Master of Science in Design for Health and Wellbeing

The MSc in Design for Health and Wellbeing is focused on the design and innovation of medical technologies, products, service systems and human experiences to solve a variety of healthcare challenges. It is based on working and co-designing with stakeholders right across healthcare, from hospitals to mental health services, public health, and the wellbeing of consumers in society. Through a practical, multidisciplinary approach you will learn by doing and work directly with clinicians and industry partners. In the design studio, you will hone your creative, problem-solving skills, and apply design methods to develop healthcare solutions.
With full-time and part-time options, the MSc in Design for Health & Wellbeing offers a flexible schedule to suit you, whether you want to advance your career in industry, switch career disciplines, or build on your undergraduate discipline.
This unique interdisciplinary programme draws on the complementary expertise from the School of Design, the School of Medicine, the Kemmy Business School and on the healthcare expertise of The University hospital Limerick group.
The Masters is delivered predominantly in a design studio environment, cultivating a culture of creativity, peer learning and transdisciplinary exploration. The program is project focused with continuous assessment. The core design modules are based on collaborative problem solving, creativity and human centred design processes to rapidly research, synthesise and prototype solutions. You will learn how to conduct design research in a clinical setting to uncover healthcare needs to create a design guide. You will apply ideation techniques to then generate ideas which will be further developed into refined solutions. You will develop expertise in ethics, good clinical practice for medical device design and medical device regulations.
You will learn about entrepreneurship and the analytical and conceptual skills required to establish a new innovative venture. You will also learn about the concepts of health and wellbeing, illness, disease and disability, the determinants of and influences upon health, and health inequalities and protection. Moreover, you will learn about anatomy and physiology in emergent care, the causes, risk factors and symptoms associated with different types of disease profiles along with the different types of treatments.

The minimum entry requirement to the programme is a 2:2, (Level 8 - National Qualifications Authority of Ireland) undergraduate degree (or equivalent) in a relevant or appropriate subject as outlined below, or equivalent prior learning that is recognised by the University as meeting this requirement.
Applications are welcome from students of non-design backgrounds who are interested in innovating solutions for tomorrow's health and wellbeing challenges and opportunities. Examples include, but are not limited to, technical disciplines (science & engineering), business, medicine and allied health professions, and social sciences.
Where applicants are non-native English language speakers, certified achievement in TOEFL or IELTS Standard English Language Competency Test will be required. An interview may be part of the admission process.

What to Include with your application-
Qualification transcripts and/or certificates (including certified English translations if applicable)
A copy of your birth certificate/passport
A curriculum vitae.
Statement of Interest: Applicants should describe their key areas of interest in the area of design and health and wellbeing. (500 max words). You may also include the following in your application (optional). Examples of previous work: Applicants can submit a digital portfolio showing samples of relevant student or professional work produced in the last five years. Visual work, analytic reports, proposal documents etc. may be included.
If your qualifications have been obtained in a country where English is an official language this will suffice
If this is not available, the following additional documents must be provided-
English translation of your qualification(s)/transcripts
and
English language competency certificate

IELTS - Minimum score of 6.5 with no less than 6.0 in any component.
TOEFL- (paper based) - 580.
TOEFL- (internet based) - 90.