Started in 1996, the Master of Design (MDes) programme is a two-year full-time graduate programme that aims to impart education in design and development of new products that are innovative and competitive. The programme aims at developing skills, knowledge and aptitude among students so that they can, through creative problem solving, bring about innovation in product design and manufacturing industry. The students are trained to approach product design from a holistic viewpoint, integrating in a balanced and harmonious manner industrial design and engineering design perspectives, to develop products that are well-engineered, aesthetic, usable and sustainable, with enhanced feasibility.

The MDes programme at CPDM is spread over four semesters and two summer terms, contains a challenging mix of courses and projects in user-research, creativity, advanced engineering, aesthetics, ergonomics, materials, manufacturing, design methodology, CAD, CAE, marketing and design for X, etc., to train students in developing products that blend the soft and the hard to solve the problem and wow the user. The programme takes engineers and architects as input through a most challenging design aptitude test called DAT, and handpicks the best for grooming and training through its knowledge, skill and reflection-based curriculum that prepares them to lead existing practice and create new practices in design.

Candidates with a bachelor's degree in Engineering / Architecture and with a valid GATE / CEED score are eligible to apply. Selection is based on the performance in the Design Aptitude Test (DAT) followed by an interview conducted at the centre. The DAT and the following interview scrutinize engineering knowledge, abstract and analytical thinking ability, aesthetic sensitivity and communication ability, and the overall aptitude for the design programme.

A third of the final year projects in CPDM lead to technology patents, and a fifth of its students remain in campus to incubate products into start-ups. Students from CPDM have led design practice with distinction, e.g. designing the first indigenous car from Suzuki - A-Star, (or the award-winning TVS Akula), winning major international design prizes, and starting their own companies.

The Centre for Product Design and Manufacturing offers the industry opportunity to recruit students graduating from the Master of Design (M.Des) course specializing in Product Design and Engineering.