The Hasso Plattner d-school Afrika at the University of Cape Town (UCT) is calling on university students to step outside the traditional lecture room and into the world of creative problem-solving. From 23 to 27 November 2026, the institution will host Design Thinking Week, a five-day immersive experience designed to equip students with the skills to approach complex challenges with curiosity, creativity, and confidence.
A core pillar of Design Thinking Week is its departure from theoretical learning. Instead of working on hypothetical case studies, students will be paired with a real-world project partner - an active organization facing a complex, "messy" challenge. Participants will engage directly with real stakeholders, learning to interview, observe, and empathise to ensure their ideas respond to genuine human needs. This authentic engagement deliberately bridges the gap between classroom learning and the world beyond university.
Throughout the high-energy, coach-supported programme, students from entirely different academic disciplines will be grouped together. This encourages participants to collaborate with people who think differently from them, utilising diverse expertise to approach problems from multiple angles and turn conflicting perspectives into better ideas.
"Design Thinking Week is not a theoretical overview; it is about doing the work," the programme outlines. Students will cultivate a highly experimental mindset. They will learn how to move rapidly from understanding a problem to imagining possibilities, building low-cost prototypes, and testing ideas quickly and cheaply.
The value of this experience extends far beyond the five days. Students will build their creative problem-solving skills, become more comfortable navigating ambiguity and uncertainty, and develop the confidence to take action rather than waiting for perfect conditions. They will leave the programme with a practical toolkit that can be applied to future university projects, everyday life, or their professional careers.
Design Thinking Week is offered at no cost to accepted participants. Upon successful completion of the programme, students will receive a certificate of completion
For more information or to apply for Design Thinking Week, please visit https://dschoolafrika.org/learn-design-thinking/student-programmes/design-thinking-week/
