Nissan has announced a partnership with the European Institute of Design São Paulo (Istituto Europeo de Design – IED SP) to help prospective students access the institute’s Automotive Design course. This is the first time in the history of the IED in Brazil that an automaker is offering this type of opportunity to students. The partnership will also allow more openings in the program, giving more aspiring automotive designers in Brazil access to the classes.
“It is very important to connect Nissan to the younger generations,” said John Sahs, head of Nissan’s Satellite Studio for Design, in Brazil, which is also responsible for the automaker’s projects in Latin America. “For that reason, we are investing our expertise and resources in finding future automotive designers in Brazil and helping them develop all of their creativity and skills. Through this partnership with the IED, Nissan plans to contribute to the future of Brazilian design.”
The Automotive Design course, which lasts one year with classes given on alternating weekends, focuses on designers and other professionals who desire to expand their knowledge of automotive design and enter this profession. The program includes an international module of one week in Turin, Italy, one of the world’s main hubs for automotive design.
Subjects covered during the course will be integrated with Nissan’s current business – such as investigation and research, current challenges for the Japanese automaker, and workshops, seminars, and roundtables with Nissan professionals in Brazil and around the world.
“With the arrival of a new head of design, Nissan is strengthening its team in Brazil,” said Fernando Morita, coordinator of the Automotive Design course at IED SP. “Through this partnership with Nissan, our students will have the opportunity to expand their knowledge. We are sure that it will be an incredible experience for them.”
At the end of each semester, the students will be challenged to create a project directly related to Nissan, which gives them an opportunity to experience the process of creating a new car and to add it to their résumé. Besides having direct contact with the market’s realities in the classrooms and laboratories, the students may compete for an internship at Nissan’s Satellite Studio for Design in Brazil.
The class holds 15 students. Applications may be presented beginning September 13 and will be received until September 23. Classes are scheduled to begin on October 20. More information is available on the IED website.
