Collaborative Projects with Industry

Multidisciplinary Innovation students work on a suite of diverse projects with external organisations.

A unique quality of the Multidiciplinary Innovation MA/MSc is that it provides the opportunity to gain practical experience in innovation practice. Each live project focuses on a topic important to the collaborator and provides the opportunity to work with globally leading firms and brands such as Unilever, BA and Mars as well as charities and regional businesses such as Percy Hedley Foundation, Whitefield Academy Trust, Northumbrian Water and BeModern. Each project aims to deliver innovative and creative solutions arrived at through design-thinking and co-creation.

Students are presented with a brief from the client and tackle a diverse range of problems within projects that are social, commercial and behavioural. Receiving supervision and guidance from tutors of different disciplines from across the university, the project process gives students the opportunity to apply knowledge in practice, on genuine challenges with external organisations. Students, irrespective of their academic background, learn together to nurture a new mindset and attitude where cross-disciplinary stimulation is the foundation of innovation.

Northumbria University & Unilever | A Decade of Partnership from Northumbria University on Vimeo.

The following case studies provide a snapshot of the kind of work we do, what our partners think about us, and provide you with an overview of the projects and experience you will have whilst studying with us.

Northumbrian Water -

Taking up work started by the BA (Hons), the MDI team demonstrated their problem solving skills for business partners by developing a range of change initiatives to help Northumbrian Water tackle the issue of blocked sewers and flooding.

Tribe Bike Racks

MDI where approached by a start-up bike rack company to help them drive forward their business within the European market. The students provided a consultancy service utilizing their areas of expertise to work towards a deadline of one week.

Tynedale Community Bank

Tynedale Community Bank offer both savings and loans to people across the Tynedale area. MDI worked on this project of how the community bank can position themselves to reduce stigma, raise awareness and get engage the community.

Whitefield Academy

MDI were working with Whitefield Academy, one of the largest providers of special Education in Europe

Youth Offending Team - Newcastle

Youth Offending Teams (YOT) work with young people that get into trouble with the law. The project involved conducting a series of workshops to understand the current process and identify opportunities for improvement.

The BBC

The BBC came to Northumbria to understand what the multidisciplinary group could teach them about the possible futures of radio.

Elddis

Elddis worked with the MDI team on how to make a product desirable to a younger market when it has the stigma of belonging to an older generation attached to it.