QS World University Rankings® by Subject Art & Design: NABA is the Best Italian Academy of Fine Arts, in the Top 100 worldwide
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The Programme: overview

The transition of the modern world from a “society of goods” to a “society of services”, and the search for a sustainable relationship with nature, gives designers the chance to explore the ethics of design more thoroughly. During the MA in Product and Service Design (Second Level Academic Degree in Design), professors and professionals guide students to become full-scale designers, capable of envisioning new products and services, managing all phases of a project’s development, from conception to manufacturing and release onto the market, through definition of the design strategy and material researching.

Over the MA, students will have the opportunity to:

  • Learn an integrated approach to design open to explore values and needs of a new, global humanity, as well as its sustainable relation to the environment
  • Anticipate the possible evolutions of the object's role as a physical terminal of virtual relation and interaction systems
  • Develop projects through experience-based, physical relations to the objects, experimenting with rapid prototyping systems and digital fabrication
STUDY PLAN
<p>The Master of Arts allows students to deepen their knowledge through highly specialised studies and to acquire the theoretical and practical instruments necessary to understand the product and service design methodological processes, in a practical workshop dimension.</p> <p>Through training, research and innovation experiences which deepen the main design issues with an innovative and interdisciplinary approach, students have the opportunity to confront the professional context, experiencing new creative and operational models for the global design world.<br /><br /></p> <p><strong>FIRST YEAR</strong></p> <p>Connects project field studies and humanities to interpret social and cultural contexts in which products and services are placed, exploring techniques, materials and technologies for space representation, through studies in interior design, project methodology, 3D modelling and rendering, history of art, furniture design, brand design, design history.</p> <p>Through workshop experiences and theoretical lectures, students deepen their path developing cultural, theoretical and technical skills for a sound understanding of meanings and values linked to product design as an exchange between users and manufacturers and as a creative process.<br />&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>SECOND YEAR</strong></p> <p>Advanced studies in design, exhibition design, project culture, light design, design management and art direction reinforce knowledge and skills necessary to manage a product and service design project for complex public spaces, enabling students to handle the entire design process, from concept to executive design, including the strategies to present the project in all of its phases.</p> <p>In the wider educational scope of one of the most important cities in the world of contemporary design, the cross-disciplinary workshops and the different project experiences allow students to acquire a methodological approach suitable for professional career.</p>

Department: Design and Applied Arts

Area: Design

Title Awarded: Second Level Academic Degree in Design

Credits: 120 CFA

Starting: February 2025 - October 2025

Duration: 2 years

Languages: Italian and English

Campus: Milan

Our Faculty

Luca Poncellini
Design and Applied Arts Department Head
Design and Applied Arts Department Head
Luca Poncellini
<p><strong>Design and Applied Arts Department Head</strong></p> <p>Luca Poncellini is an architect and a designer with a PhD in the History of Architecture and City Planning. As a partner in the architecture office Cliostraat until 2009, he has curated projects and has lectured in Italy and in several countries throughout the world. His works have been exhibited at the Venice Biennale, at the Van Alen Institute in New York, at ETH in Z&uuml;rich, at MAGA in Gallarate and at Triennale Milano. In 2008 he co-curated the retrospective exhibition Laszlo Hudec, in collaboration with the Hungarian Consulate in Shanghai. Since 2013 he has been the Course Leader of the MA in Interior Design. Between 2015 and 2019 directed the research lab and the project C-Park. Since 2019 he has been Design and Applied Arts Department Head.</p>
Claudio Larcher
Design Area Leader
Design Area Leader
Claudio Larcher
<p>Born in Milan, he graduated in Architecture at Politecnico di Milano. After a research period in Spain, in Madrid and Barcelona, in 2002 he founded his own studio, Modoloco Design Workshop, a space for experimentation and research, where diverse cultures and experiences are implemented as architectural and design forms. He has taught at the Faculty of Design and Arts of the Free University of Bozen, at Politecnico di Milano, and lectured in Italian and international institutions. He curated and participated in several exhibitions in Italy, Japan, Spain, France, United Kingdom, Sweden. Ambassador of Italian Design for Switzerland, Albany and Uruguay in 2017, 2018, 2019, he is the author of the books Globetrotting designers (Compositori), Design, scuola e solidariet&agrave; (Fausto Lupetti), Design from the Alps (Scheidegger Und Spiess), and Disegnare un cucchiaio per cambiare la citt&agrave; (Quodlibet).</p>
Valentina Dalla Costa
Master of Arts in Product and Service Design Course Leader
Master of Arts in Product and Service Design Course Leader
Valentina Dalla Costa
<p>She studied design between Milan, Berlin and China, before specialising in History of Art and Architecture. Journalist, consultant, art and architecture historian. She&rsquo;s been teaching at NABA since 2008, has collaborated over the years with Casa Vogue, La Stampa, DDN, Living Corriere and currently writes for Pambianco Design. The editorial activity is flanked by the enhancement of the world of design: for over ten years she&rsquo;s been organising thematic itineraries linked to the artistic and architectural heritage of the city of Milan, with a particular focus on designers, craftsmen and architects. She is part of Como Lake Design Festival team, curating editorial contents and cultural itineraries. Among the latest publications, <em>Drawing a spoon to change the city</em>, written with Claudio Larcher, Design Area Leader, and published by Quodlibet for the NABA Insights series. Since 2020 she is Course Advisor Leader of the MA programmes of NABA Design Area.</p>
Dante Donegani
NABA Design Advisor
NABA Design Advisor
Dante Donegani
<p>Architect and designer, after the Master in Design at Domus Academy, Donegani collaborated with Marco Zanuso and Andrea Branzi, and with Olivetti Corporate Identity. In 1993 he opened his studio D&amp;L with Giovanni Lauda working in several design areas. He has designed home and office products for Isuzu, Memphis, Stildomus, Luceplan, Edra, Kelebek, Rotaliana, Radice, Viceversa. Among his most celebrated projects: <em>Lisca </em>(Rotaliana, IF Product Design award 2005);&nbsp; <em>Multipot</em> (Rotaliana, mention at the XXI Compasso d&rsquo;Oro 2008); the chaise longue <em>Passepartout </em>(Edra), in the permanent collections of San Francisco MoMA and Triennale Milano; <em>Agronica</em>, designed with Andrea Branzi, in the collection of Centre Pompidou in Paris. His work appeared at Barcelona Biennale, Centre Pompidou, Triennale Milano, Venice Biennale. He directed the Master in Design at Domus Academy and he is part of NABA Faculty since 2013.</p>

Study and career opportunities

Study abroad programmes

NABA provides students with the opportunity to study abroad as part of their academic experience.
NABA Academic Coordination Office, in charge for the management of the exchange programmes, supports students in taking advantage of the international study opportunities through exchange programmes and promoting educational experiences thanks to a network including numerous prestigious international partner universities.


NABA counts more than 70 cooperation agreements with academies and universities through the Erasmus+ Programme in Europe and others international cooperation agreements with several universities outside Europe.

Companies and institutions placement

NABA has developed strong relationships with leading companies that provide internships for NABA students. Among them are: Aldo Cibic of Cibicworkshop, Azimut Benetti Group, Bonetto Design International, Festina Italia, Giochi Preziosi, Giorgio Armani, Intégral Ruedi Baur et Associés, Luxottica, Pininfarina Extra, Studio Italo Rota & Partners, Tagua, the Swatch Group, and Zanotta.

COMPANIES

The MA in Product Design cooperates or has cooperated with: Abitare, Bosch, Com-Tech, Comvert, Electrolux, ENI, Fondazione Pirelli, Giochi Preziosi, IKEA, Industreal, Jannelli & Volpi, L’Oreal, Leroy Merlin, Material Connexion, Momo Design, Orange, Parco Nord Milano, Pininfarina Extra, Regione Lombardia, Resinology, RossoCiliegia, Samsung, the Swatch Group, Tupperware, Vinavil, Waril, and Zanotta.