HONOURS DEGREES
Bachelor of Industrial Design (Honours)
Melbourne City
This honours degree is where aspiring designers develop the skills to invent, visualise and prototype design solutions to solve complex problems.
From the air-powered 'O2 Pursuit' motorcycle to the design of an open-source prosthetic fabrication laboratory, RMIT is at the forefront of contemporary industrial design.
Throughout your studies you’ll explore the contemporary industrial design practice and undertake practical learning in design visualisation and communication design thinking; and the material and technological constructs of industrial design.
For over 60 years industrial design at RMIT has offered aspiring designers technical, theoretical and applied immersions into the diverse and dynamic fields of industrial design practice. Working on real-world problems, in industry and community contexts, with direction and feedback from experts, the program culminates in a year-long honours design research project.
You will explore through design practice:
- commercial and aesthetically-focused approaches to product, transportation and furniture design
- the design of sustainable products, services and systems
- technologically and materially mediated interactions and experiences
- design as a mechanism for enabling social reform and cultural enrichment
- the possibilities of form, process and material in response to rapid technological advances
- the increasingly blurred intersections of our digital and material worlds
- design as a way to address the needs of clients, user groups and communities
Your studies are centred around learning through design studios. Design studios provide a unique way of exploring ideas by challenging future designers and modelling the best practice of local and global design firms.
You'll learn from local and international design practitioners and build your industry networks throughout your studies.
International student visa holders can only study full-time.
Design studios are at the core of your studies
Throughout all levels of this program you will engage in creative, industry partnered and research-led learning through design studio projects.
What is a Design Studio?
Design studios provide a unique way of exploring ideas by challenging future designers. Studios are run by academics and practicing design leaders from local and international architectural and design firms.
The design studio model emulates the best practice of local and global design firms. The studios allow you to explore design, connect with your peers, industry and integrate with other disciplines.
Design studios centre around service, technology and object orientation.
You will choose your studios from a range of options offered each semester. Studio offerings have the following orientations:
- Service Orientation: Where the focus is sustainability, social innovation, health, transport, and community engagement.
- Technology Orientation: Where the focus is universal design and ergonomics, manufacturing, technical innovation and prototyping.
- Object Orientation: Where the focus is furniture, lighting and objects for the home.
- Digital Orientation: Where the focus is on emerging digital technologies, computer-aided design (AutoCAD), and coding and interaction design.
Final honours year project
Using your studio experiences you’ll devise and undertake a complex design research project in your final honours year. Your final project will be showcased to the industry and the design community at the Graduate Exhibition, which celebrates the industrial design discipline and its future through the work of emerging designers.
Learn from local and international design practitioners
You’ll learn directly from local and overseas academics and lecturers, who are practising designers and are connected with the industry and the design community. The academic teaching staff are all engaged in areas of research and offer expertise in different fields of industrial design, and this knowledge will help to shape your design journey.
All programs are delivered in English. You will have access to online resources through the myRMIT student portal.
Ongoing assessment throughout the semester includes examinations, essays, reports, oral classes, presentations, group projects, research projects, laboratory projects and practical assignments.
Build industry networks throughout your studies
This program provides considerable scope for you to engage in real world projects within industry and community organisations. It focuses on developing innovative designers to practice in emerging technological, sustainable and social domains of industrial design.
Past students have partnered in the design and research departments of the following industries:
- automotive: Ford, Toyota and GM Holden
- technology: Philips, Spatial Architecture
- information Laboratory
- industrial design: Charlwood Design, Catalyst. Buro North
- manufacturing: Crumpler, Knog, Planex, BlackMagic
- service Design: Deloitte, Victorian Legal Aid, Vic Roads, Australian Taxation Office (ATO)
Graduates work in a broad range of contexts and settings relevant to new enterprise development, design innovation and the development of contemporary cities.
They can find work in product and manufacturing companies; in the consultancy, entertainment, education, cultural and services sectors; and for research institutions.
Cross-disciplinary designers work in emerging fields of design practice; others start and run their own design or product-producing businesses.
The program prepares graduates to undertake Masters by Research or PhD after successful completion of their bachelor honours program.
Graduate successes
Below are some examples of industrial design graduates shaping the design world:
- Mike Simcoe
Vice President of Global Design General Motors, USA - Laura Morrison and Jaide-Scarlet Begg,
Service Design Analysts at Deloitte Digital - Kyle Armstrong
Industrial Designer at Katapult Design - Adrian Spagnuolo
Product Designer at Colorific, a toy design and development distributor - Jiazhen Chen
Industrial Designer at Wild Design, Shanghai, China - Luca Abate
Industrial Designer at Blackmagic Design
Professional recognition and accreditation
- Design Institute of Australia – students are eligible for student membership and graduates are eligible for full membership
- International Interaction Designers Association (IxDA) – students and graduates are eligible for membership
- Association of Women Industrial Designers (AWID) – students and graduates are eligible for membership.
Graduates are also eligible for membership of the Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand.
Info Corner
330 Swanston Street (cnr La Trobe Street)
Melbourne VIC 3000
Tel. +61 3 9925 2260
Make an enquiry
Program and course information
Key content
Deliver innovative design solutions to real-world problems
Develop products and systems that enhance function and aesthetic, and that benefit user experience.