Design skills for work

Published in January 1998, Design skills for work was a two-part report written by the Technology Education Research Unit for the Design Council.

Part one: An exploration of transferability

This report looks at how design teaching at different school levels can help to develop transferable skills, strong and weak forms of transferability, teaching and learning problem solving. The report also investigates forces impacting on design education and the responses of design educators, creating operational strategies and frameworks for teaching.

Part two: Distinctive skills and implicit practices

This project is concerned with the value of design in higher education and considers whether there are enough roles for all of the many graduates of higher education design courses. Specifically, this research seeks to determine how a design degree prepares graduates for employment, whether in a specifically design role or not. The personal and interpersonal skills learned on design courses makes graduates suitable for a diversity of roles in the workplace.