Cultivation of innovative thinking and career development in design education

The acceleration of digital transformation has made digital tools increasingly popular in design education. Design education faces the dual challenges of cultivating innovative thinking and addressing social inequality. Traditional education emphasizes esthetic skills; the digital age requires comprehensive technical and interdisciplinary skills. Inequality factors, such as social class, economy, and race, hinder students’ career development. This study explores how digital design education affects the cultivation of innovative thinking and explores the impact of social background on career development. Structural equation model (SEM) analysis shows that digital design education significantly improves technical ability, cognitive ability, and interdisciplinary ability. Social network analysis (SNA) shows that the fair distribution of educational and network resources effectively narrows the career development gap between students from different social backgrounds. The results show that digital design education significantly enhances innovation potential through interdisciplinary collaboration and technological integration. The study proposes strategic recommendations for promoting educational equity and equal career development opportunities. The results provide a theoretical basis for cultivating innovative ability and addressing social differences in design education, and provide a practical guidance for improving educational policies and operations.