Abstract
It seems improbable that a student might graduate from four years of fulltime education with an honours degree and, simultaneously, three years of work experience. Yet this is the premise of the Design Agency Project at Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh. It celebrates four years within the BA Graphic Design programme so 2012 provides a natural opportunity for reflection, marking the graduation of the first cohort introduced to the project at the commencement of their studies. Annually, the students of the programme’s senior year form several design agencies. They brand and advertise vacancies, for which students in junior years are interviewed and appointed. The university’s human resources and enterprise departments provide guidance. The agencies operate as profit generating companies with provided briefs and self-initiated commercial work. Each agency has an established industry expert as mentor. All undergraduates are allocated one day per week to work on the project throughout the academic year. This paper presents the project as a case study, with viewpoints from lecturers, students and industry mentors. The project is timely since employability has gained traction as a measurement of HE performance outcomes, yet the term itself remains nebulous. Specific case study may elaborate.
Keywords
Design Agency Project, case study, ECA, Edinburgh College of Art, Edinburgh University, graphic design, employability, mentoring, pedagogy, industry
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/learnxdesign.2013.134
Citation
Sharman, I.J.,and Patterson, Z.(2013) “Not two weeks in a place tidying-up the paper drawer” – an employability agenda case study, in Reitan, J.B., Lloyd, P., Bohemia, E., Nielsen, L.M., Digranes, I., & Lutnæs, E. (eds.), DRS // Cumulus: Design Learning for Tomorrow, 14-17 May, Oslo, Norway. https://doi.org/10.21606/learnxdesign.2013.134
Creative Commons License
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Included in
“Not two weeks in a place tidying-up the paper drawer” – an employability agenda case study
It seems improbable that a student might graduate from four years of fulltime education with an honours degree and, simultaneously, three years of work experience. Yet this is the premise of the Design Agency Project at Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh. It celebrates four years within the BA Graphic Design programme so 2012 provides a natural opportunity for reflection, marking the graduation of the first cohort introduced to the project at the commencement of their studies. Annually, the students of the programme’s senior year form several design agencies. They brand and advertise vacancies, for which students in junior years are interviewed and appointed. The university’s human resources and enterprise departments provide guidance. The agencies operate as profit generating companies with provided briefs and self-initiated commercial work. Each agency has an established industry expert as mentor. All undergraduates are allocated one day per week to work on the project throughout the academic year. This paper presents the project as a case study, with viewpoints from lecturers, students and industry mentors. The project is timely since employability has gained traction as a measurement of HE performance outcomes, yet the term itself remains nebulous. Specific case study may elaborate.