[2-day Short Course] Design Thinking for Social Work
Registration Guide
(self-sponsored)
Applicable for self-sponsored learners who are registering for themselves.
Registration Guide
(company-sponsored)
Applicable for company-sponsored learners and HR/admin teams who are registering for their staff.
Course Brochure
View the full course details in the link below or share the brochure with your team.
Register Now
Register via NUS Online Application Portal in the link below.
About the Course
In this course, social work practitioners, use human-centered design principles to solve problems and create new solutions for their clients. Through employing design tools and frameworks in practical, project-based application, they will develop core competencies to navigate ambiguity in a creative process, synthesize insights and opportunities drawing on expert knowledge and industry experience, and generate and experiment with ideas in a quick and agile manner. As practitioners adopt design thinking as a personal, not just professional skillset; they will come to appreciate design’s value not only in shaping social impact and innovation, but also affording people the opportunity and privilege to shape the world that they, and others, inhabit. At the end of the course, it will equip social work practitioners with the necessary skills and mindset to effectively apply design thinking in their work, ultimately enhancing their capacity to drive positive social change and adapt to changing scenarios in social work.
Objectives
At the end of the course, participants will be able to:
- Enhance problem-solving skills: Equip social workers with design thinking tools and methodologies to enhance their problem-solving skills in addressing complex social issues.
- Promote empathy-driven & human-centered solutions: Foster deeper understanding of the needs and experiences of individuals and communities that social workers serve.
- Encourage collaboration: Cultivate a collaborative mindset among social workers that encourages cross-pollination between expert domains and collaboration with institutional partners for more holistic problem-solving.
- Inspire innovation in service delivery: Spark innovative thinking towards new and effective approaches to social work that might improve service delivery and client outcomes.
- Cultivate culture of iterative progress: Sow the seeds within the social work sector to encourage ongoing innovation and adaptability to evolving societal needs.
Who Should Attend
This course is designed for practitioners, such as social workers, counsellors, or caseworkers in the social service or health care sector.
Course Requirements
Minimum Diploma level
Course Fees
| Fees Description | Total Payable (incl. GST) |
| Full course fees | $1,853.00 |
| Preferential rate* (*Applicable for all social workers/social service practitioners) |
$1,297.10 |
About the Instructors
Lian Hai Guang
Instructor, Division of Industrial Design,
NUS College of Design and Engineering
Hai Guang teaches NUS' largest flagship course on Design Thinking. Through design-driven workshops and courses, Hai Guang has worked with professionals looking to deepen and innovate their work across various fields, including education, engineering, social work, and management and administration. He believes that design is transdisciplinary, and commits to a hands-on, project-based approach to adult learning. He draws on his background in education and consulting to help people address real-world problems, practicing design-led approaches to arrive at new ways of seeing the familiar, and then taking steps to ideate, refine, iterate new possibilities and solutions.