Hyderabad: For decades, India’s education landscape has been dominated by traditional career paths in engineering, medicine and management. However, this paradigm is rapidly shifting as a growing number of young Indians embrace careers in design, fashion, animation, and creative technologies fields once considered unconventional. Reflecting this change, World University of Design (WUD), India’s first university dedicated exclusively to design education, organized a counsellors’ meet in Hyderabad to highlight the rising importance of design education in the region.
The drive connected with over a 1000 school principals and counsellors from across Andhra & Telangana, to discuss evolving career trends and the increasing appeal of creative fields. WUD presented insights into how design education is shaping the aspirations of Gen Z and enabling students to build impactful careers both in India and globally.
“As a young university just a decade old, we are agile, energetic and free from the inertia that slows older institutions. Our openness to students and faculty from all walks of life helps us create the right environment, campus and mentorship for quality design education. Students from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana should feel confident exploring opportunities beyond the state because they can always return and contribute even more meaningfully.” Said Prof. Shaleen Sharma, Dean School of Architecture, World University of Design.
Of 22 states which send students to WUD, a massive 12-15% of WUD’s design students hail from Andhra & Telangana, the states have emerged as one of the university’s strongest talent hubs. Many graduates return to their hometowns after completing their programs, contributing significantly to the region’s creative economy. To strengthen opportunities for students pursuing higher studies and industry exposure, WUD has also signed MoUs with leading institutions including Oxford Brookes University & University of Reading UK, Emily Carr University of Art & Design & Vancouver Film School, Canada; University of California, Berkeley USA; ENSAIT, France; Utrecht University, Netherlands; Kauno Kolegija, Lithuania and about 30 others.
WUD offers scholarships ranging from 25% to 50%, ensuring access to quality design education for deserving students. As Hyderabad continues to thrive as an IT and innovation hub, the demand for skilled design professionals has surged, revealing a substantial talent gap in the industry. WUD aims to bridge this gap by nurturing students with a future-ready curriculum, experienced faculty, and industry-aligned training.
Through this counsellors’ meet, WUD reaffirmed its commitment to empowering students from Telangana and Hyderabad, encouraging them to pursue design as a full-fledged and rewarding career path.
