What's Next in Design Education? Transforming role of a designer and its implications in preparing youth for an ambiguous and volatile future

In today's dynamic world, it is imperative to monitor and map trends that have far-reaching impact on the larger society and the resulting implications on preparing design students. Definitely the future requires a different skill set. Employers are more and more looking towards hiring quick learners who can easily swing from one role to another and in the process be more productive for an organization; a definite shift from specialized subject skills that are the primary outcome of a design education, towards life skills. This paper outlines the results of a qualitative study examining - Design education: what needs to change - Employability trends: expectation from a young graduate - Potential skill sets for the future This paper further discusses the need to reconstruct the education model to prepare a student to respond quickly to opportunities for expanding the influence of design in places we can't yet imagine.