Bethany
Wignall

What made you choose to study at NTU?

"I decided to study at NTU because of the product design courses offered. I liked that there was some flexibility between the BA and BSc courses because at the time I wasn’t absolutely certain which one I wanted to pursue. I was also very impressed by the workshop facilities, which was an important factor for me."

What did you enjoy most about your course?

"The most enjoyable part of the course is studio projects. These allow you to incorporate all the skills you’ve learnt from different modules and can sometimes be live briefs with companies or nationwide competitions such as Starpack, Engineers Without Borders and more."

Can you tell us about your favourite memory from your time on the course at NTU?

"My favourite course memory was during our second-year trip to Prague, on one day we visited the Skoda factory. I really enjoyed having the opportunity to see a working factory and seeing processes we’d been taught during lectures at university in real-life practice."

Has the course included any projects with external partners, and if so can you talk a little bit about one you really enjoyed?

"One of our second-year projects involved improving construction company McGee’s on-site safety for workers and excavator drivers. As part of this we had a trip to London to visit their site, it was invaluable getting to see for ourselves what the current problems and concerns were."

What do you think about the course staff – include lecturers, tutors, administrators and technical staff within this. How do they support your learning and University experience?

"There’s lots of staff involved with teaching and supporting BSc Product Design. We’re quite a small course and so have a close-knit relationship with the academic staff and always feel comfortable to ask for help and advice."

How do you find the student community within the School of Art & Design / wider University?

"We have a good product design community; I know everyone on my course and during first and second year some of our teaching sessions were with the other product design courses too."

In a nutshell, why would you recommend your course / NTU to someone looking to study in that area?

I would recommend my course because I’ve gained such a wide variety of skills and knowledge around product design. My teaching modules have included studio projects, materials, manufacturing, electronics, mechanics, design studies and more.

Have you completed any work placements and if so can you tell me a little bit about them – where you went, what you did, and any skills you’ve gained that will help you when you graduate?

"For my placement year I completed a 1-year research and development internship with a further 2-month extension at Gillette (Procter & Gamble). I worked in front end innovation for the next generation male system razor, designing razor cartridges, handles and packaging.

As well as gaining practical experience in consumer research, injection moulding and computational fluid dynamics, I also gained the soft skills of working and communicating in a professional environment."

If you had to sum up your course in 3 words, what would they be?

"Interesting, challenging and diverse."

Find out more about studying BSc (Hons) Product Design at NTU.