This curriculum takes effect on 1 August 2020 and applies to students enrolled on the programme after 1 August 2020.

Transitional schemes

Students enrolled before 1 August 2020 will follow the curriculum according to which they have been admitted until 1 August 2021, after which they will transfer to this curriculum.

Graduates of the programme will have the Danish title of designteknolog AK. The English title is AP Graduate in Design, Technology and Business.

The objective of the Academy Profession Programme in Design, Technology and Business is to provide students with the qualifications needed to independently plan, organise and perform tasks related to textiles, clothing, design and business in connection with design, production, business, marketing and retail.

 The programme is a level-5 programme in the Danish qualifications framework for higher education prescribed for a total of 120 ECTS credits.

The programme has a nominal length of study equivalent to 120 ECTS credits comprising:

1) Programme elements with a total scope of 30 ECTS credits and organised within the academic areas of the programme.

2) programme elements a total scope og 60 ECTS credits and organised within the programme specialisations. 

3) Internship with a total scope of 15 ECTS credits.

4) Final exam project of 15 ECTS credits.

The AP Degree Programme in Design, Technology and Business qualifies the graduate to independently plan, organise and execute tasks in textile, clothing, design and business associated with design, production, business, marketing and retail.

Knowledge

The graduate in Design, Technology and Business will have knowledge about:

• the applied practice of the profession and the subject areas as well as key theory and methods in relation to the structure and role of the industry.
• practice and key theory and methods and how they are applied by the profession.

Skills

The graduate in Design, Technology and Business will have the skills to:

• use the key methods and tools of the subject area and the skills associated with employment in the profession.
• assess and communicate practice-orientated solutions to the company and users.
• assess a concept's business potential based on, inter alia, trends, principles of sustainability, market analyses and business models as well as the relationship between price, quality, product and target group.

Competencies

The graduate in Design, Technology and Business will be able to:

• use an analytical and methodical approach when handling development-based situations in design and design-centred concept development, including assessing the commercial potential of the concept.
• participate in professional and interdisciplinary cooperation with a professional approach.
• acquire new knowledge, skills and competencies within the profession in a structured context.

The programme consists of 5 study specialisations: Design, Production, Business, Marketing and Retail.
 

KEA, Copenhagen School of design and Technology offers one study specialisation in English:

• Study specialisation Marketing offers a specialisation in: Marketing & Communication Design

The other study specialisations are therefore not mentioned in the local part of the curriculum. See the Danish curriculum to find out which programmes KEA offers in Danish. 

Learning outcome for study specialisation Marketing & Communication Design

Study specialisation Marketing also has these learning objectives:

Knowledge

The graduate will have knowledge about:

• the profession as well as the practice of the branding and marketing area.
• practice and key applied branding and marketing theory and methods.

Skills

The graduate will have the skills to:

• use branding and marketing methods, tools and skills in the profession.
• assess practice-orientated issues and propose and select possible solutions.
• communicate practice-orientated issues and solutions to stakeholders.

Competencies

The graduate will be able to:

• handle development-orientated situations in the development of solutions in branding and marketing.
• participate in academic and interdisciplinary cooperation based on a professional approach.

Local programme elements are offered as electives.

A varying number of elective subjects are offered at KEA Design. The elective subjects allow students to enhance their study and professional skills through further specialisation and by gaining new perspectives on subjects of relevance to the fashion and lifestyle industry.

The elective subjects are offered as 5 ECTS modules.
The elective subject modules are offered to Danish and international students. Modules offered in English are thus aimed at both Danish and international students. Danish students may choose to take their exam in the elective subject in Danish, provided that the examiner understands and reads Danish. Students on the international study programme must take the exam in the elective subject in English. Danish elective subject modules are not open to international students.

Elective subjects are taken at the start of the fourth semester.

The electives catalogue is published before the start of the third semester, and students must register for elective subjects in the beginning of that semester. If students do not register for elective subjects by the specified deadline, KEA Design reserves the right to allocate them to an elective subject with vacant places.
KEA Design reserves the right to cancel electives if not enough students sign up. The number of places on the individual elective subjects is shown in the electives catalogue. Students apply for elective subjects in order of priority, but in case of oversubscription or undersubscription of electives, KEA Design reserves the right to allocate students to lower-ranked elective subjects.

The electives are aimed at both Danish and international students, which means that some elective subjects are only offered in English.  The choice of elective subject is binding.

The purpose of the internship is to combine theory and methods with everyday practice in a company. The internship must qualify the student to understand and communicate practice-orientated issues.

Knowledge

The student will gain knowledge about:

• the practice of the profession and the subject area as well as key applied theory and methods.
• practice and key applied theory and methods as well as their own role and professional identity in relation to the internship company.

Skills

The student will get the skills to:

• use key methods and tools as well as acquire skills associated with the profession.
• assess practice-orientated issues and propose and select possible solutions.
• assess and communicate practice-orientated solutions to the company and users.
•  

Competencies

The student will learn to:

• handle development-orientated situations related to daily tasks in a company.
• participate in academic and interdisciplinary cooperation based on a professional approach.
• acquire new knowledge, skills and competencies in relation to the company in a structured context.

Number of ECTS credits
The internship is worth 15 ECTS credits.

Number of exams
The internship concludes with an exam.

The internship is a mandatory education element and an active participation is a premise in order to pass the internship.

The internship equates to 15 or 30 ECTS points, equal to 10 or 20 weeks full time internship. The working hours have to be 37 hours per week. The internship is unpaid.

If you cannot work the 37 hours a week you have to in the internship period because of documented health reasons, you can apply for an exemption to work fewer hours per day for an extended period, so your internship still has a weighting of 15 or 30 ECTS points.

Following forms of internship are possible at KEA:

• Workplace internship in Denmark or abroad.
• Entrepreneurial Internship in your own business.

Before the start of the internship, you have to fill out and send in KEAs internship contract and the work content should be approved as relevant for the study programme by KEA.

The internship is a learning process with associated guidance, reflection and evaluation.

If the internship takes place at a workplace, there must be an employee in the company, who can provide you with relevant professional sparring.

If you choose entrepreneurial internship in your own business, you must find a relevant and external contact who can be your mentor.

Students who chooses entrepreneurial internship in your own business cannot have other students at KEA as interns at their business.

As a student, you are responsible for contacting potential internship companies and concluding an internship agreement before the internship period starts. KEA will however support you in the searching process.

• All students will be assigned an internship supervisor who is a teacher from your programme. The supervisor can help you with subject-specific questions about the internship.
• KEA has an internship coordinator who can help you with practical questions about the internship.
• KEA mediates internship opportunities at www.jobportal.kea.dk/en/ and at career fairs.
• You can join KEA's mentor arrangement. KEA's mentors are working KEA alumni, and they can guide you in relation to your internship search.
• You can find further information about the internship and the search for an internship place at mit.kea.dk/en/internship.

The internship completes with an exam. The exam is assessed according to the 7-point grading scale.

The rules above do not apply on the bachelor’s programme in Optometry. The rules for the bachelor’s programme in Optometry can be found in the section ‘Learning goals for the internship and length of internship’ in the programmes curriculum.

The AP Degree Programme in Design, Technology and Business takes a subject and project-based approach to teaching. It involves activities related to the field of specialisation as well as across the different study specialisations of the programme. Teaching is organised in semester courses. The semesters are divided into modules and based on relevant commercial practice and applied theory, method and tools.

Various methods of teaching help develop student autonomy, interpersonal skills and the ability to foster innovation in Design, Technology and Business with a particular focus on 360⁰ sustainability, environmental issues, interaction of cultural patterns and entrepreneurship. In addition, the student gains an understanding of the entire value chain and their own professional standpoint.

Teaching is a combination of classroom instruction, lectures, workshops, teamwork and individual work with exercises, assignments and major project work involving lab work.

Guidance and feedback are provided by the profession, the teachers and fellow students (peer to peer).

The programme involves work with the individual student’s learning and academic and professional development as well as their ability to take part in shared professional environments (groups/teams) within and across disciplines.

Practice-orientated learning

During their study, the student is in close contact with the industry—through business co-operation, company visits, study tours, trade fairs and the internship. With Design, Technology and Business as the underlying basis, programme cohesion is achieved by combining theoretical and practical working methods. This ensures that graduates from KEA have a strong, professional identity and that they are equipped for the labour market.
 

 Differentiated teaching

The programme has been organised to accommodate student learning and motivation.

In the first semester, which is common to all students, students are divided into teams. Each team is assigned a mentor, who will offer guidance and feedback in relation to students’ progression during the first semester. Furthermore, if and when required, students will have access to extra-curricular syllabus. Academic guidance and feedback will also be offered in the other specialisation modules based on the academic content as well as the varying prerequisites and needs of the students.

The first-year exam consists of the first- and second-semester exams. Students must pass both exams before the end of the first year of study in order to continue on their second year of study. The exams appear on the diploma as individual exams, each with its own grade.

The first-year-exam must be passed before the end of the first year of study in order for the student to continue with the education.

The final exam project must document the student’s understanding of practice and key applied theories and methods in relation to a practice-orientated issue based on a specific assignment within the area of the programme. The problem statement, which must be central to the AP Degree Programme in Design, Technology and Business and the profession, must be prepared by the student, possibly in cooperation with a public or private company. The educational institution must approve the problem statement.
Scope: 15 ECTS

Learning objectives
The final examination project, together with the other programme exams and the internship exam, documents that the programme's goals for learning outcome and the end objectives related to the field of specialisation, cf. Ch. 1, ss. 1.4.1., 1.4.2. and 1.4.3, have been obtained.

The exam in the final project
The final exam project completes the last semester of the degree programme after the student has passed all previous exams.

Examination form
The exam consists of a project and an oral part. The exam is with external examiner, and the student is awarded an overall individual grade according to the 7-point grading scale for the project and the oral performance.

Students with physical or mental impairment may apply for special exam arrangements. The application must be submitted no later than four weeks before the exam. Exemptions from the deadline may be granted in the case of sudden health problems. The application must be accompanied by a medical certificate, an opinion from a speech, hearing or dyslexia therapist or an institute for the blind or the like or other documentation for health issues or a specific impairment.

Students whose native language is not Danish may bring dictionaries to exams where no materials and aids are permitted.

Applications for permission to bring other materials and aids must be submitted no later than four weeks before the exam.

Make-up exams

Students who have been unable to complete an exam due to documented illness will be given the opportunity to take the (make-up) exam as soon as possible. If the exam in question is scheduled for the final exam period, students will be given the opportunity to take the exam in the same exam period or immediately thereafter.

The make-up exam may be identical to the next ordinary exam. Students are responsible for finding out when the (make-up) exam is held.

Information on the time and place of make-up exams is made available on Fronter, and students are informed via KEA email.

Illness must be documented with a medical certificate. The institution must have received the medical certificate no later than three working days after the date of the exam. Students who become acutely ill during an exam must document with a medical certificate they were ill on the date in question.

If illness is not documented in accordance with the above rules, the student will have used one exam attempt.

Students must pay for the required medical certificates themselves.

Re-exams

Students who do not pass an exam or fail to appear at an exam will automatically be registered for the re-exam, provided that they have any exam attempts left. The re-exam may be identical to the next ordinary exam.

Students are responsible for finding out when the re-exam is held.

Information on the time and place of re-exams is made available on Fronter, and students are informed via KEA email.

In special circumstances, for example in connection with documented disabilities, the institution may grant an exemption from the automatic registration for exams.

Cheating at exams will be handled in accordance with the rules set out in the Ministerial Order on Examinations on Professionally Oriented Higher Education Programmes (the Examination Order). 

Students who cheat at an exam will be expelled from the exam.

In case of aggravating circumstances, students may be suspended from the institution for a long or short period of time. In such event, students must be issued with a written warning stating that repeated cheating may result in permanent expulsion.

Cheating includes:

– Obtaining unlawful help during an exam

– Providing unlawful help to other students during an exam

– Presenting other people’s work as one’s own (plagiarism – see www.stopplagiat.nu), see also section 5.15

– Using own previously assessed work without stating the source, see also section 5.15

– Using materials and aids not permitted for the exam in question

Expulsion from an exam due to cheating means that the awarded grade will be withdrawn, and the student will have used one exam attempt.

Students who exhibit disruptive behaviour during an exam may be ordered to leave the exam. In less serious cases, the institution will first warn the students.

There is no compulsory attendance on the programme. Instead the rules and criteria for active enrolment apply.

Credit transfer of subjects covered by the common part of the curriculum

Successfully completed programme elements are equivalent to the corresponding programme elements at other educational institutions offering the programme.

Students are obliged to provide information on completed programme elements from other Danish or foreign higher education programmes and on any employment for which credit transfer may be granted.

On a case-by-case basis, the educational institution approves credit transfers based on completed programme elements and job experience comparable to subjects, programme elements and internships.

The decision is based on an academic evaluation.

In case of pre-approval of a period of study in Denmark or abroad, the student is obliged, after completing the period of study, to document the programme elements completed during the approved period of study.

Upon obtaining the pre-approval, the student must consent to the institution requesting the necessary information after the student has completed the period of study.

If a credit transfer is granted as described above, programme elements are deemed to have been completed if they have been passed in accordance with the rules applicable to the programme in question.

The student is obliged to take active part in study activities, projects, assignments and exams in accordance with the conditions described in this curriculum and in applicable laws and regulations.

Copenhagen School of Design and Technology expects active student participation in teaching, projects and other study activities. Students are required to take responsibility for their own academic and personal development. This means taking active part in the teaching sessions and cooperation with fellow students. A high degree of active enrolment is a prerequisite for the development of the individual student’s professional skills. The prescribed period of active enrolment is approx. 43 hours per week.
During the internship period, students are required to show up for work. As a starting point, the intern works 37 hours per week. However, at peak demand, extra work time must be expected if this is also expected of the other staff.

NB! If students do not satisfy the demand for active enrolment, it may have an impact on whether or not they are eligible for the Danish students’ grants and loans scheme.
Copenhagen School of Design and Technology evaluates active enrolment on an ongoing basis.

Active enrolment requires that the student participates in:

• All the teaching
• Project start-up meetings
• Mandatory meetings with supervisor/teacher
• Assignment and project work—individually and in groups/teams, including submissions on KEA’s learning platform and through WISEflow
• Project presentations and assessments
• Exams as described in this curriculum
• A number of mandatory assignments each semester, including the second-semester mandatory activities.

Students who cannot participate in study activities due to documented illness or other

acceptable reasons should immediately contact the Study Administration at: studieGBG@kea.dk.

The Study Administration will inform the student about the necessary procedures, including the provision of a medical certificate.

Disenrolment due to insufficient study activity

Enrolment on the programme can be terminated for students who have not passed at least one exam within a consecutive period of at least one year.

Students may be disenrolled if they have not passed at least one exam within a consecutive period of one year.

In exceptional circumstances, the institution may grant exemptions from the rules in this curriculum that are laid down exclusively by the educational institution.

The procedure for filing a complaint about the assessment, the exam process or the exam basis, such as questions, assignments or the like, is outlined below.

The student must submit a written and reasoned complaint no later than two weeks after the exam. The complaint must be sent to kvalitet@kea.dk.

The complaint is shown to the examiner and the co-examiner, who issue an opinion. The deadline for issuing this opinion is usually two weeks. The student (the complainant) is then invited to comment on the opinion within a deadline of one week.

The institution will make its decision based on the complaint, the opinion and any comments. The outcome may be a new exam, a new assessment (in the case of written exams) or dismissal of the complaint. The student will then have two weeks to accept a possible new exam or assessment or to appeal the decision, if he or she has not been successful.

What can you get out of a complaint ? If KEA rules in favour of your complaint, you will be awarded a re-exam (oral exams) or a reassessment (written exams only). KEA cannot administratively change a grade. If the re-exam or reassessment gives another grade, this grade will be your grade regardless whether it is a higher or a lower grade.