The “Innovation and Design” block interprets strategy making as a process strongly affected by the development of innovation and the role that design plays in the organisation. Mainly, it provides an overview of strategy-making concepts related to a specific industrial setting where creativity management and design represent key assets. Here, the idea of strategy making is interpreted through the lenses of design, where the concepts of “design-driven” innovation, the close link between planning and execution, and the human-centricity principles tend to update the classical and orthodoxical strategy-related constructs. On the other hand, the block treats Corporate Entrepreneurship and Organisation Transformation as fundamental components to sustain continuous renewal and align the organisational posture to the strategic purposes. Strong emphasis will be placed on the concept of Strategic Design to bring strategic thinking down to the product-service system level. A deep-diving experience on how design-driven companies work is provided thanks to innovation classes and design managers who share their experiences with students. The group projects proposed by innovative companies and supported by them are part of the training programme and add a unique chance for students to work on real cases in close connection with design-driven companies.  

The “Leadership and Engagement” block provides an overview of theories and actional behaviours to illustrate leadership to create a culture of innovation, inspiring the team and stakeholders and activating a virtuous process of engagement across organisational silos. As has been recognised, unexpected obstacles and inertia are common in innovation and design projects. Here, designers and innovation managers are required to learn how to embrace complexity, identifying the key aspects underpinning a sound involvement of all the actors necessary to create the expected outcome. This part of the Master presents the different nature of Leadership: effectively developing capabilities to manage change and innovation in organisational contexts. The block connects Decision-Making approaches with an in-depth review of the constructs of Organisational Behaviour and Business Process Management. Furthermore, the conclusive part presents the overlapping area between Design culture and Organisational culture; the overview of the primary Design culture principles/pillars is presented as a means to nurture a culture of innovation in organisations by increasing employee engagement and their creative capacity. Designing spaces that facilitate interaction and the sparking of creativity, conceiving an intangible infrastructure that enables participation and inclusion, and developing a culture oriented to “learn by failure” are all part of that game. The block alternates theoretical lectures with testimonials by design leaders that will show how design culture penetrated a business culture adding new meanings, novel values, and actionable principles.

The “Data and Creativity” block is hinged on the central theme of data. Over the last twenty years, the subject of data has profoundly changed how companies create strategies, generate innovations, and interface with users. While Big Data provides immediate market feedback on consumer preferences and trends, creativity often works with other data: it analyses the dataset differently from the way in which data mining systems can. Creativity feeds on 'weak' data, peripheral data that is not collected globally, but derived from a specific context of use. It is data that some people call “weak”, but which sparks creativity. After a general overview of the role of Big Data in innovation strategies and processes, the block will focus on how to conduct User research and gather qualitative data to generate valuable insights. Thus, the content will present how to transform services leveraging multiple data sources and how data can be grasped, organised and framed to support and induce creativity in the team. The Master explores the concept of a data-driven design through specific applications and the voice of innovation managers who run consulting projects where data plays a key role.  

The “Design Ops and Transformation” block aims to break down the myth of the designer and his chaotic work outside the organisational rules and business procedures. In successful organisations, the development of the design process is planned and framed as a flow of operations where actors, activities, tools, and enablers of creativity have to be connected among themselves and with other parts of the organisation. According to that frame, creativity needs to govern the design process while considering the organisation’s purpose, the talents inside the organisation walls, the knowledge sharing mechanism and the overall structure associated with the power flow. After an overview of open innovation and collaborative mechanisms logic, the block focuses on modern creative project management methodologies: agile methodologies, design methods and the organisational rules underlying UX/UI projects. The modules in this block articulate advanced didactic methods that see the cohabitation of the discussion of case studies, the development of group projects, and the introduction of some software related to the management of DesignOps. 

Activate the Online Application, uploading your updated CV/resume in English. You will also need to pay the application fee (EUR 100), which can be paid online on the application platform itself,  via Flywire* or through a regular bank transfer. The rest of the documents can be sent after the motivational interview.

*You can easily pay your tuition and fees online via Flywire, our preferred payment partner. Flywire provides a secure global payment network that simplifies paying your fees from your home country and countries around the world. Payment options can include bank transfers, credit cards, e-wallets and more, typically in your home currency for most countries.

You will be informed whether you have been selected for a Video Interview by our admissions team in due time.

To complete your application pack, you need to submit the following documents:

Admission to the SDIT programme is limited to a predetermined number of students. This ensures the optimal development of each student while preserving the group’s learning process. All elements of the application form are carefully studied so we highly recommend that you fill it out carefully and provide us with any extra material you believe might help your candidature.

The selection is based on the evaluation of the professional and academic background and a video interview. The selection result depends on the score given to each of the above mentioned elements and can be positive or negative and it will be communicated via e-mail.

The final decision with respect to the admission of a candidate is entirely at the discretion of the Admissions Committee.

Applicants who submit their application by April 28th, 2022 will be awarded a EUR 1,000 Early-Bird Contribution in case they pass the selection process and are admitted to the program.

MIP offers partial waivers up to 40% of the tuition fee to talented individuals from various countries in order to promote international diversity within the class.

To be eligible for this contribution, you must meet the admission requirements and submit at the application stage a small passage (no more than 500 words) on the following topic:

“How do you think your cultural background can add value to the SDIT class?”

The MIP for Women Tuition Waiver is to be awarded to selected female participants in the program who have demonstrated outstanding merit and achievement in an academic or professional sense. The Tuition Waiver is designed to allow for greater accessibility to the programme for women, and in doing so increase diversity within the programme.

MIP 4 Women Tuition Waivers are available at the amount of up to €4,000 each.

To be eligible for this competition, you must meet the admission requirements and submit at the application stage a small passage (no more than 500 words) on the following topic:

“When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful.”
Malala Yousafzai - 2014 Nobel Peace Prize Winner

Describe the biggest challenge you have lived in your professional or private life as a woman.

MIP Politecnico di Milano is offering a tuition fee contribution of up to 35% to 2 candidates of the International Master in Strategic Design for Innovation and Transformation who are willing to commit themselves as Class Tutors.

Discover more.

For more information contact us at: infoexecutivemasters@mip.polimi.it

Contributions on the tuition fee are available for Alumni of various programs at MIP:

- Alumni who completed a Master program, an MBA or an Executive MBA are entitled to a discount of 25%;
- Alumni who completed an Executive Path (Management Academy) are entitled to a discount of 10%.

Please note that in case of company sponsorship, if partial, the Alumni Waiver is applied proportionally on the individual fee. If the company sponsorship is full, the Alumni Waiver will not be applied.

For information on how to apply for this contribution, please write to infoexecutivemasters@mip.polimi.it

Alumni of Politecnico di Milano who have previously shown a strong commitment to their studies and a desire to further their professional development through continued education are entitled to a contribution from MIP of € 2,000.

Please note that in case of company sponsorship, if partial, the Alumni Waiver is applied proportionally on the individual fee. If the company sponsorship is full, the Alumni Waiver will not be applied.

For information on how to apply for this contribution, please write to infoexecutivemasters@mip.polimi.it

The program costs €18,500 for individual participants or € 21,500 for those sponsored by a company.
These costs cover the entire length of the programme, although they do not include living and travel expenses.

There are several contributions available to students, with some scholarships open to all applicants, whilst others are specifically designed for applicants based on individual circumstance.
Please visit the financial aid section on this page.

To apply for a contribution you should contact the Admissions Office to receive the Financial Aid Request Form, select the type of contribution suitable for you and write an essay.
The assignment of the financial aid will be communicated together with the communication of the admission to the Master, after a successful outcome of the selection interview.

While MIP itself does not offer loans, we have explored some loan options for our students, so please contact the Admissions Team for further information.

No, you will be provided textbooks by the programme, with the cost included as part of the overall programme fee.