UWC-DT Summer Studio

Are you confident you can stand out and excel in the complex and ever-changing world?

Your goals today and world-changing aspirations, are they really within reach?

You have excellent academic records, but you have not succeeded in creating a notable project under your belt, does that bother you?

You have incredible ideas, but you don’t know how to turn them into tangible outcomes, are you feeling frustrated with yourself?

If you relate to any of the above scenarios, ‘Design Thinking’ will help you beat the odds!

In an ever-changing world, design goes beyond creating aesthetics, clothes and pretty things. Disruptive innovation and technology arise from a need to creatively solve a problem. This summer studio, first ever to be developed in-house at UWC Changshu China, is your chance to take action in a meaningful and effective way that is popularized by David M. Kelley, the founder of Stanford University's Hasso Plattner Institute of Design and the leading global design and innovation company IDEO.

Back in 1999, ABC’s ‘Nightline’ featured IDEO’s complete design process in the re-invention of the shopping cart in 5 days. This classic case study is still featured in MBA courses around the world up to this day. Design Thinking has since become the go-to approach in creative problem-solving, and has been applied in a wide range of areas from technology to business.

At Stanford University, nearly 10% of all Stanford students take classes at the Design School ‘d.school’. Stanfordstudents highlight that Design Thinking has motivated them to make an impact on the world by launching new initiatives and organizations; while others discover their own sense of purpose through the experience.

What is Design Thinking?

Design thinking is a methodology to solve problems creatively. As designers, we focus on the people that we are designing for in order to lead to human-centered products and services. The core of design thinking is getting actionable and knowing your questions. It’s about simple mindset shifts or ways of asking questions differently – a new way to look at problems.

Below is a portrayal of the Design Thinking Cycle:

From framing the right question, to coming up with creative ideas; moving from prototyping to sharing with others, all relevant project-management issues can be resolved by Design Thinking. At UWC-DT Summer Studio, the acquisition of this framework and related project management strategies will undoubtedly give you a clear advantage in the highly competitive school environment. Not only does this unleash your creative potential, the development of critical 21st century skills such as collaboration and user-centered research is what is most valued by institutions globally.

3D printed prototype by UWC Changshu Architecture Design group

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As a Design student, the opportunity to engage in Design Thinking has helped me understand the importance of iterative testing to improve solutions. We make sure to take into account the most basic concepts in material science in the design process. Ideas in our head then became bits and pieces of a robot, after multiple rounds of trial-and-error. I think our robot is the best evidence of us successfully applying design thinking.

Multy Xu, Co-Captain and Programmer of UWC Changshu First Robotics Competition Team (Team won 2018 FRC China Round Industrial Design Award)

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UWC Changshu China FRC team co-captain Multy Xu (left) with Principal Pelham Lindfield Roberts （middle）

What can we offer you?

1. Deep dive into the Design Thinking process and learn how to apply it for creative problem solving
2. Hands on experience with emerging, exciting technologies for rapid prototyping (e.g. 3-D printing and laser cutting)
3. Learn how to use Design Thinking to plan, organize and conduct projects
4. Bring home concrete prototypes to begin a journey of iterative design
5. Jump start an independent or group project to add to your portfolio of great achievements
6. Immerse in UWC’s unique experiential, inquiry-based education model; cultivate UWC values and collaboration skills
7. Know yourself better and improve yourself from close interactions with industry professionals for individual evaluation and feedback
8. Receive recognition from UWC Changshu China with certificate of achievement

Who will be teaching?

James Zhou

James Zhou is an interaction designer at IDEO Chicago with a background in philosophy. He is interested in the intersections where design meets impact, tangible meets intangible, and human meets AI. Before graduating from the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction design, he studied Industrial Design at the Umeå Institute of Design. James is also an alumni of UWCSEA. He believes that design is the perfect balance between creativity and impact. At IDEO, James works with a variety of clients to solve problems from a human-centered and hands-on approach.

James will be the head instructor for this summer camp, together with two other designers.

Shirla Sum (UWC Changshu China)

Shirla Sum is Deputy Dean of Studies at UWC Changshu China and the Director of Yushan Academy Center for Design and Innovation (YSACDI). Shirla hopes to encourage the UWC community and beyond to embed design thinking and an innovative, interdisciplinary approach in capturing the opportunities presented by the 21st century. Prior to her career in education, Shirla spent five years at Goldman Sachs in New York and Hong Kong conducting macroeconomics research. Shirla is a graduate of Pearson College UWC in Canada, and has a double major in Economics and Philosophy from Wellesley College in the U.S.A. She also completed her Masters of Education at the University of Hong Kong.

What do we teach?

*Draft schedule may change depending on students' pace and instructors' judgement.

UWC residential life and safety

A number of international UWC Changshu Design students will join the camp as camp facilitators. They will share their experiences with using design thinking to solve problems and support campers in project-based learning. Students will also have the opportunity to participate in a range of vibrant, interactive, UWC-themed activities throughout the camp.

All campers will be staying at UWC Changshu China on-campus student residences and experience an authentic UWC experience. Every residence has common areas to allow for free-flow conversations and relaxation. In the second part of camp, campers will be divided into different small groups to finish their last project. This not only allows for deep, meaningful exchanges of ideas as well as the development of long-lasting friendship!

Campers will also be provided with three delicious meals at school canteen. They will also have access to a wide range of facilities on campus, including our library, indoor and outdoor basketball court, gym, climbing wall, etc.

Indoor basketballcourt

Canteen

Swimming pool

Student residences

UWC Changshu China

Slide to view the campus of UWC Changshu China

There is 24-hour school security and on-site health service provision, to make sure all campers stay healthy and safe.

Yushan Academy Centre for Design and Innovation

Established in September 2018, the mission of the Yushan Academy Centre for Design and Innovation (YSACDI) is to provide meaningful educational opportunities for UWC students and the wider community to design and innovate collaboratively for peace and sustainability. The aim is to encourage design thinking and an interdisciplinary approach in generating creative solutions to the world's complex problems. It includes purpose-built facilities and equipment including two resistant materials workshop spaces, a digital design studio, multimedia studio, STEAM hub, fashion & textile studio, etc.

Resistant materials workshop spaces

Fashion & textile studio

esistant materials workshop spaces

Digital design studio

Centre for Design and Innovation

Slide to view the workshop

UWC-DT Summer Studio

Limited Spaces available;APPLY NOW!

Program details:July 8- July 14, 2019

Address: UWC Changshu China, No. 88 Kun-Cheng-Hu-Xi Road, Changshu, Jiangsu, China

Age group: 14-18

Costs: 14,500 CNY(includes program fees, food and accommodation costs)

Early bird special: before April 10, 2019: 13,800 CNY (includes program fees, food and accommodation costs)

Language: English(Chinese language support available if needed)

Application Deadline: May10, 2019

Email: ysacdi@uwcchina.org

Contact person: Ms. Elaine Shi

(Email: ylshi@uwcchina.org; Contact number:15850838616)

United World Colleges

United World Colleges (UWC) is a unique global educational movement, with outstanding students selected from over 150 countries and regions. Founded in 1962, UWC makes education a force to unite peoples, nations and cultures for peace and a sustainable future. At UWC, students with different cultural and socio-economic backgrounds live and study together and experience a transformative education that prepares students to become future leaders with a global perspective and dedication to social services.

UWC Changshu China offers two-year IB Diploma Programme and one-year Foundation Programme.

Contact Us

www.uwcchina.org

info@uwcchina.org

+86 0512-52982500

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