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Abstract The Space Station Design Workshop (SSDW), instigated by the Institute of Space Systems (IRS) at the University of Stuttgart, is an international and interdisciplinary workshop, targeted to undergraduate and graduate students as well as young professionals. The first workshop started in 1996, and except for some small breaks, it has taken place on a yearly basis. Currently, 40 participants are divided into two teams, which within six days have to fulfil one goal: to design a space station. The goal of the workshop is to obtain creative solutions from young and fresh minds, but also to enable students to learn by doing how an interdisciplinary and international project works. Several tools are provided by the IRS for the entire week: internal/external experts on the required fields; a concurrent design facility and specialized software. As the conceptual design needs to be created in a short period of time, the entire process is monitored by the IRS staff. This guidance should however not compromise the creativity and the "out-the box thinking" of the participants. The experience of previous editions and the lessons learned help improving this guidance process year after year. This paper explains the teaching approach using the activities during the SSDW 2017 as an example, starting from the mission statement to the final presentation. As a conclusion, the evaluation and opinions of the experts, the students and the organization staff are presented, as well as the main lessons learned, including how they can be implemented to further improve the SSDW. Highlights • The Space Station Design Workshop (SSDW) is held since 1996 by the Institute of Space Systems at the University of Stuttgart. • The SSDW provides students and young professionals an opportunity to work in an interdisciplinary and intercultural team. • The participants task is to design a preliminary concept for a space station in 6 days. • The SSDW provides a team of experts during the workshop, who provide short lectures and guidance. • Mission scenarios during past editions include: LEO, GEO, Lagrange points and Cis-lunar space. In 2017: the Mars vicinity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]