A LEVEL

Design & Technology: Product Design

Product Design gives you the space to think, create and make. You’ll explore how design improves everyday life and learn the skills to bring your own ideas to life.

Discover how to prototype, refine, and learn what it means to solve problems through design. Every model, sketch, and concept is a step toward mastering how ideas take shape in the real world.

You arrive as you are, and you’re celebrated for it. You leave ready to take on the world.

— Sixth Form student

Course Design & Technology: Product Design

Product Design at St Paul’s taught me to think differently and approach problems with creativity. The encouragement from my teachers gave me the confidence to experiment, take risks, and push my ideas further than I imagined.

— Sixth Form student

Why Choose Product Design at St Paul’s?

Our Product Design department nurtures creativity, innovation, and practical skill — empowering every student to turn ideas into reality.

Smaller class sizes mean hands-on guidance and space to develop your own creative approach.
Experienced, passionate teachers inspire you to think like a designer, exploring how products shape the way we live.
A collaborative studio environment where individuality is encouraged and every voice matters.
A subject that opens pathways to careers in architecture, engineering, design, manufacturing, and creative industries.
A space to experiment, refine, and grow, celebrating the process of making as much as the finished outcome.

Where Product Design Can Take You

Our Product Design students progress to study architecture, industrial design, engineering, and creative innovation at leading universities, or embark on apprenticeships where their design thinking and practical skills set them apart.

I thought about leaving, but I realised no one else would care about me the way St Paul’s does. Here, I’m not starting over, I’m moving forward.

— Student Name

What You’ll Study

In Product Design, you’ll learn to think like a designer, exploring how products are created, why they matter, and how design can make a positive difference in the world.

Through hands-on projects, you’ll test ideas, work with materials, and develop both your technical understanding and creative independence.

You’ll build a foundation in:

Technical Principles – Covers materials, processes, and design principles, including testing, manufacturing, digital design, sustainability, and intellectual property. Assesses both short and extended responses.
Designing and Making Principles – Explores design theory, processes, and product analysis through short and extended questions. Focuses on design methods, evaluation, and responsible manufacture.
Practical Application – Apply technical and design principles to create an original product. Submit a written or digital portfolio with photographic evidence of a final prototype.

Full details of the course can be found in the exam board’s official AQA specification.

Through your projects, you’ll learn to approach challenges in practical and creative ways, using design to solve real problems and make ideas work in practice.

You arrive as you are, and you’re celebrated for it. You leave ready to take on the world.

— Sixth Form student

Take a Look at Our Work

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Design & Technology: Product Design Exam Results

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PASS RATE

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achieved

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achieved

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achieved

A* to A

Entry Requirements

This course does not have additional entry requirements beyond our standard entry requirements.

These requirements are in place to help set you up for success and make sure you have the right foundation to enjoy the challenge of Sixth Form study.

I thought about leaving, but I realised no one else would care about me the way St Paul’s does. Here, I’m not starting over, I’m moving forward.

— Student Name

Hear From Our Students

Art is my passion. The teachers at St Paul’s are always interested in your work and push you to do the absolute best

— Becky (Art & Design Student)

Art is a great subject simply because it enables you to be as creative as you want

— Tom (Art & Design Student)

I like hearing about the different kind of artists out there and how there is no right or wrong – It’s all about your own interpretation

— Candy (Art & Design Student)

Thank you for your interest in studying Product Design at St Paul’s. Our team of enthusiastic and experienced teachers will support you as you develop both your creative and technical skills.

If you’d like to talk about the course or where it could lead, please do get in touch, we’d be delighted to hear from you.

Send me a message

We’d love to hear from you, whether you want to talk about subject choices, entry requirements, or your future career ideas.

Are you ready to design, innovate and turn creative ideas into real-world solutions that shape the way we live and work?

Start your Product Design journey at St Paul’s.

Whatever course you choose, you’ll be joining a community where every student is known and loved. Our mission is not just to help you succeed academically, but to help you grow as a person, supported and celebrated every step of the way.

Design & Technology: Product Design
Course Content

Design & Technology allows students to explore and develop their creative side and use their hands to create tangible products from start to finish using a wide range of materials and resources. See the modules you will learn, how these are broken down over the courses entirety, and how these are assessed.

PAPER 1 Technical Principles
WEIGHT	30% (120 Marks)
LENGTH	2 Hours 30 Minutes

The questions for paper 1 are formatted by short answer and extended response.

Topics and subject material included in paper 1:

Specific materials and their uses
Material classification (Ferrous/Non-Ferrous)
Testing and investigating materials
Performance characteristics of materials
Enhancement of materials
Forming, redistribution and addition processes
The use of finishes
Modern industrial and commercial practice
Digital design and manufacture
The requirements for product design and development
Health and safety
Protecting designs and intellectual property
Design for manufacturing, maintenance, repair and disposal
Feasibility studies
Enterprise and marketing in the development of products
Design communication

PAPER 2 Designing and Making Principles
WEIGHT	20% (80 Marks)
LENGTH	1 Hours 30 Minutes

The questions for paper 2 are formatted by short answer and extended response.

Paper 2 is divided by two sections:

Section A – Product Analysis
- 30 Marks
- Up to 6 short answer questions based on visual stimulus of product(s)
Section B – Product Analysis
- 50 Marks
- Mixture of short and extended response questions

Topics and subject material included in paper 2:

Design methods and processes
Design theory
How technology and cultural changes can impact on the work of designers
Design processes
Critical analysis and evaluation
Selecting appropriate tools, equipment and processes
Accuracy in design and manufacture
Responsible design
Design for manufacture and project management
National and international standards in product design

OTHER Practical Application of Technical Principles, Designing and Making Principles
WEIGHT	50% (100 Marks)

Practical application of technical principles, designing and making principles.

This assignment consists of submitting evidence of a written or digital design portfolio and photographic evidence of a final prototype.

Design & Technology: Product Design

Why Choose Product Design at St Paul’s?

Where Product Design Can Take You

What You’ll Study

Take a Look at Our Work

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Design & Technology: Product Design Exam Results

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Entry Requirements

Hear From Our Students

Mrs M Paley-Phillips

Send me a message

Design & Technology: Product DesignCourse Content

Design & Technology: Product Design
Course Content