Key information
MSc Design Management has been developed for those already within a creative industry who are looking to gain core and relevant skills of business and management, and for those in an established business environment looking to gain experience and knowledge in developing creative strategies.
- Level
- Postgraduate Taught
- Delivery type
- Full Time, Part Time
- Degree qualification
- MSc
- Mode of delivery
- On-Campus
- Duration
- 1 year
- Location
- Scottish Borders
- Start date
- September, January
Our MSc Design Management will provide those already within the creative industry with the opportunity to gain core and relevant skills in business and management and for those working in an established business environment looking to gain experience and knowledge in developing creative strategies. The postgraduate master’s degree will develop your skills and knowledge to enable you to produce insightful projects and instigate problem-solving across all departments and stakeholders that support the product in areas of services, communications, technology, and brand entity.
You’ll approach design management by applying innovative process analysis, a new way of thinking and professional application to current industry problems to achieve positive outcomes. The programme will enable you to confidently deliver innovative business strategy, whilst producing innovatively designed products through creative teams and creative problem-solving.
MSc Design Management will allow you to develop productive working cultures whilst remaining focused on the customer and staff journey, enabling businesses to acquire the strategy goals via effective design. It blends creativity, innovation, entrepreneurship, and management.
The programme offers specialised courses in strategic design, sustainable design and management, change management, and user experience design. You’ll develop decision making skills and understand how design is used in the organisation for product development and associated departments. You’ll apply your learned skills, techniques, and knowledge to undertake your masters project and fine-tune your expertise within the industry.
Upon completion of the programme, you’ll be able to effectively manage design and creative strategies and communicate ideas critically and effectively to a wide range of individuals and organisations, through professional visual, written, and verbal communication.
Your student experience
Your learning will be informed by our Fashion and Textiles faculty and staff, whose work covers many key areas including:
- Smart Nanotextiles – Nanofibres and Nanoyarns
- Fashion Technology
- Fashion Sustainability
- Design Innovation
- Printed Textile Design
- Medical Compression Design
- Textile and Apparel Supply Chain Management
- Brand Management and Marketing
- Garment Making and Pattern Cutting
Go Global
With Go Global, Heriot-Watt's global student programme, you can carry your studies to new places and experience new cultures, expanding your horizons on the way. You'll discover what it means to be a true global citizen and emerge prepared for wherever your career journey will take you.
Inter-Campus Transfer
Course content
September Intake
Mandatory September
- Design Thinking and Innovation
- Strategic Design
- Sustainable Design & Management
Mandatory January
- Change Management
- Research Methodologies
Optional January
- Design Technologies
- User Experience Design
Mandatory May
- Masters Project: Academic Paper
January Intake
Mandatory January
- Change Management
- Research Methodologies
Optional January
- Design Technologies
- User Experience Design
Mandatory September
- Design Thinking and Innovation
- Strategic Design
- Sustainable Design & Management
Mandatory Secondary January
- Masters Project: Academic Paper
Fees and funding
| Status | Full Time | Part Time |
|---|---|---|
| UK | £10,528 | £5,264 |
| International | £19,816 | £9,908 |
- Status: Your residency status is usually defined as the country where you have been ordinarily resident for the three years before the start of your course.
- International: 'International' includes applicants from European Union countries who do not hold Pre-Settled or Settled status in UK. (This does not include students from the Republic of Ireland - see above).
Additional information
Note: the fees indicated above will apply if you begin your studies in September. If you choose to join us in January instead, the fees below will apply.
January 2025 intake tuition fees
| Status | Full Time | Part Time |
|---|---|---|
| UK | £9,152 | £4,576 |
| International | £19,056 | £9,528 |
- Status: Your residency status is usually defined as the country where you have been ordinarily resident for the three years before the start of your course.
- International: 'International' includes applicants from European Union countries who do not hold Pre-Settled or Settled status in UK. (This does not include students from the Republic of Ireland).
Scholarships and bursaries
Postgraduate scholarships and bursaries
We aim to encourage well-qualified, ambitious students to study with us and we offer a wide variety of scholarships and bursaries to achieve this. Over £6 million worth of opportunities are available in fee and stipend scholarships, and more than 400 students benefit from this support.
Entry requirements
We have standard entry requirements for all of our courses that you will have to meet.
A minimum of a 2:2 honours degree, or its non-UK equivalent, in any subject provided that it includes evidence of management, creative subjects or engineering, and a personal statement demonstrating an interest in the subject.
In addition, work or project experience in a related company role will be taken into consideration, please include your CV as part of your application.
Why Heriot-Watt
We're the top university in Scotland for graduate outcomes which means that more of our graduates are employed or in postgraduate education than any other institution in the country and we ranked 5th in the UK.
We're also rated number one in the UK for CEO or MD roles, meaning more of our graduates go on to become CEOs or MDs than any other university in the whole of the UK. On top of that, we have beautiful campuses, across the globe, so you'll get a truly international education. Our Edinburgh Campus is home to Oriam, Scotland's National Sports Performance Centre combined with plenty of wellbeing resources, prioritising fitness and mental health for all students. Our Global Research Institutes look at solving real world issues such as climate change and saving our oceans as well as working on the next medical technological breakthrough and the future of AI and robots.
Student life
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