Design & Technology: Product Design

This exciting two-year course is your gateway into the world of innovative design, creative problem-solving and modern manufacturing. It's perfectly balanced: 50% of your grade comes from a major design-and-make project, where you choose the challenge and bring your ideas to life; the other 50% comes from two written papers taken at the end of Year 13, testing your understanding of design theory, materials, and technical principles.

Designed for Makers, Thinkers and Innovators

This A-level focuses exclusively on resistant materials and cutting-edge CAD/CAM processes. You’ll learn how to turn your concepts into professional-quality products using tools and technologies used in the design industry today. It’s also the ideal partner to the BTEC Engineering course at King Edward’s—many of our engineering students take Product Design to add creative flair to their technical skills.

This is a linear course, which means all exams happen at the end of Year 13. But don’t worry—you’ll get three full mock exam opportunities along the way to test your progress and build confidence.

A LEVEL

Paper 1

What's assessed

• Technical principles
• Designing and making principles
• Specialist knowledge

How it's assessed

• Written exam: 2 hours
• 100 marks
• 25% of A level

Questions

Mixture of short answer, multiple choice and extended response questions

Paper 2

What's assessed

• Technical principles
• Designing and making principles
• Specialist knowledge

How it's assessed

• Written exam: 2 hours
• 100 marks
• 25% of A level

Questions

Section A: Product Analysis

• 40 marks available
• Up to six short answer questions based onvisual stimulus of product(s).

Section B: Commercial manufacture

• 60 marks
• Two extended response questions worth a total of 30 marks each

Non-Exam assessment (NEA)

What's assessed

Practical applicaiton of:

• Technical principles
• Designing and making principles
• Specialist knowledge

How it's assessed

• Single substantial design and make task
• 100 marks
• 50% of A level
• Approximately 40 hours in duration
• Written or electronic portfolio with photographic evidence of final outcome

Assessment criteria to include:

• exploration
• designing
• making
• analysis and evaluation

The above will be assessed in a holistic way.

Task(s)

Students will underake a substantial design and make task and produce a prototype. The context of the task will be determined by the student.

A grade 5 or above in GCSE Design & Technology, GCSE Art & Design, Graphics, or a pass in Level 2 BTEC Engineering is a great foundation. However, we welcome all applicants—even if you haven’t studied a creative subject before. If you’ve got passion, curiosity, and a desire to design, we want to hear from you - if you're not working towards/don't have any of the required qualifications, you will need to submit a suitable portfolio of work and attend an interview.

TO ENSURE YOUR SUBJECT CHOICES FIT INTO THE TIMETABLE PLEASE SEE OUR BLOCKING TIMETABLE BY CLICKING ON THE LINK BELOW TO GO TO OUR WEBSITE. SUBJECTS SHOULD BE CHOSEN IN DIFFERENT BLOCKS TO AVOID CLASHES.

Sixth Form option blocks

An A Level in Design & Technology: Product Design opens the door to a world of creative and technical possibilities. Whether you want to invent the next big product, shape the spaces we live in, or design with people and the planet in mind—this course gives you the skills to get there.

Employers and universities love creative thinkers who can solve real-world problems and think outside the box. That’s why Product Design students are in demand. Our past students have gone on to study Product Design, Ergonomics, Architecture, and even landed highly competitive Engineering Apprenticeships.