Fixperts for

Universities:
FAQs

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Fixperts for
universities: FAQs
Everything you need
to know about running
Fixperts in your
university.
Anything we’ve missed?
Let us know.
Fixperts for universities:
FAQs
U0-02-V2
www.fixing.education/fixperts
What is Fixperts?
What is a Fixperts project?
We’re a university that’s interested in running
Fixperts. How should we start?
Can Fixperts come to our university to deliver a
workshop?
How long does it take to run a Fixperts project?
What subject areas is Fixperts relevant to? And at
what levels?
Do we need special materials or spaces to run a
Fixperts project?
What does it cost to run a Fixperts project?
What is a Fix Partner and how do we find them?
Can we run a Fixperts project without a real life Fix
Partner?
Do we have to find the problem before starting the
project?
Do we have to make a film?
How does Fixperts link to curriculum?
Do universities ever assess Fixperts as part of their
course or qualification?
Does Fixperts deliver training for university tutors?
Do you have examples of Fixperts projects in other
universities?
These materials cannot be used for commercial purposes
2 without permission of the copyright holder. These materials
cannot be modified in any manner without prior permission.
What is Fixperts?
What is a Fixperts project?
We’re a university that’s
interested in running Fixperts.
How should we start?
Fixperts for universities:
FAQs
U0-02-V2
www.fixing.education/fixperts
Fixperts is a learning programme which challenges students to create
ingenious solutions to everyday problems. Rooted in a creative, human-
centred design process, it integrates design & technology, engineering
thinking and practical making skills all applied for social benefit.
We offer free guidelines to state run universities to feature Fixperts in their
taught programmes. We offer additional support at a cost, in the form of
training, mentoring, extended/bespoke materials and access to research.
We keep it free because we think the world desperately needs creative
problem solvers, who combine ingenuity with empathy and resilience.
We started in a university in 2012 and now work with over 30 universities
internationally. We’ve started working with schools because this is where the
students and innovators of tomorrow start their journey.
We are a not-for-profit (company limited by guarantee) currently reliant on
volunteer, grant and donor support.
We are run by a small group of individuals with deep expertise in design,
design education and public engagement.
We support open access and sharing and send and share content and
materials and ingenious fixes far and wide, but the Fixperts name is
protected by trademark to ensure it reflects our values and quality
standards. Please use our name and our materials respectfully.
Fixperts always involves fixing something for someone else. We have a
number of formats available for different contexts.
All Fixperts projects challenge participants:
– to solve problems creatively, which encourages agency, resourcefulness
and resilience
– to fix for someone else (the Fix Partner), which encourages generosity,
empathy and social orientation
– to work in teams, which encourages collaboration, negotiation and
respect
– to gift the solution to the Fix Partner which develops generosity, inclusion
and community
– to tell their story, which encourages insight, perspective and critical skills
– to do all this in real life, which encourages a results orientation, requires
prototyping and making skills and to bring it to completion
– to share their ideas openly, which encourages an innovation culture.
In all formats, even the shortest, students can experience the key
values that Fixperts promotes, such as empathy, design for social good,
prototyping, and teamwork.
There are a few options depending on your interest and needs.
The options are:
Run it independently - download the free guideline and get started
Most universities run Fixperts independently. Just download the guidelines
and go! Let us know how you get on by uploading films via our upload form,
and we can promote all of your amazing fixes on our website and social
media feeds.
These materials cannot be used for commercial purposes
3 without permission of the copyright holder. These materials
cannot be modified in any manner without prior permission.

Can Fixperts come to our
university to deliver a
workshop?
How long does it take to run a
Fixperts project?
What subject areas is Fixperts
relevant to? And at what
levels?
Do we need special materials
or spaces to run a Fixperts
project?
Fixperts for universities:
FAQs
U0-02-V2
www.fixing.education/fixperts
Contact us to tap into support and contacts
Some people can really benefit from the little kickstart that a conversation
or mentoring offers. We’ll try our best to help ourselves or put you in touch
with others who can share their experiences and insights.
We can work with you
We have worked with ambitious universities or those with specific needs to
provide a range of paid services, helping adapt the brief to suit conditions,
creating rich materials and providing introductory talks, taster sessions and
workshops. We’ve even done a ‘Festival of Fixing’!
Remember to sign up for our newsletter - this is how we can keep you in
touch with new films, refreshed materials and case studies of how other
universities have approached this.
We run a network of skilled independent Fixperts facilitators, who love
spending their days introducing young people to the fun and satisfaction
of fixing their worlds. We can also connect you to Fixperts ambassadors
who you may want to invite to give keynote talks or take part in crits and
presentations.
A Fixperts project does not have a fixed timeframe. It depends on the level
of the problem being addressed, the availability of the Fix Partners and the
teaching and work time set.
The shortest university project we’ve seen done successfully was three days
but the Fix Partners were identified and briefed in advance. And a workshop
type activity can be delivered in a day (though it’s tight). Most universities
run it easily over a half or full term. Some students have used it as a kick
starter for projects which have had a much longer life, over a year or even
into production.
Fixperts projects have been successfully run in design and engineering
programmes at Foundation, BA and Masters levels. Over half the universities
which have run Fixperts have run it as part of their assessed programme.
Fixperts could be run in any programme which deals with creative problem
solving, and in which making skills are relevant. Content and activities may
need to be adapted to suit the group you are working with.
Fixperts projects involve lots of making and modelling, and are ideally
done in a space which can handle messy work, like a workshop. Modelling
materials and tools can be flexible according to your level and focus - it
doesn’t matter if you’re using cardboard and sticky tape or a 3D printer -
successful Fixperts projects don’t rely on sophisticated tools. Final
fixes should be robust enough for use by the Fix Partner however, and at
university level we’ve seen many final fixes which are indistinguishable
from commercially produced products. We’re continually impressed by
the technical ingenuity demonstrated by the committed teams around the
world.
These materials cannot be used for commercial purposes
4 without permission of the copyright holder. These materials
cannot be modified in any manner without prior permission.
What does it cost to run a
Fixperts project?
What is a Fix Partner and how
do we find them?
Can we run a Fixperts project
without a real life Fix Partner?
Do we have to find the
problem before starting the
project?
Do we have to make a film?
Fixperts for universities:
FAQs
U0-02-V2
www.fixing.education/fixperts
Fixperts guidelines are free to download from our website. Please respect
our terms & conditions but outside of these restrictions you’re free to use
them as you wish.
Training, mentoring, customising materials and the other services we provide
come at a cost. This is necessary to enable us to keep our other materials
free, to refresh and improve our curriculum and to train and support Fixperts
volunteers and staff. And to eat of course - our small core team work on this
full time.
In terms of materials to prototype and create the final fixes we recommend
spending as little as possible. Fixperts is about making intelligent fast, low-
cost and effective impact. The best design solutions are simple, resourceful,
and often small-scale.
A Fix Partner is the person who offer insight into a worthwhile problem in a
Fixperts project. They make themselves available to the team and feed back
on the proposed solutions. You will need to identify someone to act as your
Fix Partner yourselves.
Almost anyone can be a Fix Partner, but some people have problems that are
a good fit for a Fixperts project. It’s good to find a is a broad need that has a
negative impact on the life of the Fix Partner but is not straightforward repair
or task (like fixing a shelf). Remember this is a learning project not a service.
You can find your Fix Partner anywhere, for example:
– In your university: in areas such as catering, cleaning and janitorial,
reception, security, librarians or tutors. We’ve also seen some universities
involve other students as Fix Partners.
– In the student community: grandparents, family members, friends or
neighbours living with an illness or a disability, new mothers.
– In the local community: nursery, local community centre, day-centres
and care homes, special schools, local shop owners or small businesses
It’s not advised at university level.
No, in fact identifying the problem is a key part of the process. Students will
need to be mature and sensitive enough to interview a potential Fix Partner
and identify a problem themselves. Tutors may need to gently guide students
in the right direction when they prepare and interview the Fix Partner and
discuss possible problems to work with.
No. While telling the story of the fix is central to any Fixperts project because
it encourages a deeper understanding and critical perspective on the
process, and while we encourage film making as a way to spread the word
and inspire others to do the same, this does not need to be done through
film. A storyboard, a comic or a blog post could fulfil the same purpose.
These materials cannot be used for commercial purposes
5 without permission of the copyright holder. These materials
cannot be modified in any manner without prior permission.
How is Fixperts run in
universities?
Do universities ever assess
Fixperts as part of their
course or qualification?
Do Fixperts deliver training for
university tutors?
Do you have examples of
Fixperts projects in other
universities?
Fixperts for universities:
FAQs
U0-02-V2
www.fixing.education/fixperts
Fixperts has been used by tutors to deliver a range of learning outcomes,
spanning skills and knowledge. These include sustainability, innovation, user
centred design, universal design, social design and workshop skills.
It can work for team and individual projects. It has been a popular intensive
workshop format, often with guest tutors, over anything from 3-day to 2
weeks. It can work extremely well for industry or community partnerships
where the partner provides access to a community. Fixperts has potential to
fulfil outreach targets.
A growing number of universities are integrating Fixperts into their
assessed coursework. In the UK this includes Brunel, Kingston and
Sheffield; internationally this has happened at NCAD in Dublin, HIT in Israel,
Johannesburg University in South Africa and Tongji in China.
Some of them have found the Fixperts Awards judging criteria useful in
addition to their project based assessment:
– Impact on Fix Partner and surrounding beneficiaries
– Storytelling, creating empathy and sharing information
– Inventiveness of solution and prototyping
– Quality of fabrication
– Repeatability, transferability and scalability
No, nor do we have anything currently planned. We can supply ad-hoc and
more structured advice via email and Skype depending on your need. Get in
touch to discuss if this is relevant.
Our bank of 400+ films provides many examples of Fixperts in universities
around the world, and we often feature university stories in our website and
newsletter. As part of the university subscription and research partnership
offer of FixEd we are increasingly facilitating conversations and exchange
which are relevant to teaching Fixperts.
These materials cannot be used for commercial purposes
6 without permission of the copyright holder. These materials
cannot be modified in any manner without prior permission.