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Summer school
    duration2 weeks
    languageEnglish
    locationMadrid
    intake9th – 20th of June, 2025
    FORMATIn-person

    EXPLORE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE AND INNOVATION

    Understand the art of designing customer experiences that leave a lasting impact. Over two weeks, you will explore customer-first strategies that emphasize empathy, design thinking, innovation and the power of emotional connection—all the tools you need to design experiences that resonate.

    Focusing on practical application, the Customer Experience & Innovation program helps you see things from a consumer’s perspective and understand their needs at every touchpoint. By the end, you’ll walk away equipped to shape experiences that engage audiences and set businesses apart.

    WANT TO KNOW MORE?
    days to start your best summer
    54days
    :
    14hours
    :
    59minutes

    Course Overview – Typical Day in the Customer Experience & Innovation Program

    We’ve structured your day-to-day to sharpen your skills and bring out your best ideas. Designed for an engaging and hands-on experience, here’s what a typical day in the Customer Experience & Innovation program looks like:

    • A person is presenting ideas on a whiteboard in an office setting.

      Week 1:

      • Monday to Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
    • A group of presenters standing in front of an audience in a classroom setting.

      Week 2:

      • Monday to Thursday, 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
      • Friday: The last day is dedicated to reflection, group project presentations and a fun graduation ceremony.

    WHO IS THIS PROGRAM DESIGNED FOR?

    • This program is right for you if…

      …you’re passionate about understanding customers and driving meaningful innovation. By providing the opportunity to gain practical CX skills, this experience will prepare you to thrive in dynamic, customer-focused roles.

    • Participant profile

      The Customer Experience & Innovation program is tailored for university students and recent graduates, between 18 and 26 years old, who are motivated to build foundational expertise in customer experience, design thinking and problem-solving.

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    Focus Areas

    Be equipped with essential skills to design and deliver outstanding customer experiences. From mapping the customer journey to hands-on prototyping, each skill helps you lay the groundwork for impact in any customer-focused role.

    • 01.

      Customer journey mapping

      Learn how to create detailed maps of customer experiences, boosting your capacity to design pathways that align with customer needs and enhance brand loyalty.

    • 02.

      Stakeholder engagement

      Develop the skills to connect effectively with stakeholders and understand their perspectives to build support and drive meaningful change in projects.

    • 03.

      Design thinking

      Apply this creative approach to innovate within CX, gaining the know-how to foster empathy and collaboration as a tool to generate impactful, user-centered solutions.

    • 04.

      Strategic problem-solving

      Sharpen your ability to identify challenges, think critically and develop innovative solutions that align with both customer expectations and business objectives.

    • 05.

      Prototyping

      Get hands-on experience with prototyping methods that transform ideas into reality, learning to refine solutions through iterative feedback and real-world testing.

    Unique Value

    Transformative and hands-on, this program provides the practical skills, industry insights and real-world experience to help you shape authentic, impactful customer journeys.

    Learning Outcome

    By the end of the program, you’ll know how to design seamless customer journeys, align CX strategies with real goals, and turn empathy into impactful actions. Through hands-on prototyping and stakeholder engagement, you’ll gain the skills to tackle real-world CX challenges and deliver meaningful results.

    Program Structure

    What You're going to do
    2 Weeks
    Week 1
      Week 2
        Final Project

          Foundation of Self-Discovery and Core Skill Building

          Laying the Foundation: Customer-Centric Design and Problem Framing

          • Day 1: : CX and Innovation Kickoff

            Overview of CX and innovation concepts, with team-building activities.

          • Day 2: Understanding Customer Needs

            Gathering and analyzing customer insights to inform CX design.

          • Day 3: Mastering Customer Journey Mapping

            Mastering Customer Journey Mapping

          • Day 4: Mastering Customer Journey Mapping

            Developing empathy maps and personas to uncover user motivations.

          • Day 5: Defining the Problem

            Identifying pain points and framing challenges to set project scope.

          Practical Tools and Professional Empowerment

          Building Solutions: Prototyping, Feedback, and Innovation in Action

          • Day 6: From Ideas to Prototypes

            Exploring ideation techniques, refining ideas, and creating prototypes.

          • Day 7: Feedback and Iteration

            Incorporating peer feedback to enhance prototype development.

          • Day 8: Refining for Feasibility

            Optimizing prototypes with a focus on customer impact and implementation.

          • Day 9: Pitching Innovation

            Crafting and presenting business cases to demonstrate innovation.

          • Day 10: Reflections and Graduation

            Reflecting on CX skills and celebrating program achievements.

          Customer Experience & Innovation

          The final presentation involves teams presenting their group projects, showcasing the CX and innovation skills they have developed throughout the course. The presentation would focus on the customer journey mapping, stakeholder engagement, and problem-solving processes used to develop innovative solutions. 

          Each team would demonstrate how they identified customer pain points, defined the problem, and ideated potential solutions, followed by the prototyping and feedback process.

          The teams would present their refined prototypes, discuss the feasibility of their solutions, and present a compelling business case that highlights the impact and innovation of their project.

          This presentation would serve as an opportunity for students to showcase their ability to apply CX and innovation principles in real-world scenarios, with a focus on both the customer impact and the practicality of their solutions.

          What You're going to do
          2 Weeks

          Discover the program's agenda

          Dive into a curriculum that immerses you in hands-on learning. Through a mix of interactive classes, collaborative group work, presentations and our innovative media lab, you’ll develop essential skills for success.

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          Andrew_Peter_Wallace_McCarthy

          lead faculty

          Andrew McCarthy – Founding Academic Director, Master in Customer Experience & Innovation

          • Mentor: Venture Labs, IE Net Impact, MasterYourself, among others
          • Head of Digital and Desing, Gallarus Venture, LLC
          • Energy Intelligence, Creative Director
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          DISCOVER THE RIGHT PROGRAM FOR YOU

          IE University Summer Program is a combination of flexible programs that allow you to mix and match the topics that interest you most, giving you a taste of your future degree or career. Each program lasts two weeks—except for the four-week Entrepreneurship program—and you can combine up to three programs to create a personalized learning journey.

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          • A young man and woman are walking and smiling together in a sunny, outdoor setting, with the woman holding a volleyball.
          • A group of young adults studying and discussing together outdoors on a grassy area.
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          • Two young adults, a male and a female, are looking at a red folder together at an outdoor table surrounded by others.
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          DISCOVER THE SUMMER 2025 CALENDAR

          Take a look to see how you can structure your summer with our various combinations.​

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          Abstract for Tuition | IE

          TUITION

          2 WEEK PROGRAM

          • 3,500€
          • *5,900€ Bundle Price (2 weeks + 2 weeks)

          CREDIT RECOGNITION

          Earning academic credit at your home institution for joining IE University’s Summer Program is designed to be as straightforward as possible. Many institutions routinely award credit for summer courses, but we highly recommend that you check with your University’s International or Study Abroad Office regarding any specific requirements you might need to fulfill.

          If you join IE University’s Summer Program for at least four weeks (= two two-week modules or with the four-week Entrepreneurship Summer School), you’ll complete an academic workload equivalence of 6 ECTS credits (or 3 US credits). If you spend more time with us, you can earn even more credit equivalence, also spread over consecutive summers. To qualify for credit recognition, you need to fulfill all the course requirements and submit one final essay within two weeks of finishing your last course.

          To make the credit transfer process easier, IE University provides all the necessary documentation and evidence required by your home university’s Study Abroad Office or academic department. Additionally, we actively work to pre-agree credit recognition with key partner universities to ensure a faster and smoother process for you.


          THE ADMISSIONS PROCESS

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          1. Online Application

          You will need to complete the online application with the following documents: 

          1. Academic transcripts.  
          2. CV (cv template).
          3. Video Assessment: in this section you will complete two live video questions on general knowledge topics.

          *You must complete all sections of the application in order to submit it.

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          2. Submit your Application

          Once you complete all sections you may submit your online application to be evaluated by our team.


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          3. Admissions Final Decision

          Within 2 weeks of submitting, the Summer School Team will contact you with the final resolution of your Admissions process. Should it be positive, you will be guided through the next steps for your enrollment.

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          START YOUR APPLICATION

          Spaces are limited, so enroll now to guarantee your place!

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