Which is better for industrial design—the Polytechnic University of Milan or Aalto University?

1. Advanced Industrial Design: Advanced practical skills for industrial designers—covering materials, manufacturing processes, structural design, electronics, and programming. Each course is highly demanding. For instance, this year’s Interactive Prototyping course required students to redesign a common household appliance and build a fully functional, plug-in prototype. 2. Collaborative Design: Focused primarily on user experience (UX) and service design. While the academic difficulty of these courses is generally low, they demand substantial time spent discussing and refining design concepts—extremely taxing on both mental and physical energy (HP and MP). This is, in fact, the type of course I dislike most. 3. Design Strategy and Leadership: Covers brand management and design strategy. So far, I have only taken the Design Strategy and Leadership – DSL Project course. Its theme is forward-looking—envisioning design solutions for the next 20 years—and aims to cultivate open-mindedness and a global perspective. Course List Each module includes a Project course, integrating and applying knowledge from that module. Overall, the program centers on service design, UX, and design strategy. Students interested in product design can opt into courses from the first module. Resources The Arabia campus hosts several workshops for prototyping and model-making. The Wood Workshop supports fabrication of wooden models using professional-grade equipment and staff; it also offers 3D printing, and small pieces of wood are provided free of charge. The Fablab specializes in 3D printing, laser cutting, circuit assembly, and embedded programming. Two or three highly skilled student technicians operate the Fablab—even beginners with zero technical background can receive hands-on assistance to realize their prototypes. I am less familiar with the ceramics and glass workshops. The Otaniemi campus houses the Design Factory—a fully equipped facility for prototyping and model-making. The Web Studio employs several experienced engineers who can support students developing internet-based service designs. Faculty and doctoral researchers here cover a broad and diverse range of expertise—from new materials and form/structure design to electronic devices, service design, and interactive applications. If you approach someone for help, they will never brush you off. Even if the topic falls outside their specialty, they’ll go the extra mile to connect you with the right expert—truly helping you all the way. Most courses include dedicated budgets—for example, prototype development costs are fully reimbursable by the university. Students undertaking overseas internships receive a €1,200 living allowance. Many faculty members previously worked in local industry, resulting in abundant collaboration opportunities with companies. Students gain access to real-world research projects, site visits across various sectors, and collaborative work alongside corporate designers, engineers, and managers. Employment According to faculty and fellow students, graduates from both the School of Architecture and the School of Design face virtually no difficulties securing employment.

Meet the Architect—Alvar Aalto

Houses should not be designed for people to kneel in; furniture should not require kneeling to use.—Alvar Aalto Great, enduring design shares certain universal qualities. If a designer creates solely for personal satisfaction, it’s easy—but designing for the public is the hardest task of all. The public pays no attention to meaningless symbolic clutter. Any object intended for human use—be it furniture or everyday utensils—must meet three thresholds: the basic threshold is mass production at low cost; the intermediate threshold is durability and longevity; the highest threshold is timeless appeal—remaining fresh and inspiring across generations. Simplicity embodies the ultimate truth; master designers across eras and geographies often share an uncanny, transcendent resonance. Finnish architect and design legend Alvar Aalto belongs precisely to this elite category: “We should create objects that are simple, functional, and unadorned—objects that coexist harmoniously with people, organically suited to the lives of everyone passing along city streets.” This was Aalto’s statement in his 1957 London lecture. Human-Centered Warmth Perhaps forty years after his death, Alvar Aalto has become a largely forgotten name—even during his lifetime, he somewhat stood apart as an outsider. Unlike the Danish furniture designers who exerted greater influence on later generations—or even compared to many of his fellow Finnish designers—Aalto stood out distinctly in his choice of natural materials and his bold, expressive use of color in architecture. Aalto’s designs always placed human needs first, whereas other masters sometimes indulged in self-expressive, experience-ignoring heroism. Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater, for instance, prioritized dramatic form over structural integrity—collapsing repeatedly until the financially exhausted owners finally donated it to the government. Externally stunning, the interior remained perpetually damp, dark, and cramped. The owner once phoned Wright to complain about roof leaks drenching a guest dining beneath it. Wright reportedly replied, “Tell the guest to move his chair elsewhere”—a response reflecting profound irresponsibility. Another master, Mies van der Rohe, designed a transparent glass house deep in the forest for a single female physician—fully aware of its psychological unsuitability for a woman, yet proceeding anyway. From her very first night, the doctor suffered insomnia, feeling constantly exposed and watched. She eventually sued Mies van der Rohe in court. By contrast, Aalto centered users’ well-being, attending meticulously to subtle human needs—as seen in his Paimio Sanatorium for tuberculosis patients and his dormitory building at MIT. His interior layouts and furniture designs left a profound legacy for future generations. If you’ve ever visited IKEA, you’ve almost certainly seen this stool. The E60 Stool and Armchair 401—designed over 70 years ago—remain iconic; their countless reproductions attest to their timeless status. In fact, Aalto designed more than 40 pieces of domestic furniture throughout his life, nearly all of which were sold through Artek, the company where he worked for much of his career. Warmth Through the Golden Combination: Curves + Wood Alvar Aalto was a warm, friend-like architect—more concerned with human well-being than with power or prestige; more intent on evoking comfort and joy than on making a striking impression. As evident in his furniture, Aalto’s designs abound in gentle curves—visible in the legs of the E60 stool, the arms of Chair 401, and pervading every facet of his work.

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