About

Mission Statement

The School of Design TAFE provides a dynamic multidisciplined learning experience that inspires, challenges and fosters creative aspirations, and supports students to make significant contributions within their professions and the global community. The School strives to be the leading provider of excellence for Applied Design and Technology education in Australia.

Our Design Disciplines

The School of Design TAFE delivers programs across a range of design and technical disciplines, providing students with a solid foundation upon which to build exciting careers at levels ranging from Certificate III to Associate Degrees in the fields of

• Building Design
• Furniture Design And Technology
• Interior Design And Decoration
• Product Design
• Visual Merchandising
• Graphic Design
• Design

Some programs pathway into higher-level programs. Refer to our pathway map and individual discipline program guides for further detail.

Student Work Integrated Learning / Industry Engagement

Students are provided with enormous opportunity to network with industry professionals and engage in real-world real-client projects. In every discipline area students engage with real projects for clients such as Country Road, Salvation Army, Clark Rubber, Aesop, Dunlop Foam, Fuji Xerox, Oce, Smiggle, Melbourne councils, and countless more. Mentor programs are offered in the second year of some diplomas whereby students are matched to an industry professional for ongoing engagement and valuable guidance.

• Interior Design and Decoration Mentor Program
• Visual Merchandising Mentor Program

Student Exhibitions and Events

Across the discipline areas, students partake in exciting public events including Furnitex, the Fringe Festival, the Retail Expo, State of Design Festival and many more. Students design, develop and install their own exhibitions throughout their years of study, as well as graduate exhibitions to promote their skills to industry and professional associations.

Student Competitions / Awards / Scholarships

All students have the opportunity to apply for certain discipline specific awards. RMIT has internal financial scholarship opportunities for students, as well as encouragement to apply for competitions and awards outside of RMIT in the industry arena. Refer to specific program websites for further information. Following are examples of student opportunities in this area:

• GOTYA
• Worldskills
• Wendy Royle Scholarship

Expert Staff

Our staff are of the highest calibre, many with strong associations in organisations such as the Design Institute of Australia, the Building Designers Association of Victoria, the Furniture Industry Association of Australia, and the Printing Industry Association of Australia to name a few. All have underpinning industry experience and many are also active practitioners.

• Many staff from our Interior Design and Decoration program undertake the SIDA scholarship.
• Some of our staff have been recipients of the Collie Trust, enabling teachers to undertake international research in their discipline areas.
• RMIT Teaching Awards

Our Facilities

Our programs are delivered across two campuses (City and Brunswick) and five buildings (71, 73, 94, 515, and 516). Students undertake their studies in a learning environment specifically catered to their needs and endeavouring to reflect the working environments in industry. For instance, our Furniture workshop is equipped with the latest in furniture designing and furniture making technology incorporating design studios, technology workshops and computer laboratories with the latest software and hardware for interacting with technology. This interactive and holistic learning environment makes our graduates work ready and highly skilled in the use of industry standard software, technology and design studio environments. Refer to specific program information pages for further details and photographs of the facilities available to each discipline area.