Master of Design / MBA

Offered in conjunction with the IIT Stuart School of Business, the Master of Design / Master of Business Administration (MDes/MBA) dual degree program combines graduate professional education in both design and business. The first program of its kind in the world, IIT's MDes/MBA marks an important milestone in the co-evolution of design, management, and innovation. As design becomes regarded more and more as an essential business resource (see BusinessWeek's recent profile of ID's program), professional education that links the two fields is becoming increasingly important.

Provide unique value to employers
The dual degree program integrates the Institute of Design's user-centered, methods-based approach to innovation with core management education in marketing, project accounting, organizational behavior and the like from IIT's Stuart School of Business. This course of study provides students with a unique and powerfully broad perspective on the innovation process. Upon graduation, MDes/MBA graduates are uniquely well qualified to lead collaborative, interdisciplinary, global innovation organizations.

Maximize your educational investment
Under the dual degree program, students with a design background can be awarded both the MDes and MBA after two years plus one quarter, rather than the three years of continuous study required if they are pursued separately. There is a single, streamlined application form and process for the dual-degree program.

How it works
A) If you have a design background (usually meaning an undergraduate degree in design), you are not required to take the Institute of Design Foundation year, and can complete both degrees in just over two years:

• 4 full-time semesters at the Institute of Design
• 14 Stuart School (SGSB) classes (each class runs 11 weeks): 7 of these classes can be taken during ID’s fall and spring semesters, leaving 7 courses to be completed during SGSB’s summer and winter quarters. Of the 7 SGSB courses taken during ID semesters, 3 will double-count as ID electives.

B) If you do not have a design background, you are still encouraged to apply to the dual degree program. You will be required to take an additional two semesters of Foundation design training at the beginning of your program; however, you will also have more flexibility in spreading your 14 SGSB courses over three years instead of two:

• 6 full-time semesters at the Institute of Design
• 14 Stuart Classes (each class runs 11 weeks): 9 of these classes can be taken during ID’s fall and spring semesters, leaving 5 courses to be completed during SGSB’s summer and winter quarters. Of the 9 SGSB courses taken during ID semesters, 3 will double-count as ID electives.

Model curriculum scenario
The following program of study demonstrates scenario A above. Note that many other course combinations are possible, this is merely one hypothetical program, focused on design planning. It is equally possible to integrate more communication and product design courses, and to begin the program in a Spring semester instead of Fall.

Course titles in italics are MBA courses, others are MDes courses.

Year 1 Fall: Cognitive Human Factors; Physical Human Factors; Observing Users; Product Planning; Design Planning; Structured Planning; Systems Workshop; Financial & Managerial Accounting.

Year 1 Winter: Statistical Methods; Managerial Finance.

Year 1 Spring: Design Analysis; Design Synthesis; Cultural Human Factors; Design Planning Workshop; Strategic Design Planning; Strategic Planning Workshop; Operations Management; International Business.

Year 1 Summer: outside internship on your own.

Year 2 Fall: Research & Demonstration Project; Strategic Design Research; Business Frameworks; Service Design; Organizational Behavior; Marketing.

Year 2 Winter: Managerial Economics; MBA elective.

Year 2 Spring: Research & Demonstration Project; Economics of Design; Design Planning Implementation; two MBA electives.

Year 2 Summer: Business Policy; two MBA electives.

MDes/MBA statistics, 2008 incoming class
Average age: 29
Average GMAT: 650
Male 75% / Female 25%
International 25%
Undergrad degree: Design 75% / Non-design 25%