1. General Information

School	School of Design
Code Reference Law	1164
Name	Product Service System Design
Reference Law	Ordinamento 270/04
Class of degree	LM-12 - Design
Degree level	Laurea Magistrale (Equivalent To Master Of Science)
First year of activation	2010/2011
Official length of the programme	2
Years of the programme already activated	2
Official language(s)	English
Campus	Milano
Dean of the School	Luisa Maria Virginia Collina
Coordinator of the Study programme	Anna Meroni
Website of the School	http://www.design.polimi.it
Website of the Study programme	--

Student Office (Study programme) - Milano Bovisa

Reference office	Centro Orientamento Studenti Scuola del Design
Address	Via Candiani 72, 20158 Milano
Phone	02 2399 7277

Central Student Office - Milano Bovisa

Address

VIA LAMBRUSCHINI, 15 (MI)

2. General presentation of the study programme

Some disciplines lend themselves to internationalization more easily than others, in Italian universities in general and the Politecnico di Milano in particular. This is the case of Design, which is internationally recognized as an Italian phenomenon and lies at the root of the success of Made inItalyall over the world. The Politecnico di Milano registers interest every year for a university preparation in design, both through the considerable number of foreign students who choose the School of Design as destination for their study period abroad, and through the growing number of enrolment applications from foreigners, many of which are never completed due to language problems, as well as to procedural difficulties (visas, Consulate bureaucracy, the complexity of the enrolment procedure, accommodation difficulties etc.).

Similarly, every year many Italian students enrolled in the School of Design manifest an interest in enriching their educational curriculum with an international experience (transfer, job placement abroad, participation in workshops with foreign universities, etc.), aware of the need to broaden their educational background beyond national boundaries.

It is within this framework that a Laurea Magistrale program in Design in English started up. The Master Programme is grounded into the made in Italy design tradition but, at the same time,  aims to face the present and future challanges.

In fact, the world today is going through a profound change that is also significantly modifying training processes. In particular, the increasingly urgent environmental and social demands, the ever more relentless processes of globalisation and consequently the growing competition in an ever increasing market space, the new technologies available, the emergence of new ways of living and new paradigms of consumption (to mention just a few of the phenomena) make it necessary for designers to think in new ways, to create and offer complex, well-articulated solutions.â?¨

The Master Degree program in PSSD aims to work in this direction, offering participants the possibility of developing a holistic, integrated vision to designing, through an interdisciplinary course in a multicultural context.

A ‘product-service-system’, in fact, is a blend of products, communication strategies, services and spaces that are used in an integrated way to offer comprehensive, ethical solutions to complex demands. The center of the product-service-system is the people (users, suppliers, employees, or stakeholders in general) who interact with all these multiple design components, which are part of the system as well.â?¨The two-year program aims to train a professional capable of: problem finding and setting; framing a project through various techniques from ethnographic research to strategic positioning; exploring design solutions and forms of innovation through creative coordination of the product-service-system; promoting leadership, self entrepreneurship and pro-activity in the society.

A ‘product-service-system’ is in fact defined by a blend of products, communication strategies, services and spaces that are used in an integrated form in order to offer comprehensive and ethic solutions to complex demands. The center of the product-service-system is represented by the persons (being them users, suppliers, employees, or stakeholders in general), who interact with all these multiple design components, which are part of the system as well.

The two-year programme aims at training a professional capable of problem finding and setting; framing a project through various techniques from ethnographic research to strategic positioning;, exploring design solutions and forms of innovation through the creative coordination of the product-service-system; promoting leadership, self entrepreneurship and pro-activity in the society. 

3. Learning objectives

The Laurea Magistrale in Product Service design, which is conducted in English, is directed at both Italian and international students interested in following a multidisciplinary and multicultural design program.

It is a second level degree program that is not in continuity with any first level (Bachelor’s) degree. It responds to the interest expressed by students, not only from various geographical origins but also from different disciplinary areas of design (product, interior, communication, fashion furnishing etc.) in continuing their studies within the design disciplines, broadening their vision and designing capacity in systemic terms.

 The specific formative aim of the PSSD degree is to develop the following skills and abilities in graduate students:

- to understand the systemic dimension of contemporary artifacts, which are seen as an inseparable set of products, services, spaces and communicative artifacts;

- to design product-service systems in a strategic perspective, or rather to steer the change and innovation in an evolutionary way and in relation to the changing context

- the acquisition of a growing interdisciplinary orientation, meaning a tendency to hybridize different disciplinary domains in problem setting and problem solving, and a multicultural orientation in terms of a sensitivity towards the specifics of and differences between the destination contexts of design interventions when framing design questions;

- a capacity for design thinking, of analysis and intervention on entire offer systems, meaning the ability to look at the design question in systemic terms, in terms of the relations between different components, seeking to act not only on single components of the product-system but more importantly on the relations between them; and this with reference to contexts that are as yet unconsolidated and not to well-defined, certain frameworks of reference;

- an orientation towards entrepreneurship – meaning a capacity to articulate a long-term business system around the product system;

- a capacity for storytelling, meaning an ability to represent phenomena in visual terms so as to trigger and facilitate a strategic conversation and knowledge transfer between different producers, and also the ability to listen;

- the ability to work and interact in multidisciplinary and multicultural groups, playing the designer role with a strong dose of leadership skills including the ability to guide and unite a group around a vision, a desirable future, the idea of change.

Thus the course takes the shape of a T model, where a vertical axis rooted in the first level of training and focusing on one particular area of design (whether product, communication, interior, furnishing or fashion) integrates with a horizontal axis, relative to the acquisition/use of tools and cultural matrixes from other disciplinary and cultural domains.

The horizontal axis is characterized by:

- a capacity for design thinking orientated towards a strong context sensitivity and towards sustainability in its widest sense, which recognizes the safeguarding and enhancement of environmental and social resources as pre-values that condition design intervention;

- a systemic approach able to promote innovative, sustainable solutions;

- a user-centered outlook, where focusing on the user and user context brings new potential and skills to the creative designing process;

- attention to production processes and their contexts as a fundamental part of the effective and perceived value of the product system innovation;

- a highly contextualized and localized vision of design intervention able to pinpoint the potential and resources of a local system and connect them discerningly with the global. The product-service system approach leads to a design approach that applies an understanding of cultural, social phenomena and the relations between resources and activities to produce innovations that condition the design of urban space and the social systems that live it;

- the intangible aspects of product-service system expertise in design as well as the physical, especially in the service dimension, in that it is a structured interaction between actors orientated towards the building of value.

Training program

The program alternates theory and practice, facilitating the application of acquired knowledge to real situations and allowing theory courses and design laboratories to be grouped together, making learning more coherent and efficient. The emphasis is also on transferring skills in order to be rather than merely know or know how.

As far as theory is concerned, the first semester includes foundation courses aiming to form and feed the ability to understand cultural contexts, systemic thinking, design thinking, problem setting and problem solving (L-ART/03, M-DEA/01, M-PSI/01, ICAR 12, ICAR 13,  ICAR 16).

In the second semester, alongside further studies on service issues and on the modalities to visualize and prototype the product-service  (ICAR 13, INF 01, L-ART/06), some elective courses have been introduced in order to allow the student to build and orientate his/her own study plan according to his/her interests and aptitudes (e.g. he/she may choose to pursue a more socially-orientated path, M-PSI 01, or one that is more environmental sustainability-oriented, ICAR 13).

Moreover, in the second semester, there are the “Design Seminars”, intensive seminars in which international professors and professionals are invited to share their didactic and design experiences with the students. (ICAR 13).

The theoretical part, in lecture form, ends in the third semester with student selected courses that aim to transfer specific, advanced skills in economic and technological-interactive innovation (ICAR 13, ING-IND/35).

Still remaining within the product service system approach, design studio activities in the first two semesters follow three different approaches based on three main conceptual fields of application. These approaches are to be seen as gateways to design, and constitute both a potential tool through which to interpret the product system and a starting ground for conceiving possible trajectories for system innovation.

They are:

- the entrepreneurial field starting with product design, which is common to and compulsory for all students. Its purpose is to develop the ability to produce ideas and turn them into feasible solutions potentially practicable from an entrepreneurial point of view. The laboratory has the support of disciplinary modules on materials and production technology and ends, wherever possible, with an appraisal of the outcome of direct contact with the market of reference. An integral part of the activities in the laboratory is to develop skills for team working. (ICAR 13, ICAR 12, M-PSI/01);

- the field of services or, in alternative, that of physical space. In the former case, the purpose is to learn and exercise service design skills, and in the latter to introduce students to the design of (exterior or interior) physical environments in a product-service system perspective (ICAR 13, ICAR 12).

Both these designing experiments will be tackled by students, though in different years: some tackle the first area in the second semester of the first year, others in the final synthesis design studio in the second year, and vice versa. Particularly in the Final Synthesis design studio, design activities are enriched with special skills ascribable to the management aspects of the innovation process, and the field of experimentation is broadened by a greater ability to tackle complex problems and the ability to work in a group in a fully multidisciplinary way on a complete design activity (ICAR 13, ING-IND35).

Final Synthesis design studio is therefore characterized by context research and problem setting, where some of the methodological tools experimented in the first year are put to use and studied further. It potentially constitutes a solid base for subsequent thesis work.

The final semester consists of design experiences with the professional world, through workshops conducted by business and professional firms, and the final internship, as well as the degree thesis.

Design activities are usually timed so as to be preceded or accompanied by the previously mentioned theory courses, which offer the necessary preparation.

All the interested students can apply for international mobility programs (foreseen in the second semester of the second year).

Some selected students can access to a double degree study program in collaboration with la Tongji University di Shanghai (China).

4. Organization of the study programme and further studies

4.1 Structure of the study programme and Qualifications

The School offering each first degree (bachelor) programme and the appropriate second level (Master of Science) programme in continuity (or thofor access toble without curricular integrations) are shown in the following table:          

 

Level I (Laurea) degree	Level II (Laurea Magistrale) degree progam in continuity
- Product design Product and Furnishing specialisation (disabled in the a.a. 2014/'15)	Product Design for Innovation
- Communication design	Communication design
- Fashion Design	Design for the Fashion System
- Interior Design	Interior design
Product design	Design & Engineering
Mechanical engineering (course offered in theSchoolofIndustrial Engineering
Materials and nanotechnology engineering (course offered in theSchoolofIndustrial Process Engineering
Product  Design Comunication Design Interior Design Fashion Design	Product Service System Design
Interior Design Industrial Design (Product)	Naval and Nautical Design - La Spezia campus

 

The Laurea Magistrale programmes offered by the DesignSchoolare organised in sections:

 

Laurea Magistrale in Product Design for Innovation Teaching delivered in Italian	Offered in both the 1st and 2nd year Product section 1 - PR1 Product section 2 - PR2 NB In laboratories can activate modules in English taught by Visiting Professor
Laurea Magistrale  in Communication Design Teaching delivered in Italian	Offered in both the 1st and 2nd year Communication section 1 - C_1 Communication section 2 - C_2 Communication section 3 - C_3 NB It 'possible activation of the Workshop in English taught by Visiting Professor
Laurea Magistrale in Design for the Fashion System Teaching delivered in English	Offered in both the 1st year Fashion section 1 - M_1 section with a prevalence of courses in English Fashion section 2 - M_2 courses in English Offered in both the 2st year Fashion section 1 - M_1 courses in English Fashion section 2 - M_2 courses in English
Laurea Magistrale in Interior Design Teaching delivered in Italian and English	Offered in both the 1st and 2nd year Interiors section 1 - I_1 Interiors section 2 - I_2 Interiors section 3 - I_3 courses in English NB in sections I1 and I2 can activate Courses and Workshops in English
Laurea Magistrale in Design&Engineering Teaching delivered in English	Offered in both the 1st year D&E  section 1 - DE1 courses in English D&E  section 2 -DE 1 courses in English D&E  section 3 -DE3 courses in English NB It 'possible activation of the Electives Courses in Italian. Offered in both the 2st year D&E  section 1 - DE1 courses in English D&E  section 2 - DE2 courses in English
Laurea Magistrale in Product Service System Design Teaching delivered in English	Offered in both the 1st and 2nd year Product Service System section 1 - PS_1 courses in English Product Service System section 2 - PS_2 courses in English
Laurea Magistrale in Naval and Nautical Design - La Spezia campus	No internal sections

 

 

4.2 Further Studies

The qualification grants access to "Dottorato di Ricerca" (Research Doctorate), "Corso di Specializzazione di secondo livello" (2nd level Specialization Course) and "Master Universitario di secondo livello" (2nd level University Master)

5. Professional opportunities and work market

5.1 Professional status of the degree

The Product Service System Designer is an expert on innovation in the "product-system", it's defined as the combination of product, services, communication and space through innovative and sustainable design solutions, experiences and brand identity. Right in the center of the system are the persons, individuals or in groups, that with differents roles and responsabilities are promoting or are simply involved by the different design solutions. Finally each project is based in a context, a territory that with its identity and its values hosts the design intervention.

LM graduates in Product Service System Design fit into the professional system in areas of strategic competence that target the development of products, and communicational, spatial and relational systems often using integrated design processes.

In particular the special skills of this profile are:

- ability to co-ordinate multidisciplinary design teams, to program and plan integrated design intervention strategies;

- use of practical tools useful to the development of a complex system of product-system innovation;

- ability to analyse user-behaviour and visualise trend scenarios;

- aptitude for the creation and experimentation of advanced, socially and environmentally orientated design methodologies;

- ability to co-ordinate and mediate between profiles specialised in the various stages of new product system development.

Graduates in Product Service System find wide employment opportunities across all professions and business working in the field of design that work in international and multidisciplinary contexts.

More in detail the Product Service System Designer may carry out self-employment, occupation as an employee, partner or consultant in planning studies and consulting firms. Also can be employed in the public service and at research institutions and organizations.

They’ll be able to operate in both industrial manufacturing or services organizations with a high level of innovation, working locally as well as internationally; it may be in the reality of SME, which are typical of the Italian tradition, with the aim of contributing to their internationalization, wrapping multidisciplinary profiles in the area of â¿¿â¿¿design and in research and development projects.

Training in Product Service System Design also leads to a self-employment capability that may stimulate the birth of new design businesses.

Graduates can continue into the third level of university education and undertake a research doctorate (PhD).

5.2 Careers options and profiles

The product-service-system designer is an important professional in the competitive environment of contemporary global brand context. Career opportunities are within the design industry, but also within research firms for the design sector (Trend Institute, Research Agencies, etc.), or in companies and consultancy, communication and distribution agencies.

In particular, some roles that this professional can cover, in addition to the traditional design professional areas, are:

- Service designer

- Retail designer

- Brand designer

- Corporate coordinator

- Art director

- Trend analyst

To these we must add the role of self-employed entrepreneur to which these figures increasingly aspire.

Surveys of University Assessment Commission
https://aunicalogin.polimi.it/aunicalogin/getservizio.xml?id_servizio=204&idApp=1&idLink=4222

6. Enrolment

6.1 Access requirements

First cycle degree (level 6 EQF) or comparable qualification

Admission of every candidate is subjected to an evaluation based on his merit and on the courses attended in his previous university career.

For students coming from other campuses or different study programmes there will be a verification of their previous studies to identify any curricula addition needed, students must obtain the addition before their access to the Master of Science programme.

Qualifications required

- Bachelor or Master of Science Degree;

- English language certificate;

Please see the document “Norme attuative dei Regolamenti didattici“ on the website  of the School www.design.polimi.it

On this document there is a list of the materials required for the evaluation of the admission request, registration procedures and deadlines, indications about the admissibility without evaluation and exclusion conditions.

Students admitted with curricular additions needed must obtain these within one year from admission application.

6.2 Requested knowledge

Admission to Laurea Magistrale programs is possible in both the first and second semester (only for students in continuity, or those who are assigned curricular integrations for the semester in appraisal, may be admitted to the 2^nd semester), with the exception of the LM  in Design & Engineering which does not allow admission to the 2^nd semester (except for candidates who have attended the courses in the 1^st semester as individual courses).

Knowledge of English to the standards set by the University is a prerequisite for enrolment. 

For the academic year 2013 - 2014 within the creation of the ranking for admission the knowledge of the English language will not be considered: this requirement will be considered at the time of the enrolment. Without this requirement it will not be possible to proceed with the enrolment process and the place on the ranking list will be available for a replacement. Starting from the academic year 2014 – 2015 the language certificate must be provided at the time of application for the evaluation.

For admission to LM  programs candidates must return the completed online application form. Admission will be subject to the assessment of the candidate’s curriculum vitae by the entry commission whose decision is final. Any decision to exclude candidates will be adequately justified by  the Commission.

For admission to LM  programs candidates must be in possession of a level I degree in Class L-4 Industrial Design or other equivalent Italian or foreign degree recognised as appropriate. In all cases admission will be granted only after appraisal of the candidate’s educational background and the assignment of any necessary curricular integrations.

The requirement to provide documentary support for online application will be waived for students from the School of Design in possession of the NV criteria (parameters relating to student careers and linked to average marks and the number of credits obtained at the 2^nd year of enrolment).

The following candidates may be admitted on assessment:

-         Internal and external graduates at the Politecnico di Milano who do not possess the above parameters;

-         Internal and external undergraduates at the Politecnico di Milano who have acquired at least 150 CFU (ECTS) (ECTS) at the time of application.

Admission to LM  programs at the School of Design will not be granted to:

-         Graduates from the School of Design at the Politecnico di Milano with a final assessment equal to or less than 85/110;

-         Graduates from the Politecnico di Milano from outside the School of Design with a final assessment equal to or less than 90/110;

-         Graduates from other Italian universities with a final assessment equal to or less than 95/110.

The evaluation of candidates will be done with the parameters shown in the document " Norme attuative dei Regolamenti didattici " on the website of the School www.design.polimi.it. 

Where the assessment is positive the commission will communicate the result to the candidate as admission without curricular integrations, or admission with curricular integrations.

In the latter instance enrolment will be completed when the additional requirements have been fulfilled. Such curricular integrations must be completed within the academic year for which application has been made: students in this position may integrate their study plan and attend LM  courses in advance by enrolling for single courses up to a maximum of 30 cfu (ects) (ECTS)

For admission to the second semester where it is necessary to assign curricular integrations with reference to the first semester, the candidate will be invited to apply again in the following semester.  

To verify the curricular additions assigned, student must check the document "Norme attuative dei Regolamenti didattici" on the website of the School www.design.polimi.it.

In addition to a verification of their previous courses of study, candidates will undergo comparative assessment of the curriculum followed and of other training or non-didactic activities carried out.

The commission may also make use of written tests and/or oral interviews.

6.3 Deadlines for admission and number of places available

Places available for admission:

-         LM  in Product Service System Design (Milan campus):80 students

of which 40 are reserved for students from outside the EU, 4 of which must be Chinese students from the “Marco Polo” project

For the deadlines related to the admission to the Laurea Magistrale, verify the academic rules and the academic calendar 2014/15.

The allocations will be done in order to assure a number of Italians and foreigners students balanced in both sections.

How to become a student at Politecnico di Milano
https://aunicalogin.polimi.it/aunicalogin/getservizio.xml?id_servizio=204&idApp=1&idLink=2970

6.4 Tutoring and students support

The School has improved the information and guidance tools for future undergraduates aimed at informing them with regard to teaching and training activities of each Programme in order to clarify educational objectives and future professional opportunities.

For regular (in line with exams) students, the School has put in place activities aimed at:

- contributing to removal of obstacles preventing fruitful course attendance with initiatives relating to individual needs, aptitudes and requirements;

- rendering students more actively involved in the educational process.

The reference tutor is identified for each Programme and is the institutional reference for guidance within the School. The service is organised within the scope of the Programme and, in particular, takes care of:

- student support in case of need of help in problem solving or concept clarification;

- approval and possible drafting of texts regarding presentation of the Degree Programme which he/she represents;

- identification of projects of students of his/her Degree Programme to be used as guidance tools during Open Days and in institutional School communication.

Polinternational
https://aunicalogin.polimi.it/aunicalogin/getservizio.xml?id_servizio=204&idApp=1&idLink=2170

7. Contents of the study Program

7.1 Programme requirements

To be eligible for the final examination of Laurea Magistrale, students must:
- To have accomplished 120 credits required in Level II of the Master including the credits related to the Internship and the credits of the final examination.
- To have developed an individual thesis under the guidance of a tutor, which can be either a projectable work, a theoretical-methodological deepening, or a historical/critical analysis.
The final examination of the Laurea Magistrale consists in the discussion of the individual thesis which must be written under the direction of the official teacher, thesis supervisor.

For more information on this subject refer to Regolamento Esame di Laurea Magsitrale published on the School website.

7.2 Mode of study

The Laurea Magistrale course is full time activity. It is characterized by many different didactical activities: Monodisciplinary Courses are characterized by theoretic contents communicated by means of ex cathedra lessons and verified throughout the year with tests and interviews.
Integrative Courses cover more than one discipline or specific context, and are taught by two teachers who supplement one another.
Experimental Workshops are taught in the workshops, where the students are given an opportunity to experiment and use the tools used in design professions.
Design Studios involve both a number of internal teachers employed by the Faculty and several external professionals and feature design activities where the students work under the guidance of a team of teachers, each contributing with his or her expertise as related to the subject of the design.
Design Seminars (workshop) are of a duration of one week during which the students develop a project under the guidance of an established and well-known professional or a company.
Erasmus Program and the other international mobility projects enable the students to spend six months studying abroad, at qualified European and non-European design universities.
Professional Apprenticeship enable the student to works with a company or design studio that collaborates with the Polytechnic, under the guidance of a tutor of the Faculty and a tutor appointed by the company.
Conclusive Design Studio represents a complete design experience, linking numerous disciplinary contributions and guiding the students in the choice and development of their Dissertation.

In compliance with the above, the Laurea Magistrale teaching program is organized in various teaching modes:

 

-         Single discipline courses are prevalently theoretical in content, taught in lectures and assessed during the year through written and oral exams;

-         Integrated courses involve more than one discipline or field of specialization. They are sometimes conducted by two lecturers who integrate their contributions;

-         Experimental Laboratories offer the opportunity of experimenting and using the tools, technology and machinery of Design.

-          in Design studios students will take part in design activities under the guidance of a teaching team, each member of which will apply his/her own disciplinary content to the design theme;

-         Seminars and Workshops constitute full-time courses lasting one week, in which students develop a research or a project under the guidance of a visiting professor, a well-known professional or company;

-         The Erasmus program and other international mobility programs enable students to spend one semester studying abroad in qualified European and non-European universities of design.

-         Professional internships or job placements constitute a period of activity within a company or design studio affiliated with the Politecnico, under the guidance of a tutor from the School and a tutor appointed by the company. Professional workshops in collaboration with companies and design firms might be foreseen and integrated in the internship activities.

 

In the following paragraphs we will illustrate the main characteristics of these activities.

 

Optional Courses

12 credits are assigned to courses selected by the students themselves (equivalent to one teaching unit per year).

Each student must select one of the optional courses when presenting his/her study plan for the first year. Similarly he/she must opt for another course when presenting his/her study plan for the second year.

Optional courses are collocated in both the 1^st and 2^nd semester

Laurea Magistrale internship/job placement –

Students will be placed with companies, professional firms, study centers, corporations etc. affiliated with the Politecnico di Milano in compliance with current legislation, which states that a certificate will be issued on completion of a period agreed with the body with whom the internship is successfully carried out (minimum 250 hours, maximum 1 year).

Internships can be fitted into the study plan in the 1^st or 2^nd year of the LM . compatibly with the student’s other study commitments.

Such placements are formative experiences integrating with the world of production: the host company must be aware of and accept the legal and formative requirements of the relationship, while the student must in all cases accept and keep to the rules and customs of the company.

For further information about how to draw up a study plan, teaching priorities, norms governing attendance and exam obligations, etc. students are advised to consult the document “Norme attuative del Regolamento didattico” Norms governing teaching regulations published on the School’s website. 

7.3 Detailed learning objectives

The possibility to choose courses and corresponding credits to be inserted in the Study Track is subject to a series of rules passed by the School which each year tracks a teaching offer of 60 credits per Programme year "nominal offer").

Each year, students may choose study programmes with a different number of credits compared to the nominal offer (60 CFU credits/year) to graduate progression of studies according to their requirements.

The minimum number of credits the student may enrol in is 30, unless the number of credits for completion of the Programme is less.

The maximum number of credits the student may enrol in, subject to exam priority, is equal to 80 CFU/ECT.

In formulating the annual Study Track the priority of courses according to the progression of Programme years indicated in the Regulation below must be respected:

- courses of the subsequent Programme year ("anticipations") cannot be inserted in the Study Track unless all those of the previous year and of the current year have been inserted.

Moreover, the School has decided a series of exam priorities based on which it is necessary to have passed certain subjects considered useful in order to be admitted to others. This may give rise to the nominal number of credits a student may enrol in being reduced due to this rule.

The current System foresees a series of educational activities (basic, specialised, similar or supplementary) which are present in the study programme as single subject Courses, integrated Courses and Laboratories constituting the three-year teaching activity of the Bachelor of Science.

As well as this type of teaching activity, the System foresees that a defined number of credits are attributed to activities which may be grouped under the following items:

- educational activity freely chosen by the student (optional courses);

- educational activity concerning the preparation of the final graduation exam and verification of the foreign language (Final exam and Language);

- activity aimed at acquiring further linguistic knowledge or IT, communication or relational skills or skills useful in accessing the employment world, as well as educational activities aimed at facilitating professional choices by direct knowledge of an employment sector relevant to the qualification, including Internships in particular.

2 Year courses - Track: PS1 - PS2 PRODUCT SERVICE SYSTEM DESIGN

Code	Educational activities	SSD	Course Title		Language	Sem	CFU	CFU Group
091526	B	ICAR/13 ING-IND/35	FINAL SYNTHESIS DESIGN STUDIO			1	18,0	18,0
093278	B	ICAR/13	PROFESSIONAL WORKSHOP			2	6,0	6,0
091985	B	ICAR/13	FINAL EXAMINATION - 1 SEM			1	12,0	12,0

2 Year courses - Track: *** - non diversificato

Code	Educational activities	SSD	Course Title		Language	Sem	CFU	CFU Group
091526	--	--	FINAL SYNTHESIS DESIGN STUDIO		--	1	18,0	18,0
091985	--	--	FINAL EXAMINATION - 1 SEM		--	1	12,0	12,0
093276	B	ICAR/13	INTERNSHIP - 1 SEMESTER		--	1	12,0	12,0 (Grp. Opz.)
093908	B	ICAR/13	INTERNSHIP - 2 SEMESTER		--	2	12,0
089859	B	ING-IND/35	BUSINESS INNOVATION			1	6,0	6,0 (Grp. Opz.)
095141	B	L-ART/03	ART DIRECTION E COPYWRITING			2	6,0
092051	B	ICAR/13	DESIGN DEGLI EVENTI			2	6,0
092058	B	ICAR/13	GAME DESIGN			2	6,0
091909	--	ING-IND/14	IL METODO DEGLI ELEMENTI FINITI PER L 'ANALISI DEI PRODOTTI INDUSTRIALI			2	6,0
092065	B	ICAR/13	LIGHT ART E DESIGN DELLA LUCE			1	6,0
091907	--	ING-IND/22	NANOTECNOLOGIE E MATERIALI FUNZIONALI PER IL DESIGN			2	6,0
092050	B	ICAR/13	SYSTEM DESIGN FOR SUSTAINABILITY			2	6,0
092046	B	ICAR/13	TEMPORARY URBAN SOLUTIONS			1	6,0
096776	--	ING-IND/15	VIRTUAL PROTOTYPING			2	6,0
089860	--	SPS/08	USER AND SOCIAL INNOVATION			2	6,0
096616	B	ICAR/13	DESIGN DELLA COMUNICAZIONE E CULTURE DI GENERE			2	6,0
096711	--	ICAR/17	DIGITAL MODELLING FOR FASHION			2	6,0
096766	C	INF/01	ONLINE GAME DESIGN			2	6,0
096736	--	ING-INF/05	VIDEOGAMES DESIGN AND PROGRAMMING			1	6,0
093801	B	ICAR/16	SCENOGRAFIE DI LUCE - LA CITTÀ COME PALCOSCENICO			1	6,0
096777	--	ING-IND/15	REVERSE MODELING			1	6,0
093766	B	ICAR/13	LUCE, UOMO, SPAZIO NEL PROGETTO CONTEMPORANEO			1	6,0
098651	B	ICAR/13	DESIGN THE COMPLEXITY			2	6,0
095168	B	ICAR/13	GENERATIVE DESIGN			1	6,0
097927	B	ICAR/13	METODI DI RAPPRESENTAZIONE PARAMETRICA			1	6,0
096713	--	M-FIL/04	FASHION AESTHETICS			1	6,0
098624	B	ICAR/13	DESIGN FOR THE TACTUAL EXPERIENCE			2	6,0
098636	B	ICAR/13	DESIGN E NEUROSCIENZE			1	6,0
098901	--	ICAR/14	SCENT DESIGN			2	6,0
095200	--	IUS/04	DIRITTO D'AUTORE			1	6,0
098619	B	ICAR/13	ANALISI DEL FILM E MONDI NARRATIVI			1	6,0
098615	B	L-ART/03	LABORATORIO DI ARTE CONTEMPORANEA			1	6,0
098628	--	ING-IND/17	QUALITY MANAGEMENT			1	6,0
097808	B	ICAR/13	HISTORY OF DESIGN			2	6,0
098617	B	ICAR/13	DIGITAL STRATEGY			2	6,0
093834	B	ICAR/13 ING-INF/05	INTERDISCIPLINARY COURSE OF ROBOTICS			2	6,0
093278	--	--	PROFESSIONAL WORKSHOP		--	2	6,0	6,0

The study plan of the section of the double degree with Design Management - Engineering Management PS3 consult the document published at the following link.
Link to Rules Double Degree
http: //

7.4 Foreign language

Assessment of knowledge of foreign languages is carried out in the manner prescribed by the University published on the web page "Student Services/Guides and Regulations/Guide to the English language" on the www.polimi.it website.

Students are invited to read this document carefully and must comply with the regulations.

In particular, it is to be noted that: "Pursuant to Ministerial Decree 270/04, the Politecnico has adopted the English language as the EU language that must be known in addition to Italian".

Starting from the academic year 2014 – 2015 the language certificate must be provided at the time of application for the evaluation.

Language courses
https://aunicalogin.polimi.it/aunicalogin/getservizio.xml?id_servizio=204&idApp=1&idLink=3050

7.5 Degree examination

Under Decree 270/04 art. 11 paragraph 5, the final test of the LM in Product Service System Design is the submission of a thesis prepared by the student under the guidance of a supervisor.

The paper has the character of experimentation and originality and can lead to both project outcomes and to theoretical and historical-critical aspects. In both cases the paper must contain an introduction outlining the methodological foundations, the reasons and purposes within is built on the search path and which aspects are original contributions of the student.
The thesis is written in Italian and preceded by an abstract in English or vice versa is written in English and preceded by an abstract in Italian. The discussion in all cases must be provided in English.

The thesis should be an important training opportunity to complete the didactic career. This is an individual work that can be developed within a more structured activity conducted in collaboration with other students. In the final results, however, must be clearly recognized the contribution of the individual candidate.

To verify the methodology for the final Examination of Master's thesis  please refer to the " Regolamento Esame di Laurea Magistrale " published on the School website.

Information concerning general rules and regulations, session calendars, registration and consignment of theses is available at
https://aunicalogin.polimi.it/aunicalogin/getservizio.xml?id_servizio=204&idApp=1&idLink=3130

8. Academic calendar

The Degree Programme calendar is organised bearing in mind the verification of learning procedures which, for the School of Design, foresee "on-going" tests during the whole semester. The academic year consists of two semesters, each comprising a teaching session with on-going tests and an exam sessions for verification of learning). The teaching session of each comprises two periods dedicated to lectures, exercises and laboratory activities, each followed by a week of interruption of teaching activities to allow professors an overall verification of on-going tests, followed by two weeks dedicated to exam sessions at the end of the semester.

Academic calendar
https://aunicalogin.polimi.it/aunicalogin/getservizio.xml?id_servizio=204&idApp=1&idLink=3210

9. Faculty

The names of professors for each Course, together with their subject, will be available on the degree programme starting from the month of September.
The degree programme is annually published on the website of Politecnico di Milano.

10. Infrastructures and laboratories

Implementation of large laboratories in support of design teaching is part of the experimental tradition of the Design School of the Politecnico di Milano, which adopts an inductive teaching model in which "knowledge" and "know-how" go hand in hand.

Laboratories are dedicated to practical activities which allow the student to verify his project hypotheses and to learn how to use the technical instrumentation necessary for project experimentation, representation and communication.

The laboratories - managed by the Design Department  - occupy a space of approx.10,000 m² on the Milano Bovisa campus and are, together with the vast system of engineering laboratories, the largest centre in the world in support of research in the design field, in terms of dimensions, available equipment and skills system.

The laboratories are supplemented by the Politeca, an integrated documentation system for research in the design field.

For information:

http://www.dipartimentodesign.polimi.it/laboratori/i-laboratori

www.politeca.polimi.it

11. International context

Building an international dimension of theSchoolofDesignhas been considered a priority objective since its inception in 2000.

The reasons behind this are many: from the characteristics of the subject matter of design, which by its very nature is multicultural and multilocal, close to both the world of production, which has now taken on a global dimension, and the sphere of consumption, whose dynamics and trends make themselves visible in the various specific local realities; to the DNA of the design community which has always been international; from the recognition of Milan as the capital of design, crossroads for designers from all over the world who have come here to study or to open a studio, to the desire to make training programmes ever more permeable to impulses from this stimulating context, just as from other foreign dynamics.

Internationalising theSchoolofDesignhas a dual significance: to support external student (as well as researchers, professors and technicians) mobility and, conversely, attract students, researchers and professors and visiting professors from abroad.

Concerning these two internationalisation directions, the School of Design has committed itself in recent years to widen its international relationships and currently cooperates with design universities throughout the world in Erasmus exchange programmes (with 150 European universities), in bilateral exchanges (with 53 universities outside Europe), in joint workshops with other schools, in international internships, etc.

To this must be added those more structured activities aimed at consolidating cooperation relationships with selected universities in teaching and research fields: this is the case of the MEDes_Master of European Design excellence programme (with 6 partner universities), of the international Designing Designers conference and of the many international research projects in progress.

TheSchoolofDesignis a member of Cumulus, a network of European design schools as it is also of the main international design associations. s.

Just as the host city, Milan, a true international design laboratory, the School of Design  of the Politecnico aims to be a meeting point for different cultures, for teaching, industry and professions in which professors, industrialists and famous designers from all over the world actively participate in the students' educational process.

12. Internationalization

International Exchange

The School of Design takes part in international exchange programs offering students the opportunity of undertaking a period of their studies with a partner university abroad. The list of the School’s partner universities can be found at Studesk Design Bovisa, in the Politecnico website and in the International Area of the School of Design webiste.

Erasmus program

The European Community started up the Erasmus program in 1987 enabling European university students to undertake a period of study, legally acknowledged by their own university, of up to two semesters at a university in another country within the European Union.

Students participating in the program could be entitled to an economic grant (depending on the yearly Call for Mobility) and free enrolment at the host university. In this way students can attend courses and take exams in the partner universities and have the exams acknowledged by the university in their own country.

Bilateral exchanges

The School of Design has also activated bilateral agreements with universities outside the EU. These are mainly for Laurea Magistrale students and can also be requested by those who have already spent a period abroad under the Erasmus program during their three year first level degree course.

The participation format in these exchanges is the same as for the Erasmus program except that there is no economic grant envisaged in these cases.

Bilateral agreements enable students to undertake a period of study abroad at a partner university without paying an enrolment fee, however a contribution to the expense of administrating exchange students is due in some cases(e.g. Orientation fee)

Double degrees

The School of Design has started the following degree programmes:

-POLITONG with the Tongji University in Shanghai (China) for the Laurea Magistrale in Product Service System Design and the Laurea Magistrale in Interior Design.

-POLITSINGHUA with the Tsinghua University in Beijing (China) for the Laurea Magistrale in Interior Design.

-Double Degree with Les École Centrale de Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes et Paris (France) for the Laurea Magistrale in Design & Engineering

These programmes allow students to get a double degree from Politecnico di Milano and the Partner University after the mobility.

Thesis abroad

Students in the 2nd year of Laurea Magistrale program may develop a part of their thesis abroad. This can be done in the following ways:

-through the Erasmus program and/or Bilateral exchange outside Europe including specific courses in the Study Plan, agreed on with your supervisor, that are  useful to the development of your  thesis or with a co-supervisor from the partner university depending on availability, who co-ordinates with your supervisor at the School of Design.

-with co-supervision from the other university, organized autonomously and without joining an exchange program. In this case the student must communicate his/her  intentions in advance to the Relé office of the School of Design, which will formalize the procedure.

-Applying to the Public Call from Politecnico to have a scholarship for doing the thesis abroad.

In-course Internship/job placement

The in-course internship envisaged for the 2nd year of the Laurea Magistrale may be carried out abroad by:

- applying to the R.A.P service (Company and Professions relations)

- joining the Erasmus/extra UE programmes, if available in the partner schools, or by activating a collaboration with professional practices, or through attending courses (design studio based) or workshop as per the same amount of hours.

- Answering to the Call “Erasmus for Traineeship”  to obtain scholarships to make the internship within the European Union.

- Making the internship within the exchange mobility substituting it with project courses that amou8nt at least 250 hours.

13. Quantitative data

14. Further information

For any other information the students are invited to visit the School website, in particular the teaching regulations of the academic rules.

15. Errata corrige