The degree program provides you with fundamental skills and knowledge in design and product management, preparing you to become a qualified professional for companies across all three economic sectors – services, trade, and industry.
In the Bachelor’s degree program in Design & Product Management, you will acquire the essential skills needed for product and brand development processes. The focus is on a holistic approach — from the initial idea to implementation, market launch, and lifecycle analysis. During your studies, you will combine creative and design expertise with a solid foundation in marketing, market research, and branding. The program emphasizes the coherent design of products, furniture, and spaces, as well as their brands, in a responsible and future-oriented manner.
Among other things, the Design & Product Management program covers:
- Design theory, history, and methodology
- Product and brand management
- Circular design – sustainable and recyclable product design
- Analog design methods using pen & marker
- Digital design methods using Wacom board & more
- CAD modeling & rendering
- Model making
- Photography
- Graphic design and image editing
- Marketing, advertising & market research
- Business model design
- Materials science and material studies
- Project management
Program Structure
Foundation Studies
In the first year of the program, you will gain fundamental knowledge in the areas of design, as well as marketing and branding. You will learn the theoretical and practical basics from various design fields, including furniture, industrial, and interior design.
Course content in the first year includes, among others:
- Design practice in industrial, furniture & interior design
- Analog design methods using pen & marker
- Craftsmanship skills & model making
- Digital design methods using a Wacom board
- CAD modeling & rendering
- Graphic design and image editing
- Marketing & market research
- Design theory and history
- Materials science and material studies
Specializations
Starting from the third semester, you can choose one of three specializations based on your interests and career ambitions:
- Furniture Design
- Interior Design
- Industrial Design
In project work, you will increasingly apply your methodological and theoretical knowledge independently, working across different scales and using specialized CAD tools.
To prepare you for the circular economy and to support your path toward an international career, the program includes the elective module “Communication Portfolio” starting in the third semester. In this module, you can choose to study a second foreign language (Spanish, Italian, or Swedish) or deepen other skills and competencies.
Practical Orientation
In the fourth semester, you will complete a twelve-week mandatory internship and have the option to choose between an accompanying or supplementary study abroad program (13 ECTS) or an extended (international) internship of an additional ten weeks.
The program-specific educational goal of the internship is for students to gain insight into the responsibilities of designers and product managers and to learn how to handle increasingly complex tasks related to their desired professional fields. This allows interns to gain career-relevant experience in interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary work and project environments, characterized by professional, social-communicative, and economic interrelations, and to develop a nuanced understanding of these dynamics.
Combining these experiences with in-depth coursework in product management and market research, as well as supplementary classes such as advertising and photography, forms the foundation for your Bachelor’s thesis, which showcases your abilities as a future designer and product manager.
Would you like to sharpen your skill profile? The advanced Master’s program in Design & Product Management at FH Salzburg offers you excellent opportunities to deepen your knowledge in the areas of design strategy and design leadership.