Thirteenth International Conference on Design Principles & Practices

Abstract

An increasing number of workers are transitioning from traditional employment to freelance, or project-based work. Harvard Business Review estimates that approximately 150 million people in North America and Western Europe are now part of what is known as the “Gig Economy,” a “labor market characterized by the prevalence of short-term contracts or freelance work as opposed to permanent jobs.” Intuit has estimated that 34% of the American workforce is now freelance, and that number is expected to grow to 43% by 2020. Design education has been slow to adapt to this changing economic demand, as it is often difficult to find room in a design curriculum for lessons on crowdfunding, marketing, intellectual property, budgeting, taxes, or a multitude of other topics relevant to entrepreneurship. It is insufficient to solely train students for corporate or consulting work. Design educators must also teach students to be freelancers. This paper details the gig economy, how it affects modern design practice, and how design programs are modifying their curricula to compensate. It also offers an introduction to the Richmond Institute for Design and Innovation at Western Michigan University, which offers a curriculum that is transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary. Along with traditional design courses, students take courses in engineering and entrepreneurship, training them to design products that are desirable, feasible, and viable. The goal is to graduate students that are equally prepared to enter the workplace as employees or as freelancers.