Course Details

The Master in Design for Emergent Futures is for students who want to expand their focus interests and acquire the skills to turn protests into prototypes, ideas into actions, and who are engaged in the mission of transforming the current status of affairs in society. The programme aims to provide strategic vision and tools for designers, sociologists, economists and computer scientists, to become agents of change in multiple professional environments and focuses in the design of interventions in the form of products, platforms and deployments that aim to produce new emergent futures, by previously analysing the current challenges in society and industry. The Master in Design for Emergent Futures is organised by the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia and ELISAVA Barcelona School of Design and Engineering, in collaboration with the Fab Academy.

Competition Details

The MDEF – ELISAVA FUEL4Design Scholarship Competition gives master’s applicants the chance to win one partial scholarship covering 50% of the tuition fee of the academic program.

Competition Deadline

Start date: 7th April 2021 – 00:00 (CET)

End date: 30th April 2021 – 23:59 (CET)

Scholarship Brief

The contexts, conditions and complexities of today need designers who can anticipate, enact and propose means and actions for shaping alternative futures by design. The main objectives of this scholarship is to co-develop, test and implement with the ELISAVA Futures Now new approaches and resources to provide learners and educators with innovative and adaptable tools to imagine, perform and enact a plurality of futures by design. This is to equip design learners and educators to deal with real-world issues on techno- digital futures, climate crisis, and political instability.
Please note – winners will be dedicating time during the program to work with the Elisava FUEL4Design research team in tasks related to the project.
In order to participate, candidates interested in the MDEF – ELISAVA FUEL4Design Scholarship Competition must complete the Scholarship Application Form (below in this page).

List of documents required for the regular application to the program, and scholarship competition:
Scholarship submission document
A one page reflection about you and the futures you want to design for. Describe how instrumental can be your skills, knowledge and attitude to design for the preferred futures you are aiming for.

• Curriculum Vitae
• 2 Letters of Recommendation
• Portfolio
• Letter of Intent

*If you have already applied to the MDEF Master program, please send an email to the Applications Department ([email protected]) to communicate that you are participating in the scholarship competition as well. In this email, please attach your project proposal (as indicated on the scholarship page ”Project Brief”)

In order to participate, candidates must:
Hold a first-level academic diploma or Bachelor degree, or about to graduate within the academic year 2021/22.
Have a full proficient level in English.

Admission Requirements

Spanish Nationality or Residency.

The Selection Committee

The Jury will be integrated by master program Directors (Tomas Diez and Oscar Tomico) and the FUEL4Design ELISAVA team (Laura Cléries, Guim Espelta, Oscar Tomico).

Selection Criteria

We expect the selected profile to be able to connect experimentation and design theory via invention, imagination, speculation, and through design making activities such as via prototyping, scenario building, and foresight.

Winners Announcement

ELISAVA and IAAC will release the name of the winners on its official website on the week of May 10th, 2021.

MDEF – ELISAVA FUEL4Design Scholarship Conditions

1. Once the winner has been announced, she/he will need to confirm with IAAC Admissions  – [email protected] their decision to enroll in the MDEF program within a maximum of 3 days. Once the written confirmation is received, we will start the enrolment process.
2. In the event that the winner finally decides not to take the Master’s Degree, the jury may assign  the scholarship to another finalist candidate. 
3. The resignation to the realization of the course during the period 2021-2022 will entail the loss of  the scholarship. In any case the scholarship will be paid in cash to the student. 
4. The scholarship could be void if the jury determines that the candidates do not meet the  established requirements. 
5. The scholarship holder must actively participate in the FUEL4Design project.
6. Failure to comply with any of the obligations described will result in the loss of the scholarship. 

Application Form

For students who have already applied for a Master Programme, please send your scholarship submission to [email protected]. Please use the email address linked to your IAAC Application. Subject line – IAAC Scholarship application.