Master in Research for Design and Innovation

On this master you will apply qualitative research, identify trends, design future scenarios and apply innovation methodologies to enhance an organisation’s capacity to adapt and respond in the face of market changes and disruptions.

Apply now

Presentation

We live in an increasingly uncertain and complex world, where the only constant is change. In such an environment, an organisation’s competitiveness means being strategically prepared for change at the right moment. In other words, they must adapt to transform before becoming obsolete.

Faced with this new context, companies or institutions need a new kind of professional, one who can connect the company as it is today with the exploration of future business possibilities, and who is capable of identifying new opportunities and transforming them into solutions that add value sustainably and systematically.

On the Master in Research for Design and Innovation you will gain the knowledge, skills and tools needed to help any organisation increase their capacity to prosper in an unpredictable future.

The profile for this master comprises students with vision and strategic thinking, who would like to become agents of change in any organisation and be capable of leading, defining and managing people-centred innovation.

Access and Admission Requirements: Official university degree or equivalent.

Objectives

Providing training for resilient professionals capable of leading change and innovation responsibly in uncertain, complex and accelerated settings.
Providing training for consultants capable of researching, creating and participating in processes of innovation and strategy generation and implementation.
Developing critical thinking and problem-solving skills in order to create suitable innovation strategies.
Applying design management methodologies to new business and social challenges using a people-centred approach.
Providing the tools, skills and knowledge needed to turn relevant problems into solutions that add value for clients, users, companies and/or society.
Developing team management skills in a changing environment.
Offering a space for interaction with other agents to work in multidisciplinary teams.

Highlights

Two different sections

The master is divided into a first part focused on the application of ethnographic methods, identification of trends and futures design. The second part consists in identifying relevant challenges and transforming them into new solutions that add value sustainably and systematically

Learning by doing

Following this philosophy, real projects will be developed focused on identifying trends and the design of future scenarios, with the collaboration of Elisava Research. In the second part you will be working towards improving or accelerating the innovation capacity of an established company

Fieldtrips

You will go on two 4-day trips to Berlin and Aarhus, organised in collaboration with Kaospilot, one of the world’s best design schools (BusinessWeek) and a leading business school internationally (Fast Company). You will gain a broader vision of “ways of thinking” and “ways of doing”, work in teams and expand your contact network.

Company innovation

You will gain the knowledge, skills and tools needed to lead innovation in an organisation or institution using a people-centred approach, both from a strategic and operative standpoint.

Master in Research for Design and Innovation programme

1 Cross-disciplinary modules

1.1 Business design: Acquire and understand tools and methodologies. Develop the “soft skills” needed to become a disruptive business.

1.2 Critical essays: Apply critical thinking through debates and analysis of articles on the future and challenges facing society.

1.3. Final project: Application of different knowledge, tools and methodologies to specific projects. The first is focused on identifying trends and designing future scenarios; the second on improving and accelerating a company’s innovative capacity.

2 Specific research

2.1 Qualitative research: Apply methods and tools from sociology, anthropology, market research and semiotics to identify new trends.

2.2 Trend analysis: Identify the most relevant trends and analyse their effects and implications to understand how user needs, behaviour and expectations will evolve.

2.3 Future scenarios: Tools and methodologies to design future scenarios. In collaboration with Elisava Research, you will learn to apply different tools and methodologies during the Strategic Futures Lab.

2.4 Urban immersion: Discover innovation ecosystems through two cities whose ecosystems are more innovative than any other in Europe: Barcelona and Berlin.

3 Specific innovation

3.1 Design thinking: Apply design thinking to solve complex problems from a human-centred perspective through the following principles: empathy, critical thinking, ideation, experimentation, collaboration and action.

3.2 Service design: Design services with meaningful interactions between people and organisations and create meaningful experiences for clients/users in any context.

3.3. Co-creation: Create new values collaborating with different stakeholders and members of the business ecosystem.

3.4 Innovation seminars: Learn about innovation from established companies, emerging companies and design and innovation consultancies.

If you want to know more about the Master in Research for Design and Innovation download the brochure here:

Download brochure Kaospilot

Do you want to know more about the Masters’ School?

Each academic year, students with very diverse professional and cultural profiles of more than 80 nationalities from all over the world attend their master’s or postgraduate training at Elisava. We want to promote connections and networks among students beyond the context of each master’s degree to promote the exchange of knowledge through very diverse projects: we organize interdisciplinary workshops and conferences; transdisciplinary projects with students from several master’s degrees; collaborations with companies, institutions and NGOs…

Masters’ Scholarships

Do you want to study the Master in Research for Design and Innovation at Elisava? In this section you will be able to check all the information on the annual call for scholarships, which recognize, reward and disseminate the talent and excellence of future master’s students.