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For the product designers!

I'm in Year 11 and right now we are being told to consider what we would like to do at A-level. At the moment and since year 7 I have loved DT and designing and I'd really like to take it for an A-level and I'm even looking at Uni courses (I plan ahead a lot :colondollar:

).
What do you guys who are either in GCSE/ A-level/ Uni think of product design and I hear that the jump from GCSE to A-level is incredibly big?!
Thanks :biggrin:

Reply 1

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Reply 2

TheBeesKnees

Hey! I do product design resistant materials for A2. For the edexcel exam board and res mat specifically, there really isn't that big of a jump from GCSE to AS at all in my opinion. The course structure is almost identical for GCSE and AS and the AS exam even has less materials you have to learn the properties of! A2 is slightly more different as in our school, as we can design and make anything we want, when we had set design and make tasks at AS and GCSE, so the work is more independent. The exam for A2 is also completely different as you have to study art movements (yay) and systems and control for manufacturing which is incredibly dull (boo!), instead of production processes, materials and stuff like that. However, that stuff is just the sort of thing you can just memorise from the text book. All in all, it's generally a really fun a level, although it is very time consuming like any sort of coursework subject! :smile:

Reply 3

ajm1234

What's up!

I'm studying product design at Loughborough University (Well, more specifically Design Ergonomics). I can't explain how great it is. I love everything about design, and could not WAIT to get to Uni! First year, you don't get that much freedom because it's more about getting the key skills in for the coming years. However second year (which i've just finished) is so open you can basically design (and build) whatever you want! Which is great if you have any particular interests in the product design industry. However... it's not easy, if you come to do design at uni there will be loads of people who will joke to you that it's not really a real degree but the likelyhood is that you'll actually have 3 times as many hours per week of contact time (e.g. lectures) than them, and i can promise you there will be probably at least 7-14 nights a semester you just won't sleep through because you'll be working (my worst was at the end of last year where I didn't sleep for 4 days before a hand in). But, it's all worth-it. It really is. When you're done you'll have a final prototype to show off to people and impress with, as well as a whole load of research to back up everything you've done. I'm starting my placement year working in London tomorrow and I can't wait to get into the real business of design, be it, product design, graphic design...I have no idea what I want to do for the rest of my life yet, but I know i'll enjoy it! Lastly, it may sound picky but you do have to accept that you won't be earning as much money as say, if you went into underwriting or law etc. It's not an easy decision for me, but I know i'd rather spend everyday of my life enjoying my job with less money, than everyday of my life hating my job with an excess of money.

:smile:

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