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The IDC School of Design offers an MDes by Research degree programme. The programme aims to develop thought leaders and knowledge contributors in design. IDC seeks talented young designers with relevant expertise in a specific area of design research. This programme is suitable for you if you have a BDes / MDes / MArch / MFA degree, an intellectual bent of mind, and if you wish to advance your career by contributing knowledge through design research. Depending on what you would like to do, the programme could either be your stepping stone towards a PhD in design, or could lead to a design research position in the industry.

Course structure
The MDes by Research programme is designed to give the student a lot of time for research. Unlike other MDes programmes, the MDes by Research programme requires a student to spend only about 25% of their time on coursework. These courses are either related to research methods or to the chosen research area of the student. The student may choose appropriate courses under the guidance of their supervisor. The student can spend the rest of their time working on a series of research projects in their chosen area, and under the guidance of an experienced supervisor and a research progress committee (RPC). Through these projects, an MDes by Research student is expected to contribute to the knowledge through research publications. The duration of the MDes by Research programme is flexible, and can vary from 1.5 to 3 years, based on the progress of the research.

Admission Process
The areas of research in IDC evolve continuously in response to new challenges emerging in the world of design. Here is a list of research topics that we are seeking candidates in the academic year 2025-2026 intake. In the same document, you will also find suggested reading material for each topic. A candidate should choose any ONE of these topics and read the suggested material. The candidate is asked to submit a 500-word research proposal for their chosen topic along with their application. The proposal should clearly identify the research question that the candidate wants to investigate and describe a research method that can be used to answer the same. We encourage candidates to read the material suggested for their chosen topic before writing their research proposal.

Candidates are shortlisted based on their CEED scores. Shortlisted candidates will be called to appear for a written test and an interview in IDC School of Design. If shortlisted, the candidate should come prepared with the material suggested for the chosen topic. The written test and the interview will assess the candidate’s design abilities, research aptitude, and the knowledge in the chosen topic. For more details on the admissions process, please refer to the Admission Brochure.

If you are interested to know more about the MDes by Research programme, please sign up for a free webinar using this Google Form.