MA & MDesService Design Strategies and Innovations
| Study location | Latvia, Finland, Estonia |
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| Type | Master, full-time |
| Nominal duration | 2 years (120 ECTS) |
| Study language | English |
| Awards | MA & MDes |
| Accreditation | Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters |
| Tuition fee | €8,000 per year The participation cost is payable in two equal installments, at least two months before the beginning of the first and third semester. |
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| Entry qualification | Undergraduate diploma (or higher) BA degree of at least 180 ECTS or a second-level professional higher education diploma is required in humanitarian sciences, arts, information and communication sciences, the social and human sciences, or science in business administration. The entry qualification documents are accepted in the following languages: English. Often you can get a suitable transcript from your school. If this is not the case, you will need translations. You must take the original entry qualification documents along with you when you finally go to the university. |
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| Language requirements | English You have to present the results of one of the internationally recognized tests (see below). If your previous studies have been obtained in English but in the country where English is not native language, then you have to present an official letter from your previous educational institution where is stated that all your studies were in English (medium of instruction is English), and you have to pass interview where the SDSI will evaluate your language skills. Applicants who have obtained previous education in English in one of the bellow listed countries do not need to provide separate language proficiency:
Internationally recognized foreign language certificate does not have to be presented if the foreigner has acquired secondary education in a country of the EU and the EEA or in the Swiss Confederation and in his secondary education certificate is included an assessment of foreign language skills, which are comparable to at least level B2 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). SDSI accepts the following internationally recognized language tests:
*The Duolingo English Test which is an online English proficiency test that can be taken online, on-demand, in under an hour for only $49. The test is taken via a computer with a camera and includes a proficiency score, video interview, and writing sample which are shared with the SDSI (Art Academy of Latvia) when you send your results. Certified results are available within 48 hours of the test sessions. |
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| Other requirements | A motivation letter must be added to your application. A short essay elaborating on the following themes should be digitally submitted (in English, 4,600 characters maximum, including spaces): In short, its goal is to introduce your background, support your application, and answer the question: “Why are you a suitable candidate?” Some points that may help you answer this question: NB! It is important to properly cite and reference any sources used in your motivation letter (quotations, publications, ideas, etc. that are not your own). Neglecting the rules of referencing and citation is considered plagiarism and will result in the disqualification of your application. |
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| More information |
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Overview
Service Design Strategies and Innovations (SDSI) is a new joint master’s programme with a focus on interdisciplinary studies and cross-specialisation in design, management, business and social sciences. We will help you become a versatile service innovator who can enable change in public and private organisations through strategic design, management and creative leadership.
30-35 students will be admitted to the programme annually, enabling individual and personalised approaches to the study process and providing close networking among students and teaching personnel.
Graduates will be awarded with a Master’s triple degree, one from the Art Academy of Latvia, one from the University of Lapland and one from the Estonian Academy of Arts. SDSI has strong connections to industry, ensuring research, design and testing opportunities with real industry partners on study topics and projects in Latvia, Finland and Estonia.
Career opportunities
We will equip you with the knowledge and skills to be prepared for an uncertain future. You will know how to identify and satisfy unmet needs in a wide range of sectors, such as health care, transportation, education, finance and retail. You will execute leadership roles in organisations in the private and public sectors, spearheading change processes, envisioning the future, managing multidisciplinary teams and overcoming innovation roadblocks.
Upon graduation, you will:
- Become a versatile professional with an agile mindset.
- Transform existing service design concepts by integrating research-based user needs and organisational strategies.
- Apply holistic approaches and user-centred design principles.
- Understand social, economic, and technological contexts in which private and public services function.
- Be an organisational change facilitator.
- Have grown into leadership roles through experience.
