Design London: HCDE study abroad
HCDE’s Design London study abroad program offered students an intensive, three-week exploration of experience design in London. Led by HCDE faculty, the program combined studio work, field research, guest speakers, site visits, and critique sessions to explore relationships among people, place, design, and sociotechnical systems.
The program was offered periodically over several years, most recently in 2025, and is not currently being offered.
Exploring design through people and place
Design London encouraged students to step outside their familiar surroundings and develop new perspectives on how physical and social contexts are designed. London’s diverse creative culture and interaction and user experience design communities provided a setting for students to examine how design shapes—and is shaped by—the places and systems around us.
Working intensively in a studio environment, students used fieldwork and their experiences in London to develop and materialize new ideas. Close critique was a hallmark of the program, giving students opportunities to develop their work alongside faculty and peers.
Program themes varied across offerings and included topics such as systems, infrastructure, and tools and toolkits. Students engaged with London’s design culture through studio and exhibition visits, makerspaces, guest speakers, seminars, and exploration throughout the city.
These experiences encouraged students to consider Human Centered Design from new perspectives and develop a broader understanding of its role in placemaking, cultural development, and critical practice.