Charting the Future of Design Education: A Report by the Design Education Review Committee
About the DERC
In August 2017, the Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) appointed the Design Education Review Committee (DERC) to look into strengthening the design education system in Singapore. The DERC chaired by Mr. Tan Pheng Hock, comprises key industry players, Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs), and public service agencies (see “DERC Members” for a full list of members).
The DERC was tasked to propose strategies to:
- Strengthen Singapore’s design higher education by enhancing existing design programmes in the IHLs; and
- Embed design in Singapore’s non-design higher education to increase the appreciation and use of design across different disciplines.
This report details five recommendations put forth by the DERC to enhance design higher education in Singapore. They are:
RECOMMENDATION 1
Strengthen industry links through a Design Education Advisory Committee
RECOMMENDATION 2
Impart design-led creative thinking skills to students across more disciplines
RECOMMENDATION 3
Support Continuing Education and Training for design professionals and educators
RECOMMENDATION 4
Create real-world design learning platforms for professionals
RECOMMENDATION 5
Empower everyone to learn about design through modular courses and learning communities
Some of these recommendations are tied to pilot programmes that the Dsg will work with partners to prototype, test and refine. In developing these recommendations, the DERC took into account existing efforts by the IHLs and various stakeholders in education to infuse design into higher education curriculum and programmes. The DERC hopes that these efforts will be built on to develop a design education system that meets the evolving manpower needs of the future economy and propel Singapore into a hub for design education in Asia and around the world.
Press Releases:
Read the report
Design Education Review Committee Report
Updated June 2020
