Master of Design

For Master of Design, tuition is 48,235 NZD per year.

Give yourself the space and time to expand your practice. With a Master of Design, you’ll explore the area of design you are most passionate about while strengthening your research skills. Because the MDes is a research degree, you’ll need to choose an area of design to focus on and then find a supervisor to help guide your work. Use the School’s Design Research Groups to help you decide. Choose a group that fits with your current knowledge, career goals, and planned research portfolio topic. You may also do your research within these Design Research Groups. You’ll work alongside students and academics with similar design interests in a stimulating and supportive environment for inspiration and discovery. To find out about the School of Design Innovation’s research areas and supervising staff, visit the School's Research site. Find out more about your study options. Fill in a form to download our Wellington Faculty of Architecture and Design Innovation handbook. The Master of Design is a portfolio-based Masters qualification that you can complete in one year, or 9 to 12 months. Expect a workload of 40 to 45 hours a week for much of the year. You can start your study at any time. You can study for an MDes part time, over 18 to 24 months. You have up to three years from enrolment to complete and present your research portfolio. Our specialist technicians will help you to get the most out of the resources available, whatever your previous level of knowledge. If you are moving directly into postgraduate study from a Bachelor’s degree in design like the Bachelor of Design Innovation, the Master of Design Innovation (MDI) is a better option for you. When you graduate with an MDes, you’ll have strengthened your research skills as well as deepened your knowledge in a specific area of design. You’ll be ready to take the next step in your design career. Graduates from the School of Design Innovation work across the breadth of design in New Zealand and overseas. They work at organisations like: Your research project may even lead directly into a new business. Recent graduates from the School of Design have founded startups directly out of University—like the Bra Project, and Utilize NZ. You may be able to get a scholarship to help fund your studies. We have postgraduate and doctoral scholarships available, as well as specialised scholarships for different groups and subject areas. You may be able to take advantage of one of our existing industry relationships and build your research portfolio around a project with a grant or scholarship attached. MDes student Steven Almond saw postgraduate study as a chance to expand his skill set and consider what the circular economy could mean for industrial design. You can get support to stay on top of your finances by downloading our money management resources or by meeting with one of our student finance advisers. We can show you how to manage your student loan or allowance, and help you sort out your budget. For students facing financial difficulties, we can help you apply for support from the Hardship Fund. Depending on your situation, you might also be able to get government or community support. You may be able to work as a research assistant while you study. These are fixed-term, short contracts where you assist an academic on a specific research project. Find out more about the current research in the School of Design. The School of Design Innovation has a number of vacancies for marking, teaching assistant and tutoring roles for undergraduate core courses. The School looks for current postgraduate students, and senior undergraduate students with good passes in appropriate 200-level or 300-level courses. Contact the School at SoDAdmin@vuw.ac.nz to show your interest. Through postgraduate study at the School of Design, you’ll have opportunities to build valuable relationships and networks with peers, University staff, and future colleagues: The Postgraduate Students’ Asso