Product Design

As a product designer, you will have opportunities to work with companies in the appliances, automobiles, telco and core manufacturing domain.
You could further develop a speciality (on your own) within the large umbrella of product design. For example, it could be user-research, prototyping, user interface, future materials, design for disability and much more.
Given the currently booming economy, there will be more and more opportunities opening for industrial designers. I don't think that you need to worry about job opportunities, even if the economy slows down.
The fact is that people will always need products and good products need good designers. As long as you vouch to create good design, there is no stopping you from making a career out of it.
P.S. All key companies that you can think of; LG, Samsung, Nokia, Whirlpool, Godrej, Honeywell, TI Cycles, TVS motors, Honda motors, Maruti, Philips etc. have industrial designers from NID, IDC and other design institutes heading their design departments.
This point is only meant for building a perspective and is intended only to make you stop worrying about job opportunities and start thinking about becoming a good designer.

Design ethnography, design research, Ergonomics, Design Process, Strength of Materials, History of Design, Green Design, sustainable design and System Design. Of the many product designs courses in India
Design for industry: Explores creative opportunities for partnerships with small, medium and large scale industries across India to develop core competencies in design and manufacturing for a globalized presence. Projects focus on products and services for consumer needs, manufacturing and economic impact.
Design for quality of life: Explores unique social and cultural responses to existing and emerging technologies as reflected in the creation and adoption of everyday objects of life. Projects focus on design and development of products and services that improve the quality of living in home, office and public environments.
Design for healthcare: Explores a growing movement among designers to design cost-effective healthcare solutions for people who have no / limited access to institutionalized healthcare. Projects leverage the power of design thinking to find unique ways to address the basic challenges of health, survival and progress faced by underserved populations in the Indian context.
Design for social impact: Explores the role of design-led solutions at the national level to the infrastructural challenges of a rapidly growing Indian economy. Projects look at developing scalable solutions to problems of urban mobility, sustenance and social equity that are people-centric and embrace sustainable values.
Design for sustainability: Explores the power of design to influence an ecologically responsible approach to development of products, systems and environments. Designers evolve new systems of development which improve the quality of life and the human experience, while simultaneously restoring the environment, rebuilding the community and creating a sense of oneness with the natural world.
Design led futures: Explores global trends, challenges and opportunities to shape the future. Projects focus on the enormous challenges that India will face in the coming decades in terms of population, health, mobility, sanitation, energy and ecology. Today's technologies are used as a basis to project the future, and concepts generate frameworks to evolve and guide society and behavior in the future
Discipline lead explores global trends, challenges and opportunities to shape the future.

Having a degree of M.Des opens up a plethora of opportunities for you to chose from. Various specializations are available for this course such as Accessory design, Architecture, Ceramic design, Fashion design, Game design, Graphic design, Industrial design, Interior design, Leather design, Jewellery and Metal Smithing, Knitwear design, Multimedia design and Textile design. Candidates having M.Des in Product Design degree can work as designers in automobile and mechanical engineering companies. Companies like Eureka Forbes, Volkswagen, Hero cycles, SIDBI, BMW, FICCL give huge salary packages for the designer post. Other jobs available in these companies for the candidates having M.Des degree are given below.
Computer-Aided Industrial Design (CAD) engineer
Graphics engineer
Computer Aided Design (CAD) engineer
Students of Product Design can also seek employment in sectors such as consumer appliances, transport, retail and packaging. The average salary of a product designer starts from 4-8 Lacs per annum.

There is no need to pursue a parallel course along with a Bachelor of product design. Studying product design gives you the broad theoretical knowledge and practical skillset you'll need to use production methods and materials creatively.
You can find employment in both the private and public sector. Private sector work could include manufactured products for the domestic and industrial market. Working in the public sector may involve designing interactive facilities, such as public information points and equipment used by services such as the police, fire, and ambulance.
Employers include:
- industrial and domestic product manufacturers
- car manufacturers
- point-of-sale designers
- retailers.
Self-employment, or employment within a design-based consultancy, is also possible.

In India product designing programs may provide a variety of learning methods in their course curriculum. While many emphasize traditional lectures, seminars and workshops, some programs also offer hands-on lab courses that allow students to create real designs to market.
Distance learning courses have due dates that must be met, there is a fabulous deal of compliance as to when you can carry out assignments when studying at a distance. With the online option, you could exit the discussion group as required to return to work and then join after work if needed. Degrees in industrial design are rarely available entirely through online study, although a few online programs do exist at the associate's, bachelor's and master's levels. Hybrid programs are more common, which combine online studies with on-campus classes and studio work. Most online classes allow students to log on to a course management system and download class materials and view lectures at any time. Distance learning courses can be taken in whatever place you have Internet access. It is an easy way in which one can obtain certain amount of skills and experience good knowledge. Students interested in entering the field of industrial design can get an associate's degree either entirely online, though these programs are scarce, or in a hybrid format with over 50% of the courses delivered through distance learning. Associate of Art (AA) and Associate of Science (AS) in Industrial Design programs are both available. Students develop skills involving the design of products and packaging through the use of high-level technologies, engineering processes, 3-D modeling systems, creativity and innovation. Students acquire skills and knowledge of the materials, tools, methods and techniques used to make full-size models that are representative of specific product ideas. Materials such as wood, foam, acrylic and resin are utilized by students to create individually-realized projects. Extra focus is given to drafting and finishing tactics, as well as shop safety and manners.