Enhancing 21st century interdisciplinary design skills within higher education through knowledge transfer partnerships

Abstract

This paper examines how Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs), a UK, part government-funded programme can be actively used to support curriculum development across design against the needs for new graduate knowledge skills, through greater collaboration, dialogue and understanding between academia and business. The paper discusses a recent KTP with a Scottish textile manufacturer where support in design innovation through the embedding of a recent design graduate within the company enabled diversification of their brand portfolio from the oil and gas market into the premium fashion market. The authors (the academic supervisor and the graduate designer) reflect and share-As a case study-The collaborative project, that led to significant insights into the needs of graduates when working within an interdisciplinary working environment across industry and academia. Further, the paper goes on to demonstrate that industrial contexts can be successfully replicated through knowledge exchange collaboration between business and academia to inform the curriculum against the graduate competencies and skills required within industry relevant to the 21st Century workplace.