Our course and approach
The IUDA offers you the opportunity to grow deep and wide.
It is a chance to deepen your mastery of service design methods and grow confidence in leading and facilitating service design work. It will help you to strengthen your foundational design skills, while applying strategic and systemic design thinking to social challenges.
The academy is recommended for managers, researchers and consultants who wish to become Service Designers as well as staff from our partner organisations and others interested in using service design for social good.
We help our students to grow in practical ways:
For those who want to become service designers, we support them to lead service design projects independently.
For those who want to grow their skills as leaders and change agents within complex systems, we support their confidence as facilitators and enablers of design-led innovation in real-world settings.
Completion of both modules enables you to become a confident service designer and/or change maker.
The IUDA learning experience
The learning experience is mostly experiential and project-based. While there are many lectures and seminars throughout the course, we find that the greatest learning occurs in applying the knowledge and methodology in design projects.
There will be two learning modules, each ending with a final presentation to showcase how you are applying service design practice to your work, which we will use as an opportunity for learning, assessment, feedback and growth.
What can I expect?
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40 days, including 100+ hours of teaching
Each module will require roughly 20 days of your time, including about 8 days of contact time per module. Expect to meet your peers and tutors at least once a week, usually on Zoom, as well as face-to-face or hybrid sessions.
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Fortnightly service design breakfasts
A 1-hour breakfast learning ritual that involves our wider community of practice to share practice, connect and learn from one another.
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Service Design coaching
Group mentoring in module one and 1:1 coaching in module two from a member of our design team focused on setting and meeting personalised skills development goals
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Workshops and masterclasses
Module one focuses on getting to grips with fundamental service design tools and approaches and contains 7 masterclasses. Module two contains 5 masterclasses, alongside coaching and group support to apply service design to real life practice.
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Service Design projects
Learning by doing! Applying the tools and approaches you learn to your day to day work, through a group project in module one and a self initiated final project in module two.
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Independent learning
Regularly practising drawing and visualising, as well as accessing literature, videos and courses to absorb independently and reflect on with our community of practice.
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Service Design Jam
A 24 hour design sprint where we partner with the Royal College of Art and design new solutions against a social challenge.
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Two modules
Module one will contain more masterclasses to ground you in service design practice, whilst you deliver a group project.
Module two will have a higher number of service design breakfasts, to give you the space and thinking support to complete a self initiated project.
What qualification will I receive?
Upon graduation you will receive an IUDA certificate that recognises your attendance on the course.
If you complete module two you can also choose to apply for a certification that recognises you as an established Service Design Practitioner by the International Service Design Network. You will be awarded a two-year membership of the Service Design Network, including access to its publications and networks.
Graduation requirements:
A pass mark for each of the learning modules; assessment will be given, along with feedback, after each presentation.
A minimum of 80% attendance at masterclasses and other meetings
Achieving personal learning goals (module two only)
Meeting Service Design Practitioner requirements (module two only)