Bachelor of Design specialising in Jewellery Design
Inscape Education Group
Key Information
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Campus location
Cape Town, South Africa
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
3 years
Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
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Application deadline
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Earliest start date
Feb 2025
Scholarships
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Introduction
Jewellery Designers translate cultural meaning and individual values into beautiful tangible objects. Jewellery Designers interpret trends and styles by tapping into the creative culture, art, and fashion. Jewellery designers have a broad understanding of the tension between aesthetics, market needs, social dynamics and business success. Inscape Jewellery Designers learn about traditional visualization techniques fused with new technologies, materials and production methods. They become competent in operating professional hardware and software tools while experimenting with new innovations in the jewelry design field. Graduates enter their profession as Studio Jewellery Designers (from concept, prototyping to production), Visualisation/draughting specialists (providing technical solutions and graphic renderings) and Product Managers (coordinating the process of designing, creating and marketing). Inscape Jewellery Designers receive a solid grounding in understanding human science and how it relates to the jewelry design field – setting them up as thought leaders in this culturally and economically rich industry.
- Consumables cost 1st year (+-R1000) **estimates only
- Continuous project-based assessment
- Digital and print portfolio submissions in 2nd and 3rd year
- Final years graduate in December
- Degree candidates can go on to apply for postgraduate studies pending they meet the application and entrance requirements of the relevant Institution.
- Our programmes are quality assured and standardized across all Inscape campuses nationally.
- You can enroll in our Bachelor of Design programme at any campus to complete your 1st year.
- Students who are accepted into certain degree specialization programmes might be required to complete their 2nd and 3rd-year studies at another specialized Inscape campus.
What is included in the course
- MacBook * optional
- Wacom tablet
- Software licenses (as per programme requirements)
- Prescribed textbooks
- 1st-year preliminary art equipment
- Online library subscription
- Digital study guides and courseware
- Internet connectivity
Excluded
- Monthly consumables
- Digital camera
Course Information Year 1
FUNDAMENTAL DESIGN 1st year – DESIGN SKILLS
- Developing fundamental design skills to create design savvy, critical thinkers.
- Developing foundational Drawing Skills, Basic Material and Manufacturing awareness, Digital Image Making, Communication, Software and Leadership skills to create well-rounded designers fit for any design industry.
- Developing an awareness of the integrated nature of design, advancing the unique thinking of our students.
- Introducing an appreciation for Design History.
- Establishing fundamental building blocks for creative problem-solving.
Course Information Year 2
DISCIPLINE-SPECIFIC 2nd year – DESIGN KNOWLEDGE
- Discipline Specific knowledge will be developed through creative processing and ergonomic and cultural considerations in jewelry and adornment design. The relationship between sensory perceptions, objects, and space will be explored as well as the style and technical properties of both commercial and high-end fine jewelry.
- Applying theory to practice through an understanding of the historical context and investigating the artistic and commercial world of jewelry based on a variety of approaches and cultural issues. Traditional and contemporary Jewellery design materials and techniques are explored.
- Advancing software skills and technical knowledge through an introduction to software programmes that assist in jewelry design and rendering imaginary geometric volumes.
- Developing an understanding of the business of design through the awareness of the South African jewelry industry and understanding jewelry business theories, economic systems, business systems and the context of culture and consumption
Course Information Year 3
SPECIALISATION 3rd year – DESIGN STYLE
- Developing a signature design style by understanding environmental sustainability and using jewelry as an expressive language through original, coherent and effective jewelry design solutions. Visualisation and understanding the complexity of symbols and signs will further assist in developing a unique design style using innovation in jewelry through the exploration of both traditional and non-traditional mediums.
- Developing advanced knowledge and expert skills by exercising rendering techniques and establishing distinctive artistic attributes of jewelry. Architectural and functional knowledge will further assist in industrial prototyping and the understanding of convergence in technology and machinery will assist in industry readiness.
- Awareness of the latest design technologies and innovations through practice in software assisting in sculpting and digital rendering.
- Developing an understanding of the guidelines and principles involved in running a design business. Promoting business vision, mission and values give graduates the confidence and ‘know-how’ to start their own design initiatives based on a foundational knowledge of strategic development, marketing strategies, the importance of branding and managing finances.
More about the bachelor of Design Degree (B.DES)
This three-year full-time qualification produces professional designers equipped for a rewarding career in design. Students qualifying can practice as junior designers or study towards an Honours Degree. As this qualification is universal, it applies to a variety of design disciplines, including fashion design, interior design, graphic design, multimedia design, jewelry design, industrial design, product design, spatial design, design research, design writing and design for the environment.
Traditionally, the various fields within design and design education have been separated. Public and private Higher Education schools have offered all sorts of qualifications. Our Bachelor of Design qualification aligns industry standards and educates designers following common guidelines. It also implements the long-awaited minimum standards for designers of all disciplines.
The design is globally recognized as a profession. Worldwide, designers are required to have at least a three-year qualification. Inscape offers the Bachelor of Design Degree with common competencies and specializations through elective subjects.
The first year of the Bachelor of Design provides a foundation in design thinking, constructs and visual communication, photography, material studies, image making and design history, communication studies, leadership and unique thinking and software include basics in Adobe products. We love that our students learn alongside aspiring designers of other disciplines. This kind of exposure blows a student’s design perspective wide open and teaches relevance and appropriateness in terms of design solutions within the business world.
At the end of the first year, students are required to select their chosen stream as a specialization of their future career choice. Our students love the fact that they have a full year to become fully entrenched in the world of design. They attest to the fact that when they make their final decision regarding a chosen specialization that they do so with confidence and fully informed.
Second and third year are intense. Each specialization stream is packed with knowledge and technical skill required of the respective discipline. Our students, however, are well prepared in the first year and enter into the senior years equipped with the ability to think critically and apply themselves effectively. Our success rates are a testimony to the fact that our unique approach to teaching design, works.