Think of a profession that is everywhere: it ‘s Product Design ! Also called Industrial Design, this is the area of professionals who design consumer goods taking into account their aesthetic, functional, physical and technical characteristics — and this can be anything from a shampoo package to an aircraft!
The Product Design faculty opens the door for you to work in basically all types of industries, in addition to studios, design labs, and modeling and prototyping workshops.
And the possibilities keep growing! After all, more and more companies understand the importance of design for product quality and consumer experience.
Do you want to stay on top of this area, learn about the course and understand its opportunities in the market? So, keep reading!
What is the purpose of the Product Design faculty?
The world of Product Design is full of possibilities! His object of work is everything that comes from a consumer goods industry , including furniture, appliances, shoes, automobile equipment, agricultural machinery and much more.
As a product designer, you can also work in more specific areas of product development, such as ergonomics in furniture, User Experience (UX) in electronics and service design.
In short, it is the profession of those who think of everything to make a product attractive and have good usability. Because it is such a broad field, the Product Design faculty prepares professionals to be flexible: that is, to have an open mind to do different things.
What are the main subjects studied at graduation?
Have you noticed that this area is your face? So, it is essential to graduate to learn everything you need to be a good professional. That’s right! Much of a product designer’s work comes from their creativity, but they also need to have extensive theoretical and technical knowledge.
You have two options: one is the Baccalaureate, which lasts 4 years and provides a very broad training, with an extensive theoretical basis. The other is the Technologist , which lasts 2 years and is more focused on the needs of the job market.
In this second option, you will have some disciplines that are the basis of Design, but most of the grid includes your possible areas of expertise.
How is the job market for the Product Design segment?
You can already see that, in the Product Design market , the sky is the limit, right? And look there! So, for those interested in the creative economy , this is an excellent bet, with demand in different industries and public and private companies. In addition, you can open your own office and work with services.
Some of the segments in which this professional finds more opportunities are:
- environment modeling;
- furniture;
- machines;
- packaging;
- graphic products;
- games;
- websites and apps interface.
The latter is one of the fastest growing possibilities for action. To give you an idea, a LinkedIn survey placed UX Design (Design for User Experience) as one of the most desired hard skills — technical skills — on the market in 2019 and 2020.
According to experts, the average attention span of consumers decreases every year. Thus, organizations need to invest heavily in experts to create increasingly attractive and intuitive experiences and products . This is the only way to guarantee competitiveness.
It is not by chance that, in the same survey, creativity appears as the soft skill — behavioral competence — with the greatest demand in the market. Yes, the very first on the list. So, product designer, this moment is yours!
The average salary
A person trained in Product Design Technologist earns an average of R$ 4,700 . This information is from the Salary portal , which compiles data from the General Register of Employed and Unemployed (Novo CAGED) and e-Social.
The survey also shows that recent graduates earn around R$3,000, while the ceiling for the profession can reach R$12,000. Not bad, do you agree? It’s a great reward for all the study, technique and creativity you’ve put into developing new products.
The day to day in the profession
As for the work routine, this depends a lot on the areas of activity in Product Design in which you are going to work. After all, this is a very dynamic profession. You can have more technical and creative assignments , involving calculations, geometry, drawings, among others.
The professional can also have a routine of supervising teams, in a day to day that is less creative and more in control. In certain roles, you can be more strategic , doing market analysis and working side by side with marketing.
Anyway, the routine varies a lot. But one thing is certain: development software is your greatest companion. Of course, the designer always has a notebook to make freehand drawings (the famous sketches ) and have creative insights . But in day-to-day work, it is essential to have mastery of software.
The professional profile
Now, talking about competition, the market can be challenging, see? This is because, despite the expressive growth in demand for Design, companies still place the functions of product development in professionals from other areas, such as Mechanical Engineering.
However, keep your vision ahead: more and more, the specific knowledge of training in Product Design is valued. This is a profession of the future ! Therefore, seeking your qualifications now will make all the difference in accessing opportunities. What’s more, if you are excellent at what you do, you will certainly have a lot of space in the market.
The most important thing is to invest in the development of technical skills and creativity — and whoever thinks this is a “gift” is wrong, right? Creativity is very much a practice perfected with a lot of study, references and the right tools.