Sustainability and Internationalization are key factors within educational programmes and institutions
nowadays. Offering programmes which focus on these factors at undergraduate level has been a
priority at the School of Engineering of Vilanova i la Geltrú (EPSEVG) since the introduction of the
European Project Semester (EPS) in 2008. In line with its policy to increase Internationalization and
Sustainability in its programmes, the School of Engineering of Vilanova i la Geltrú (EPSEVG) has
designed and coordinated a new Erasmus mobility programme, the International Design Project
Semester (IDPS), which started in February 2012.
IDPS trains engineering students by applying Project Based Learning in intercultural groups. The
working language is English and the programme is designed for degree students in their 7th or 8th
semester. The IDPS programme offered at the EPSEVG emphasises the introduction of competences
in sustainability and human technology.
The main objective of the IDPS is to improve the learning outcomes and competences of industrial
design engineering students especially in areas of sustainability. It is divided into two parts. One part
covers four three (ECTS) credit core courses in specialist fields of study such as Eco Design , Human
Centred Design , Sustainable Value Design and Visual Language and Grammar and the second part
involves working on a project (worth 18 ECTS. Additional seminars and workshops compliment the
courses and vary from programme to programme. The projects are proposed by local companies and
research groups. This paper shows the design methodology used in the IDPS programme its structure
and the sustainability competences to be achieved by the students.Peer Reviewe