centred, inclusive, equitable and sustainable. We are always open to new ways of doing things and will encourage you to experiment and forge your own path towards desired outcomes. The program is delivered primarily within a design studio with personal desks and an adjacent workshop with advanced 3D printing and laser cutting equipment. Alongside closely supervised design projects, you will also be supported by lectures from leading creative practitioners, by collaborative interdisciplinary opportunities, live industry projects and international study trips to Milan and Dutch design weeks.
The key areas of study in First Year are:
Observation : Descriptive, explanatory, analytical and inventive skills through drawing, making and recording.
Materials : Development of the physical and aesthetic behaviour of a wide range of materials.
Research : The process of gathering visual information in relation to topics of inquiry.
Processes : The use of innovative and traditional techniques and equipment in the stimulation and development of ideas.
Peer Learning: Development of collaborative, discursive and evaluative practices with peers.
Applying Concepts and topics: Developing bodies of work from the beginning point of thematic and conceptual frames.
Investigating fields of practice from interdisciplinary through to specialisation: Honing and evolving your individual practice toward a disciplinary orientation.
Professional Practice : Library and research skills, digital skills relevant to all aspects of your coursework, organising and presenting work, peer learning, development of an individual body of work.
Critical Cultures
In this part of the course you will study the connections between history, theory and practice in modern and contemporary contexts, in order to become critically engaged, reflective and an effective practitioner. See page 92. At the end of First Year, for students with a strong interest in the history and theory of visual culture, there is an opportunity to take a Degree in Design or Fine Art with Visual Culture. For this option, students will swap a portion of their studio time to do additional Visual Culture study and assignments.
Year 2
Students develop key skills and knowledge – including 2D and 3D sketching, computer-aided design, presentation techniques, model-making and rapid prototyping, design research methods, ergonomics, material science and manufacturing technology – and apply this learning through a series of design projects. Each of these projects prioritises a different core theme, such as human-centred design, inclusive design, sustainability, design for manufacture or design for social impact.
Year 3: Studio+ & International
The Studio+ year is open to undergraduate students in Design, Fine Art and Visual Culture (Visual Culture+). It is an exciting opportunity to combine accredited work and/or study placements to build a bespoke learning experience in line with your particular skills and ambitions. Immersed in real-world work environments you will learn the skills and expertise to engage creatively with community and civic society and develop your practice across a range of commercial, cultural and social settings
Accredited work and study programmes can be undertaken locally, including within NCAD design labs and micro studios, or with industry and educational partners internationally. Your tutors will guide you through the range of modules and options available and will help you in your decision.
How it works
During the course of your second year you will be asked to choose from a selection of modules over the course of two semesters to make up 60 credits in total for the Studio+ year.
Final Year
Students choose and develop their own self-directed design projects, based on their individual skills and interests. You will create a substantial body of work, which will allow you to demonstrate the skills and knowledge you have acquired over the previous years. You will also be supported in a sustained reflection on the discipline and on your personal strengths in relation to it, in order to help you identify your future path as a professional designer.
Critical Cultures
A key component of your curriculum in every year is the study of Critical Cultures. This is where you study the connections between history, theory and practice in modern and contemporary contexts in order to become a critically engaged, reflective and effective practitioner.
How will I be assessed?
Coursework, essays, practical design projects and assessments take place at key points throughout the year. Formal assessment results are issued at the end of each academic year.
Degree awarded :
BA Product Design/BA Product Design and Visual Culture
BA Product Design (International)
Admissions Office,
National College of Art & Design
100 Thomas Street
Dublin D08 K521
Ireland
Tel: 353 (0)1 636 4200
admissions@ncad.ie