MPhil/PhD Design

The School of Design is home to internationally significant research, much of which is practice-based. The teaching and research areas of the School – Design Products, Fashion, Innovation Designing Engineering, Healthcare Design, Robotics, Service Design and Textiles – represent a wide range of approaches to design research.

Research topics range from those which are strongly user-focused – such as designing new medical innovations or citizen science through to those which are more experimental – such as designing trust in AI systems or multi-species design. We particularly encourage applications in our strategic design research plan areas including: The future of making; Manufacture and materials; Systems and design; Design for safety; Design for health; Intelligent machines; Data capture and creation; Design science and Design resilience.

Programme details

• PhD: 3–4 years (full time), 6–7 years (part time)
• MPhil: 2–3 years (full time), 4–6 years (part time)

Career opportunities

PhD study leads to a range of opportunities. You might become a researcher in industry or government or an academic in an international institution It is an opportunity for you to investigate a research question or issue in depth, enabling you to take a more reflective, more innovative role in design.

Find out more