England

Please tell us where you live so that we can provide you with the most relevant information as you use this website.
If you are at a BFPO address please choose the country or region in which you would ordinarily be resident.
Accessibility statement
We encounter designed products daily: appliances, chairs, clothes, buildings, medicines, robots, vehicles and much more – look around you. Design is central to the creation of all these products. Designers and engineers often work closely in teams to translate ideas into useful and required products. Knowledge of the design process is critical for successful engineering – this module combines study with practical work and introduces the essential skills, knowledge and practices of design.
The module is presented in three blocks. Each block focuses on a different phase in developing a designed product.
Block 1 – Exploring designs and designing
The first block provides a general introduction to design. You’ll look at the relationship between people and products and explore the human, cultural and engineering factors that influence the creation of designs. Block 1 will help you develop critical and inquisitive thinking skills when, as an engineer, you observe designs around you.
Block 2 – Design for people
Next, Block 2 focuses on the early stages of the design process and how research and evaluation of user and market requirements inform it. You’ll learn how to discover people’s capabilities, preferences, and behaviours to shape new products. This block will help you develop user research and planning skills.
Block 3 – Creative designing
The final block focuses on the creative strategies designers use to address design problems – particularly strategies for idea generation in the early design phases. It also teaches some of the core theories of creativity. Block 3 will help you develop your creative thinking skills.
All three blocks will contribute to developing your ability to think and communicate engineering ideas through drawing and modelling. They will also give you the skills necessary for researching, planning, and developing a design project by examining various products such as chairs, bikes, music players, kitchen gadgets, and buildings.
The spine of the module is the module website. The core module materials include three printed books (one per block), a modelling workbook, and several audiovisual materials and resources on the module website. Reading is accompanied by practical activities online and offline. Central to the module is an online virtual design studio, where you will upload images of your practical work for discussion with your tutor and fellow students. You will also be able to view and discuss your fellow students' design and engineering work.
You need to have the study skills obtained either through OU level 1 study or by doing equivalent work at another university.
Beyond basic literacy skills, nothing more specific is expected other than a curiosity about objects, why they are as they are, and how they might be different and better. We don't assume that you can already design, or even draw competently. We'll teach you the concepts and skills you need, but if you already have some skills, you'll develop them further.
You’ll get help and support from an assigned tutor throughout your module.
They’ll help by:
Online tutorials run throughout the module. While they’re not compulsory, we strongly encourage you to participate. Where possible, we’ll make recordings available.
Course work includes:
You’ll have access to a module website, which includes:
Additionally, the website includes:
We also provide physical:
The OU strives to make all aspects of study accessible to everyone, and this Accessibility Statement outlines what studying T218 involves. You should use this information to inform your study preparations and any discussions with us about how we can meet your needs.
To find out more about what kind of support and adjustments might be available, contact us or visit our Disability support website.
Design for engineers (T218) starts once a year – in October.
It will next start in October 2026.
We expect it to start for the last time in October 2026.
Back to previous page