Digital service design is the art of building customer experiences with a strong digital element. The Digital Service Design MSc is a new multidisciplinary course which has been specifically created to help graduates develop exceptional user experience design for digital products and services.

The course has been designed in collaboration with Wilson Fletcher, a leading digital design studio, to closely mirror current professional practices. In so doing, the course will help you develop a deep knowledge of both design theory and practice as well as equip you for employment in the digital sector.

You’ll work on a number of individual and group projects based on real-world briefs, which will help you develop the technical, interpersonal, creative and strategic skills needed to succeed in the digital service design industry.

You’ll be able to explore areas of design and rapid prototyping, innovation methodologies, interview and workshop facilitation, journey mapping, customer research methodologies, project management, how to develop and present actionable recommendations, and much more.

Entry Requirements

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Course Content

Brunel’s MSc course in Digital Service Design prepares you for roles in the fast-growing digital industry by providing a course led by industry experts and practitioners.

Teaching and Learning

You will be taught by our lecturers and practising researchers through a mixture of lectures, seminars, lab sessions, guest lectures from industry experts, talks and studio workshops. This is theory-based teaching based upon up-to-date research in an exciting area.

You will always have a personal academic tutor who will provide both academic and pastoral support. They’ll provide one-to-one supervision for your dissertation project.

Academics and guest lecturers on the course come from a wide variety of backgrounds and have experience working on high profile projects at companies like Wilson Fletcher, M&S, The Telegraph, W12, Virgin Media, BBH, IDEO, Friday, SapientNitro, RBS, and Hugo & Cat.

Research seminars and external site visits are also a feature of this course.

Dissertation

The dissertation aims to develop and demonstrate advanced knowledge and skills in an agreed topic area related to the studied master's programme. As preparation for the dissertation, you will be given grounding in both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection and analysis appropriate to conducting empirical and/or experimental research.

Digital Design Methodologies

This module aims to provide you with an in-depth understanding of digital methodologies, approaches and skills required to be able to select and apply the most appropriate method for any given digital design project or challenge to improve the end user experience. In addition, the module seeks to provide you with core design, communication and professional skills needed to work effectively in modern multidisciplinary digital teams.

Digital Service Applications

The aim of this module is to provide you with the opportunity to apply the methods and techniques learned in CS5604 Digital Design Methodologies and further develop your skills and understanding of these approaches in the context of real world project scenarios to improve the end user experience.

Data Visualisation

The aim of this module is to develop the reflective and practical understanding necessary to visually present insight drawn from large heterogeneous data sets to, for example, decision makers. Content will provide an understanding of human visual perception, data visualisation methods and techniques, dashboard and infographic design. The role of interactivity within the visualisation process will be explored and an emphasis placed on visual storytelling and narrative development.

Research Project Management

This module aims to develop and deploy the skills necessary to design a scholarly piece of research work to address an identified problem area within the chosen field of study.

Ethics and Governance of Digital Systems

This module aims to develop a critical understanding of topics related to the handling and governance of digital information in contemporary systems contexts. Such topics will include the way that networked and intelligent systems are designed and used; the motivations for their adoption; the substantive issues arising; and approaches to their regulation and governance. Examples from the public and private sectors will be used to illustrate these developments.

Digital Innovation and Strategy

The aim of this module is to develop knowledge and skills necessary for the implementation of digital business models and technologies intended to realign an organisation with the changing demands of its business environment (or to capitalise on business opportunities).

Careers

Graduates will be equipped to work in leading digital design agencies and consultancies as well as innovative blue-chip companies that have design departments. Fields you might go into after this course include: