Designing the Masters of Engineering in Design Impact
Year: 2016
Editor: Julie Linsey, Maria Yang, and Yukari Nagai
Author: Erin, Macdonald; Sean, Follmer; William, Burnett; David, Kelley
Series: ICDC
ISBN: 978-1-904670-82-7
Abstract
This poster will present the ideation exercises designed and executed as part of the process of reenvisioning the Masters in Design degree at Stanford. Over the past year, four faculty members in the Design Group within the Department of Mechanical Engineering have sought input as part of this redesign effort. Input was collected from the Department, the Stanford community, and design education experts from around the world. A d.school approach was used to engage participants in exercises that diverged from and converged to potential program solutions. An qualitative discussion of the merits and shortcomings the exercises used will be presented. In general, it was important to find exercises where participants could find excitement and common ground, for example, sketching and sharing extraordinary education experiences. It was equally important to avoid exercises that were philosophical in nature, for example, discussing the meaning of design. The final output of the process is a Masters of Engineering in Design Impact, focused on applying design practices to rotating themes that have meaning and topical importance to the engineering community and Stanford community. It is a two-year degree, with the first year consisting of a structured curriculum and the second year to be structured largely by the student and their advisor, in support of the contribution to the program's themes. The first two themes, refreshed every three years, will be (1) Empathic Autonomy: Personalizing healthcare in the digital age; and (2) Empowering Power: Giving people control of their own resources.
Keywords: Ideation Exercises, Curriculum Design, New Degree Design