The study program at the HPI D-School consists of two semesters: the Basic Track (BT) and the Advanced Track (AT). Moreover, we offer a shorter program with one focus topic, our Global Design Thinking Workshops (GDTW).

Our programs take place both on-site in Potsdam (AT) and in hybrid and virtual formats (BT). You can find more information on the respective program pages.

For the successful completion of the Global Design Thinking Workshop, the Basic Track and the Advanced Track program our participants receive an official HPI D-School certificate. At the HPI D-School, we focus on collaboration - therefore we do not evaluate the individual performance of our participants. 

During the Basic and Advanced Track program, students work on two days per week in small, multidisciplinary teams and are supported by experienced Design Thinking coaches.

We offer 40 places for our Global Design Thinking Workshops, 50 places in the Basic Track and 20 places in the Advanced Track to our applicants each semester.

Design Thinking Basic Track

The Basic Track, the first semester at the HPI D-School, provides profound knowledge about the innovation mindset and methods of Design Thinking. During the Basic Track program our students work in small, multidisciplinary teams and apply Design Thinking in real projects.

Design Thinking Advanced Track

In the second semester, the Advanced Track, students implement and deepen their acquired knowledge and skills in a 12-week project with partners from business, society and politics.

Global Design Thinking Workshops

Our Global Design Thinking Workshops are a education concept that goes beyond the mere introduction to Design Thinking as a process. In this program participants experience Design Thinking as a life-centered approach by dealing with complex innovation problems in diverse teams and supported by international Design Thinking coaches. We combine the work on a concrete innovation project with reflections on a specific focus topic.

Wayfinder - Self and Leadership Development

Wayfinder is a newly build course for self-leading and designing your own well-lived life and career. Applying the mindset and methods of Design Thinking to the wicked problem of your own life design, this program helps you to learn tools and techniques to enhance your self-awareness, detect your patterns, value and belief systems and explore and build experiences to make your desired future a reality. Based on Stanford’s Designing Your Life program and a two-day prototype at the HPI D-School that we ran in November 2019, we have completely redesigned the course to make it a great virtual experience for you.

Wayfinder consists of three elements: virtual live sessions, individual activities, exchange and reflection in triads with other Wayfinders.

Cooperation: Open Health HACKademy

The HPI D-School is a partner of the Open Health HACKademy initiative since 2019. At the Open Health HACKademy you develop open source tools in an interdisciplinary team together with people with disabilities, students of technical, medical and social disciplines, health experts and makers.

The aim is to develop a functioning prototype together with a person who needs the aid and to make documentation available to many people for replication, modification and further development. The most important thing is to have a good time together and to learn a lot with and from each other. After completing the HACKademy, participants receive a certificate and credit points as students.

The Open Health HACKademy is organized by the non-profit organizations be able e.V. and Agile Heap e.V. as part of the MatchMyMaker and Careables projects. HPI D-School alumnus Raul Krauthausen of Sozialhelden is co-initiator and member of the advisory board of the HACKademy.

Partners for the previous Open Health HACKademy were the Hasso Plattner Institute Potsdam with the School of Design Thinking, the Beuth Hochschule für Technik Berlin with its Fab Lab and beuthBOX as media partner.