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Design Thinking under Uncertainty
Liberal Arts & Cultural Heritage Program
Rome, Italy
Dates: 1/12/27 - 5/1/27
Design Thinking under Uncertainty
OVERVIEW
CEA CAPA Partner Institution: CEA CAPA Rome Center
Location: Rome, Italy
Primary Subject Area: Design
Instruction in: English
Course Code: DES300FCO
Transcript Source: University of New Haven
Course Details: Level 300
Recommended Semester Credits: 3
Contact Hours: 45
Prerequisites: One 200-level course or two 100-level courses in a related academic field
DESCRIPTION
This course develops students' capacity for critical and design thinking, and for responsible judgment and decision-making in complex, ambiguous situations. Drawing on design as a tradition of inquiry and action, it moves beyond purely analytical or instrumental approaches to problem-solving. Students learn to frame problems, explore alternatives, and converge toward defensible courses of action under conditions of uncertainty, partial knowledge, and competing values.
Students pursue a sustained, self-directed project - individually or in groups - within a shared methodological framework. Project development unfolds through guided inquiry, iterative refinement, and regular feedback under faculty supervision. Class meetings function as structured check-ins, critiques, peer exchange, and mentoring sessions supporting independent intellectual, practical, and collaborative work. Design is framed not as a professional specialization, but as a structured and transferable way of thinking aimed at intentional change.
All students work from a common project brief focused on a specific context or ambiguity within a complex system - urban, organizational, civic, or social - using the host city as a living laboratory. From this shared starting point, individuals or teams develop distinct responses by designing systematic changes, protocols, or decision-making frameworks through processes of divergence and convergence, while critically examining the ethical assumptions, values, and consequences embedded in their proposals.
***Course is pending approval from CEA CAPA's School of Record.***
Students pursue a sustained, self-directed project - individually or in groups - within a shared methodological framework. Project development unfolds through guided inquiry, iterative refinement, and regular feedback under faculty supervision. Class meetings function as structured check-ins, critiques, peer exchange, and mentoring sessions supporting independent intellectual, practical, and collaborative work. Design is framed not as a professional specialization, but as a structured and transferable way of thinking aimed at intentional change.
All students work from a common project brief focused on a specific context or ambiguity within a complex system - urban, organizational, civic, or social - using the host city as a living laboratory. From this shared starting point, individuals or teams develop distinct responses by designing systematic changes, protocols, or decision-making frameworks through processes of divergence and convergence, while critically examining the ethical assumptions, values, and consequences embedded in their proposals.
***Course is pending approval from CEA CAPA's School of Record.***