12bubbles: Ideas. Interactions. Experiences. Design.

Doing myself a favor as well as hoping to help some of the design enthusiasts out there, I am sharing a few thoughts about getting in at one of India’s best Design school. Honestly, I decided to write this post in the hope of saving myself  from a lot of troubles of repeatedly telling each and every individual who asks me on ‘how to prepare’ for the examinations, the design aptitude tests and the interview. By the levels I’ve witnessed who reached out seeking for help, it seems many of the students are still new to the whole concept of ‘design’ and being a ‘designer’, well at least as far as I can understand. I’ve the modesty to say this because I think I’ve gained quite a considerable amount of knowledge as a designer in the past 1 and half year of my career. This fall I will be joining the Master in Design Program at the Industrial Design Centre, IIT Bombay and although I still have not joined yet, I believe this post will give a foothold to the aspirants; at the same time, when someone asks me the ‘how to question’, I could just share this link. Most probably, I would keep this post updated as I walk through the experience once classes starts, but until then, here we are.

Notice the two circular markings at the end of the toothpick. They are not only for decorative purposes. One is where a person breaks off the toothpick after it has been used to signify that it's a 'used' one. The second mark is to use as a peg to put the used pick on a flat surface so as that the tip doesn't touch the surface. Photo via Cosmic Thought

Design, as a matter of fact is subjective and some people may disagree with what I’m going to tell you here but nevertheless I believe you will gain some insights on the whole idea about it anyway. With saying this, it would rather be the wrong approach if you are looking for a crash-course or something of the kind hoping to get through design examinations and to become a good designer. Although towards the end of this post I’ve shared a couple of  ’Quick notes‘ which you can go through if you are looking for a quick reference but let me remind you no amount of study materials I share or anyone else for that matter will cover the design substance a great designer needs. I would prefer if you would understand the approach, the attitude and the mentality of what makes a designer from within! Continue reading →