Birmingham School of Architecture and Design academic, Nicholas Irvin, has been selected as a Design Judging Panellist for the prestigious Global Undergraduate Awards 2021. With over 25 categories, the Awards recognise top undergraduate work and aim to connect students across cultures and disciplines.
“I am honoured to have been asked to take part and be a design judge for the Global Undergraduate Awards this year and look forward to viewing the quality of the student submissions and being able to share my feedback and feedforward with fellow judges and the finalists.
This is a great opportunity to meet fellow academics and students from all over the world, to expand my network and promote my course to potential international partners. I am keen to explore similar teaching practices. The role will involve judging the Architecture and Design category, so this experience will be useful to gain a greater understanding of global design issues, as an insight into the work being produced by a range of global institutions.”
Nick has been a leading academic in the Birmingham School of Architecture and Design since 2016 and has a wealth of industry experience working in design consultancy, in a design/brand role for EE and within design, marketing and communications roles in local government, where he managed a range of projects, including contract management and the implementation of digital advertising.
Nick is a lecturer on the MA Design Management programme, which attracts students from all over the world. The course offers students the opportunity to develop a lead role in managing projects, whilst considering the design and creation of products, services and experiences.
As Nick explains, “Design management is about having a human-centred approach, an empathy for the intended user and for the client. Whilst the subject involves the communication of design, it is also being used by a wider global audience, to communicate the brand strategy and vision of organisations.”
The categories of the Global Undergraduate Awards encompass everything from Classical Studies to Life Sciences, Politics to Visual Arts. Nick is delighted to be part of the judging panel for the Architecture and Design category, and offers this advice to students submitting work:
“Imagine you’re delivering your submission to your client to win an order. Demonstrate your interests and passion for design, ensure your submissions are aligned to the brief and the learning outcomes. It is imperative that the work is well-researched from both a primary and secondary research perspective, to formulate a convincing response to your intended audience.
Ensure to provide a strategy with a professional approach to the investigation, which considers the design process and provides a finish which is inspired by outputs in a commercial context.
The submission should communicate your strategy or approach in an innovative and highly visual manner and consider the research aim, corporate/business or design problem being addressed.”
