90% of designers think design education is failing students
Nine out of ten designers think design education isn’t preparing students for work in the design industry, according to a new survey.
Source: Jeffrey Zeldman
The D&AD poll also found that 86 per cent of respondents agree with Victoria & Albert Museum director Martin Roth, who recently wrote that the UK education system “leaves too many design students lacking ‘basic skills’”.
Among the responses were claims that those learning design should be taught more digital skills and should be given advice about the many careers that can be had in the creative industry.
One respondent said: “I don’t think that nearly enough time, if any, is given to how to use design to earn a living. Many students emerge very creative, but with no idea what their ideas are worth or what is reasonable value to ask for.”
Another said: “Looking at the hundreds of student portfolios reviewed each year, the UK isn’t arming our young designers with core design skills that are at a high enough standard or understanding.
“Without this skill many designers fall at the first hurdle, when it comes to their first interview. International students are winning this battle and our home-grown talent is being pushed aside.”
The survey also showed that all respondents thought that problems with the UK’s design education system could affect UK design’s international standing, and 98 per cent thought the design industry had a responsibility to drive awareness of the economic benefit it brings to the UK.
One respondent said: “China is opening 500 art schools a year, the UK is closing them. The UK needs to wake up to how the modern world works.”
The survey of just under 50 practicing designers also asked about the Art & Design GCSE consultation, which ran until September.
It found that only 19 per cent of respondents were aware that the consultation had been going on, and just 30 per cent planned to respond to it.
You can read the D&AD reaction to the GCSE consultation here.
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An important element that has been missed here is the current DfE/Ofqual consultation on GCSE Design and Technology subject criteria which closes on 20th November (details can be found on the Design and Technology Association website https://www.data.org.uk/news/new-dt-and-cooking-and-nutrition-gcse-subject-criteria-consultation-key-messages-to-help-you-respond). Yet another important consultation that is going un-noticed!
However, these subject criteria attempt to address the shortcomings with the current D&T GCSE qualifications and look to emphasise, amongst other things, iterative design, risk taking, innovation and the use of both traditional and digital designing and making technologies.
The D&T Association has been running a series of meetings for teachers to get their views on the proposals and to encourage them to respond. But it doesn’t just have to be teachers – anyone can read and reply (www.gov.uk/government/consultations/gcse-and-a-level-reform–2)
The D&T Association has also recognised the importance of schools working closely with industry and, as a result, has developed an innovative, new Skills Gap programme designed to link industry and schools and to develop modern, motivating D&T activities as well as professional development materials for teachers. Careers awareness materials are also incorporated into this programme (www.data.org.uk/for-partners/skills-gap-programme/).
We recognise that there is work to be done – but we are making a start!
Richard Green – Chief Executive, Design and Technology Association
And lets not remember its not always the fault of teachers. The biggest pressure on teachers at the moment is making sure they achieve year on year better examination results. It even affects their pay and promotion. Teachers in school whether they design and technology or art and design are ‘controlled’ by having to meet the assessment requirements including the production of evidence meeting the tight specifications produced by the Awarding Organisations (Exam Boards). The current ones are fundamentally flawed and encourage anything but a designedly approach! This is what has to change. But doing so will require Government through its DfE and Ofqual to address the regulations. Hence why it is so important as Richard says above to respond to the consultation. Government have no subject experts any longer. They don’t immediately ‘get it’. We have to work hard to challenge the current requirements, get something better in place and then support teachers in moving toward a much better way of developing young people’s designing ability.
Sadly, I couldn’t agree more with the D&AD poll results. As a recruiter for designers/design agencies, my view is that not only does design education (specially at degree level) generally not prepare students well enough for actual industry work these days, but many (not all) universities also fail grads at the final hurdle, in helping them to prepare their folios too. Good work, shown badly, can so easily go unnoticed.
Gabriele Skelton sponsored D&AD New Blood this year, and I was so disappointed at how quite a large number of grads had apparently been “advised” by their tutors to present their work.
We have amazing talent in the UK – please let’s nurture it and equip it for the commercial world in order to keep the fantastic reputation British design has.
As a university lecturer I can state that my colleagues and I put a huge emphasis on what industry thinks of the education we deliver. We visit our students on placement in their year out and listen to what the companies want us to teach (drawing is No 1!). Many of our projects are live, with companies coming to us regularly because they like what they see. We have great employability statistics with many of our students going straight into the industry. But there are many things that have to be taught in an often crowded timetable. And there are some things that we just can’t fit in.
As a response to this and the general lack of information about what it takes to become a designer and what it’s like to be a designer we have produced The Design Student’s Handbook, published by Routledge. It de-mystifies the profession, covering all of the design disciplines. It delivers designers’ views on the importance of aesthetics, creativity, the design process and culture. It communicates strategies for getting into the industry on graduation and finishes with a chapter on starting your own design practice. There are over 100 career profiles and project stories from designers and students and it’s lavishly illustrated in colour. It should be inspiring. It goes a long way to demonstrate what it’s like to be a designer and what the reader’s future might be. It’s written as an undergraduate text book but is proving very popular in schools too. We hope it will help produce better designers and help address industry’s problems with the education systems.
This downward trend has been going on for years. I have compained to all relevant organisations (eg Design Council) about students only receiving 2.5 hrs tuition per week in universities and they only have to attend 2 days per week so they get pt jobs to help pay their fees, but nobody listens. Increasing nos of foreign students who return to their own countries after graduating is not exactly investing in our own home grown students.
As a university lecturer I can state that my colleagues and I put a huge emphasis on what industry thinks of the education we deliver. We visit our students on placement in their year out and listen to what the companies want us to teach (drawing is No 1!). Many of our projects are live, with companies coming to us regularly because they like what they see. We have great employability statistics with many of our students going straight into the industry. But there are many things that have to be taught in an often crowded timetable. And there are some things that we just can’t fit in.
As a response to this and the general lack of information about what it takes to become a designer and what it’s like to be a designer we have produced The Design Student’s Handbook, published by Routledge. It de-mystifies the profession, covering all of the design disciplines. It delivers designers’ views on the importance of aesthetics, creativity, the design process and culture. It communicates strategies for getting into the industry on graduation and finishes with a chapter on starting your own design practice.
There are over 100 career profiles and project stories from designers and students and it’s lavishly illustrated in colour.
It should be inspiring. It goes a long way to demonstrate what it’s like to be a designer and what the reader’s future might be. It’s written as an undergraduate text book but is proving very popular in schools too. We hope it will help produce better designers and help address industry’s problems with the education systems
Firstly a survey of ‘just under’ 50 designers is nothing to get too excited about.
Secondly – you have to ask what the questions were and what the rationale for the survey was?
Thirdly – okay if there is an issue then designers are probably best placed to come up with solutions?
One of the biggest issues related to the poor ‘Design education’ in schools is the recruitment of teachers to Design and Technology as there is a national shortage. Unfortunately unemployed designers who can’t cut it in industry don’t make great Design and Technology teachers. But these are often the ones who apply to be teachers. Equally students completing a degree on a ‘very average’ out of date design course where they have a genuine lack of understanding about design – equally don’t make great Design and Technology teachers.
So if there is a problem then there is firstly an issue with a curriculum but secondly an issue about who delivers the curriculum and how. Generous bursaries are now available to train to teach Design and Technology – up to £12000 – but we need good people to teach the subject. If interested let me know! However it will only be through children having inspiring, creative and engaging design experiences in education that we can hope that we might have a future design industry that competes internationally.
As a design business owner struggling to find great creative talent that can think intelligently and commercially, and a father with a daughter about to take a foundation in art this is very worrying.
As a nation we should be investing in clever, creative people. Our future depends on it. Surely politicians can see that what should define Britain is our inventiveness rather than our prowess at making money from financial services. Its the ability to harness and foster the potential of people to make life better (by design) that should be the focus of all education. Instead it seems to come down to the somewhat limiting focus of ’employability’. Why?, when the jobs of the future have yet to be created. We should be empowering people to invent the future not follow the past. This is why design education is so incredibly important.
There is a reason why China is investing in design so much. They are astute. What does this say about our approach?
I have been hearing this same statement both as a design student in London in the 1970s and as a design lecturer and it just shows the lack of self esteem of most designers and their industry. If design education in the UK is so weak then how come our creative industries make thousands of pounds for the UK economy and win awards. This is done mainly through ideas and not computer literacy.