During my time in TU/e, I have learned and gained so much. The time I have been in TU/e provided me with so much. It has made me grow more as a person and as a designer. I started the first few semesters being shy and scared, and in the process, I reached the feeling of confidence and security, and I also became a more independent student. The courses provided me with skills and made me change as a person; I am more mature, with a more clear vision now, and ready for whatever else comes. Some courses gave me more freedom and challenged me as a person. Exploratory sketching was one of them since it barely had any deadlines, and I had to be organized and plan my schedule to be able to be on time.
Courses like Data analytics and creative electronics were hard for me on a knowledge level, and that made me work harder and pressure myself to reach the level I wanted. In general, the university helped me develop my personality. It helped me be more open-minded and face challenges with more confidence. It provided me with the chance to work with different people with different mindsets, opinions, and points of view, and that helped me see a lot of things differently and form different opinions. I have always enjoyed working with other people, and being able to have group work most of the year was so fun. Through group work, I learned so much about communication, and I have become more understanding and a better listener.
Working in labs taught me to be tidier and more careful since, first of all, you have to keep yourself safe while working on your projects. Labs also trained me on how to behave, how to act while using specific elements, and that I had to work faster while having a time limit. The time I spent there made me work more carefully but quicker at the same time.
Expertise Areas
Creativity & Aesthetics
The EA Creative & Aesthetics is one of the areas that I have been focusing on for most of the year. It is an area that I always had in my life, and as a person that loves art, it was the first EA that I approached. From the first semester of the course 'From Idea To Design,' I focused on working on different logos for our product and then co-created our posters for the presentation. Still, I had a lot to learn, and the Adobe software needed a lot more time than I thought.
During Q2, I chose the elective 'Exploratory Sketching,' where I developed my sketching skills. It was more challenging than I was expecting, but I could feel my knowledge grow with every lesson, from just the first weeks. I learned how to sketch using perspective and vanishing points. With every drawing, I felt it became more comfortable and natural to "feel" what the correct cylinder would be, and what the right proportions were. I learned the value of deconstructing objects, be it printers, sneakers, or hands, back into basic shapes.
During P1, where the majority of it took place online, and I was home, I found the time to focus on Adobe, and I spent many hours watching tutorials and exploring the software. I was given a chance to apply my skills when a logo and posters were needed for our product. The results amazed me, and I was finally pleased with what I had been learning. Creative electronics was another course that I, surprisingly, developed my graphic designing skills. We had to deliver a final project, and a poster was needed to present our idea, so I took the responsibility, and I also created a logo to match our theme.
The different projects also helped me become a more creative person and think outside the box. I was always scared of making mistakes, so I was always going for safe and straightforward ideas. However, after every project that I work on and after every brainstorm I did, I feel like I have become more open-minded.
During my free time, I also took the opportunity and used my Adobe skills to develop my digital art and create different illustrations. I have always been exploring different kinds of art, and digital art was always something that I was curious about. I finally got the chance to develop it and use it as a hobby.
I had a lot of opportunities to develop my skills in this area, and I am more than happy with what I have been succeeding. This confidence, together with the sketching and aesthetic knowledge, will prove very useful to me as a designer and general person. I want to keep getting better in this EA and use it to express and present my product and create artwork.
Technology & Realization
I started the year with barely any knowledge in this EA. I followed the course of Technology in high school, but it only provided me with the basics. During the first semester, 'creative programming was the course that gave me my first more in-depth knowledge of programming during the first semester. Creative programming was a big challenge for me since I had never worked with coding and in combination with Arduino, and it got me stressed. However, I worked a lot on my own, and I spend a lot of hours watching tutorials since I was still not able to follow with only the lectures. In the end, I submitted a good assignment that provided me with a satisfying grade. During that course, I learned how to create artworks through Processing, and I also learned how to create simple interactive prototypes through the game I made for my final assignment, which was a bouncing ball. It was the first time that I combined creativity and aesthetics since I also wanted to make the game aesthetically pleasing, and Technology and I felt proud of myself. I also felt a bit more of a designer.
Creative programming was another course that provided me with a lot of knowledge, and it made me feel more enveloped in the design world. During the two months, I was following the course; I faced a lot of challenges. I struggled with following the course since it had a connection with Physics and a specific chapter that I previously struggled with. My partner was also at a similar level as me, so we tried getting help from fellow students and the teacher. We worked a lot of hours, and we also got bad grades, but that motivates us to work even more and spend more hours on understanding the course. We did make it, and after a lot of hard work, we ended up creating a final project nominated for the top 5 five projects.
The knowledge that I have gained from these courses will help me in the future since Technology is an essential part of our society these days. I will also be able to go more deeply into electronics and learn more about connecting them with sounds since this is something that I wanted to combine my designs with.
User & Society
During the second quarter, I followed the course of User-centered Design. This course helped me set the base knowledge that I later used and improved thanks to Project 1 as, after all, the area User & Society defined it. I wanted and based on my vision, to bring people closer and make a change in society. With Project 1, the product's goals were to not only affect the general public but also face disabilities and welcoming people with them like everyone else. The course User-centered Design taught me all about the theory of ethics and how to include and take into account human behavior and how society works. Project 1 helped me apply those skills.
The whole idea of Project 1 was to help give an insight into children that having disabilities is challenging but also, that there are ways to cope, especially with the help, support, and cooperation of friends.
This helps society as there will be understanding and will, therefore, impact the following generations to grow as a community. This EA was one of the areas I wanted to focus on and improve on. By being able to conduct user tests, I saw how differently designed elements designed were unnecessary or vital that we needed to add to our product. When COVID-19, I was frustrated, not only because P1 was all about working together and building a prototype, but also because user-testing couldn't be done effectively.
I think the project relayed an enormous amount on kids playing the game and giving us their feedback. This was a huge issue that we had to face; we needed to conduct tests creatively but without even being present. Although from this disaster, I learned how to improvise and find the solutions, one thinks they will never encounter. Another thing that aided me to advance in this area was the research concluded; it helped me learn how to focus a project and an idea into something that will affect society. I am always about making the most out of research and learning where to search for. During this project, we had to be careful and ensure that our sources were reliable because we had to work with kids and disabilities, which is a serious topic. All were connected to society and its users. Being more developed in this area makes me a step closer to my vision.
Business & Entrepreneurship
This EA is one of the areas that I have worked the least, but I did feel like I have developed a lot since I started from zero. During the second semester, I had chosen the elective Introduction to Business Design. I find Business an essential part of industrial design since you are involved with marketing and selling your products without knowing how and why you are doing what you are doing is wrong, and it will bring you nowhere.
Business goes a lot more in-depth than I expected, and I have learned a lot during this course. Before you bring a product on the market, you have to take a lot of things into account, and to be a correct entrepreneur; you have to know your competition. What I have learned is that you have to be sure that your idea is unique and that no one else is already creating that or if it is already existing. You have to know how to research and where to do so. This is where Business connects with research since you need to be able to have reliable sources. You also must know how to create patents that will keep your product safe, and you also need to know your target group to be able to promote your product in the right way on the right platforms depending on the generation.
Overall, this course provided me with useful information, and I can already feel like a better entrepreneur. While trying to be creative and think about a unique product for our company (Starbucks in our case), I also needed to feel like a businesswoman. I have learned ways to make my product more attractive to my audience/target group, and I have also learned to create different analysis and realize my product's strengths, weaknesses, etc. Project 1 was also a way to apply my skills since we were asked to promote it in the market, and since I was following the business course, I helped my teammates to work on that part, and that is how I realized that I had developed a lot in this area.
Math, Data and Computing
Design & Research Process
Professional skills & Collaboration
This EA is one of my least favorites, but I do know that it is needed to be able to be a complete designer. First, I took the course in Mathematics, which included the same chapters as high school, so I was already confident in passing the course. Mathematics is an essential course. However, it is needed in our everyday life, and I believe that you need the skills.
I also followed the course of Physics, which I find harder than Mathematics, and I struggled a lot with it. I scheduled my study time for both the courses, and it was the first time I had to face weekly tests to keep my knowledge up to date. Physics did not go so well, and I failed both the exam and the resit. I did learn that I need to be more organized for that course since it is still a struggle for me, and I know that next year I will be more ready to pass it. Physics is in our lives and also in other courses I follow, so I believe it is necessary to be able to follow other courses.
Lastly, the course that challenged me the most in this year was Data analytics. I have spent so much time on that course, and I found it hard for me to follow. However, I studied a lot on my own, and I always made notes, and I managed to get good grades for every assignment. Through this course, I learned how to work with Python and how to analyze data and make it into a poster. Data was time-consuming, and I got exhausted and stressed over it. It was moving so fast, and I was trying to catch up. However, I am proud of myself since I manage to get excellent grades. The only part that is messing with me is the theory, which is also the exam, and I am still struggling with it. I do feel like I developed a lot, though, and I did work hard. I became stronger, and I learned how to face big challenges and not give up because of this course.