Hasso Plattner Institute of Design

The Hasso Plattner Institute of Design (widely known as the d.school opens in a new tab) at Stanford University is dedicated to helping people unlock their creative abilities and apply them to the world. Built on the foundational beliefs that design should be accessible to all and that everyone is creative, the d.school opens in a new tab provides an inclusive, optimistic environment where students learn to use design to address complex, messy, and real-world challenges.

Our Way of Working

The d.school opens in a new tab operates on an entirely voluntary, "100% opt-in" culture where students and faculty from all disciplines choose to participate. This environment fosters a unique academic ecosystem centered around three main pillars:

• Radical Collaboration: Bringing together students, faculty, and practitioners from all academic backgrounds to share perspectives, experiment, and collaborate.

• Real-World Projects: Partnering with nonprofit, corporate, and government organizations to challenge students with contemporary, real-world problems.

• Core Abilities: Training students in eight essential capabilities, including navigating ambiguity, experimenting rapidly, synthesizing complex information, and communicating deliberately.

Academic Degrees and Offerings

While the d.school opens in a new tab serves as an interdisciplinary hub open to all Stanford students, it also administers formal undergraduate and graduate engineering degree programs:

• Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Design: An undergraduate major offered through the School of Engineering that bridges technical engineering depth with human-centered design so students can make, prototype, and build solutions with transformational potential.

• Master of Science (M.S.) in Design: A two-year graduate program offered through the School of Engineering that equips a cohort of students with advanced design methodologies to prototype across mediums, address needs, and transform ambiguous challenges into tangible solutions.