Creativity & Aesthetics

The essence of this expertise area is the ability to innovate by breaking free from conventional thinking (creativity). It involves a dynamic process of exploring and refining ideas through creativity, critical evaluation, and iterative design. This expertise balances intuition with knowledge, ensuring designs are not only functional but also visually and experientially engaging (aesthetics). My development in this area has been significantly shaped by the courses and projects I undertook during my bachelor’s studies.

My development in the expertise area of Creativity and Aesthetics has shifted significantly during my master’s, particularly through my Preparation FMP. Where my bachelor focused on visual quality and communication, my current work positions aesthetics as an active design material. Instead of being a final layer, aesthetics now shape how interactions are experienced and how meaning is constructed.

In my Preparation FMP, I explored how qualities such as aesthetics, curiosity, and ambiguity can influence perception and engagement with intelligent systems. Through iterative prototyping, I moved from visually representing ideas to embodying them in experiential artifacts. This shift was reinforced in the course Creativity and Aesthetics of Data and AI, where I learned to design with data and AI in more expressive and interpretable ways, inviting users to form their own understanding through interaction.

As a result, my notion of aesthetics has expanded beyond visual design toward experiential qualities, how a design behaves, responds and unfolds over time. This aligns with my Ambiguity Driven Design (ADD) approach, where aesthetics are used to invite interpretation rather than deliver fixed meaning. My Preparation FMP demonstrates this development, showing how aesthetics can fundamentally shape how complex systems are experienced.

Business & Entrepreneurship

The area of Business and Entrepreneurship focuses on creating designs that bring value to both individuals and the economy (entrepreneurship). It’s about commercial viability and market potential, studying competition, and validating ideas through real-world trials (business). A deep comprehension of strategic principles and stakeholder dynamics is essential. Despite its sometimes overlooked status, this expertise area is pivotal in bringing designs to market, guaranteeing they don’t just hold theoretical value but also make tangible impacts on end-users.

Throughout my bachelor’s studies, I dedicated myself to developing skills in the area of Business and Entrepreneurship. I pursued several elective courses and completed a special USE track, earning a Certificate in Technology Entrepreneurship. This track provided comprehensive training in evaluating business viability, setting up business models, understanding stakeholder perspectives, and developing leadership skills. I learned about organizational management, entrepreneurial thinking, and the economics of innovation.

These skills were directly applied to my final bachelor project. For A.I.D.T, I conducted and wrote a complete business model evaluation. This process involved analyzing the initial business model (brick-and-mortar sale) to the current model (subscription-based), validating its feasibility and developing strategies to convince stakeholders of the value of my design. Furthermore, I used the Lean Startup Methodology framework during the entire design process of A.I.D.T, continuously checking product-market fit with potential stakeholders. Lastly, I applied my knowledge of market trends, competition analysis and stakeholder management, ensuring that my design was not only innovative but also economically viable and sustainable.

In summary, the courses and projects during my bachelor’s studies significantly contributed to my development in Business and Entrepreneurship. The knowledge and skills I gained were innate to the successful completion of my FBP, demonstrating my ability to create valuable, sustainable and innovative product-service systems.

Technology & Realization

This expertise area serves as the foundation for bringing design concepts to life. It’s about selecting and integrating sensors, algorithms, circuits, and mechanisms (technology) to create interactive systems and prototypes (realization). This area ensures concept exploration, visualization and demonstration. During my academic journey, I underwent significant developments in the area of Technology and Realization, integrating these skills into my projects, particularly my final bachelor project (FBP).

Two key courses, “Intelligent Interactive Products” and “Exploratory Making,” played pivotal roles in my development. The former laid the groundwork by introducing ESP32 modules, wireless hardware communication, and machine learning algorithms. I leveraged this knowledge to develop a strike detection system for field hockey (StrikeSense), enhancing player training and injury prevention. Meanwhile, “Exploratory Making” provided essential training in creating quick and high-fidelity prototypes using materials like foam board and incorporating hardware. These techniques were crucial for constructing the physical prototype of A.I.D.T.

During my FBP, I made significant strides in this area by constructing hardware components and learning Python programming. I developed a system consisting of sensors and Python programs that interact with several AI models online, as well as created my own object recognition system. Additionally, I programmed a website and established communication between various programs. This project propelled me from a relatively underdeveloped level to an advanced proficiency in technology and realization. However, I recognize the need to further my skills in 3D modeling and printing to create more high-fidelity prototypes in the future.

User & Society

The expertise area of User and Society in design focuses on creating value for people, directly impacting their everyday lives (society). It requires an understanding of psychology and sociology, empathy, and ethical sensitivity (user). Designers must involve users as main stakeholders, ask the right questions, and use both quantitative and qualitative research methods to collect insights and validate concepts.

For Snackable, I designed a card game for children with ADD, ADHD, or others who suffer from symptoms like a lack of focus or restlessness. This project emphasized the importance of designing with the user in mind, which I believe is the core of good design. I learned how to conduct user tests and evaluate a design’s effectiveness by testing with the appropriate target group. During my research project the PWFN Toolkit, I learned how to conduct professional user studies and how to go about research through design. This project taught me several research methodologies and demonstrated how design can generate value for society as a whole, not just individual users.

My FBP is where I made the most significant strides in this expertise area. I focused on creating a design with a clear emphasis on societal impact. I reached out to various stakeholders, including teachers, students, and peers, throughout the design process. Every design consideration was made with the user in mind, from selecting child-friendly colors for the logo to ensuring intuitive interactions with the modules. Furthermore, Using qualitative data from several user tests, I identified the strengths and weaknesses of the design, leading to a clear direction for the next iteration. This comprehensive approach ensured that the design was both impactful and user-centric.

In summary, the projects I completed during my bachelor’s studies significantly enhanced my abilities in the area of User and Society. The knowledge and skills I acquired are the basis of me as a designer and the successful execution of my FBP, demonstrating my capacity to create designs that are empathetic, ethical, and impactful on a societal level.

Math, Data & Computing

This expertise area focuses on translating data into meaningful visualizations, using data to find patterns and for dealing with complicated and messy real-world problems (data). As a designer, you need logic to solve these complex problems (math) and computing skills to analyze and organize the data.

Mainly during the design research project, I made substantial strides in this expertise area. This research project in my second year involved learning and applying various data analysis methods, including both qualitative and quantitative techniques. I utilized thematic analysis, descriptive statistics, and Likert scale evaluations. Additionally, I completed the basic courses calculus and physics, which were essential for ensuring that conceptual designs are feasible in real life. Further enhancing my skills, I took the course “Making Sense of Sensors,” which taught me how to collect data and analyze it using Python. I created linear regression models and investigated correlations between variables. I also completed the “Data Analytics for Engineers” course, which covered fundamental concepts of statistics, such as descriptive statistics, data analysis, k-means clustering, and hypothesis testing.

For my FBP, this expertise area was used in two major ways. I applied thematic analysis to interpret data from user tests and employed statistical methods to evaluate the design’s effectiveness. Furthermore, I investigated the working mechanism of AI models and their application in the context of A.I.D.T.