Postgraduate courses

2025

Updated October 2024

 Students should use My Programme Requirements to view the courses that can be taken as part of your degree. The programmes pages also contain indicative degree structures as a visual reference for how you can progress through your degree. 

The grey boxes below provide the overall enrolment requirements that need to be completed for each programme:

180-point Research Master of Design:

  • 60 points: DESIGN 700, 701, 702
  • 30 points from DESIGN 704, 705, 706, 711
  • 90 points: DESIGN 794AB

More information can be found in the Calendar Regulations

120-point Research Master of Design:

  • 15 points: DESIGN 700
  • 15 points from DESIGN 701, 704, 705, 711
  • 90 points from DESIGN 794AB

More information can be found in the Calendar Regulations.

180-point Taught Master of Design

  • 135 points: DESIGN 700, 701, 702, 709, 710
  • 45 points from DESIGN 704, 705, 706, 711

More information can be found in the Calendar Regulations.

120-point Taught Master of Design

  • 75 points: DESIGN 709, 710
  • 45 points from DESIGN  700, 701, 702, 704, 705, 706, 711

More information can be found in the Calendar Regulations.

Postgraduate Certificate in Design:

  • DESIGN 700, 701, 702

More information can be found in the Calendar Regulations

Courses offered this year

DESIGN 700 - Design Research Methodologies

  • Course prescription: A study of how to adopt and adapt different methodologies for context analysis, concept development, design iteration, deployment and evaluation.
  • Semester availability: Semester One
  • Points: 15

DESIGN 701 - Design Practices

  • Course prescription: A survey of current contexts, resources and networks to be applied in advanced design practice.
  • Semester availability: Semester One
  • Points: 15

DESIGN 702 - Design Technologies

  • Course prescription: A studio-based study of process and production technologies for advanced design outcomes.
  • Semester availability: Semester One
  • Points: 30

DESIGN 704 - Design Impacts

  • Course prescription: A studio-based investigation that considers design as a catalyst for change and the models for measuring the impacts of design interventions.
  • Prerequisite: DESIGN 700-702
  • Semester availability: Semester Two
  • Points: 15

DESIGN 705 - Design Futures

  • Course prescription: Applying speculative design methods to develop future scenarios and solutions for emerging societal and environmental challenges.
  • Prerequisite: DESIGN 700-702
  • Semester availability: Semester Two
  • Points: 15

DESIGN 706 - Design Innovation

  • Course prescription: A studio-based study of enterprise practices for the stable deployment and viable adoption of design products and services.
  • Prerequisite: DESIGN 700-702
  • Semester availability: Semester Two
  • Points: 30

DESIGN 709 - Project Design 

  • Course prescription: The formulation and development of a design project, from ideation to research design, in preparation for undertaking the DESIGN 710 Capstone Project.
  • Prerequisite: DESIGN 700-702
  • Semester availability: Semester Two
  • Points: 15

DESIGN 710 - Capstone Project

  • Course prescription: An advanced, supervised design project that combines research, prototyping, tangible design work and in-depth stakeholder engagement toward investigation of a specific issue that would benefit from an advanced design response. Students will integrate appropriate research and design methods, synthesised findings and impact analysis at an in-depth level through a capstone report or case book. 
  • Prerequisite: DESIGN 709
  • Semester availability: Semester One
  • Points: 60

Design thesis

These are double-semester courses. A student must enrol into both the A and B components of the course. Please note:

  • Enrolment in the A component of a double-semester course confirms enrolment in the B component, even if in a future year (e.g. part-time).
  • You have until the fourth Friday of the first semester in which you enrol into the A component to make changes without penalty. 
  • After this point, you are liable for the total fees for the whole course (full or part-time), and this includes if you withdraw from the course.

If you are enrolling on a part-time basis, contact the Student Hubs for assistance.

DESIGN 794A&B - Thesis 

  • Course prescription: A major design research project involving industry stakeholders with ability to undertake theory-practice mix to a maximum ratio of 60% theory and 40% creative practice.
  • Prerequisites: 
    • DESIGN 700-702, and
    • for the 180-point MDes, a B average or higher across DESIGN 700-702.
  • Note: Students must enrol in DESIGN 794 A and B as this is a double-semester course.
  • Semester availability: Semester One and Two
  • Points: 30 (DESIGN 794A) + 60 (DESIGN 794B)