education & business 11
Solent students have designs on their future careers
Today‘s working environment is changing fast as employers adopt smarter ways of working to attract both the best staff and new clients, writes Alison Dewar of The Business Magazine
A key element in their success is interior design, which is now recognised as playing an increasingly-important role in helping businesses stand out from the competition.
At Southampton Solent University, students on the interior design, interior design decoration, architectural technology and product design courses, are already making a big impression thanks to an ongoing programme to link businesses and students together.
Sarah Bax, course leader BA (Hons) interior design, says it‘s a win-win situation.
”The interior design and the interior design decoration courses vary considerably, which is good for the student but is also good for employer choice.
Interior
design focus is on innovative and creative space making, whereas interior design decoration specialises in materials, decoration and styling.
”We work with a number of existing employers, all of whom have said they have benefited from working with our students, and keep returning as they recognise the benefits,” she said.
”It gives all our students a fantastic opportunity to gain experience and enables us to help foster a growing generation of new designers.
”In addition, it offers employers and businesses the opportunity to tap in and use the emerging new talent to enhance their own success, as well as a tool to set themselves apart from their competitors.”
In an ideal world, said Bax, all students should be offered work placement opportunities in order to gain real-life employment experience, and this doesn‘t have to be an investment in time and money for the employer.
To help bridge the gap, a number of the university‘s graduates
Partnership stories include:
• Chelsea Harbour interior designers SWA employed Solent interior design graduate Yolanda Craig, who went on to achieve London‘s 2015 UK Property Award for Best London Show Home for Interior Design.
• Linden Homes South partnered with the university, inviting second- year interior design decoration students to present design ideas for a show home, with the five finalists pitching to a panel of top local professionals. The winning design was submitted by Jason Livingstone (pictured).
• Interior design student Carlos Majano won SBID‘s annual student design competition, creating his own take on an environmentally- sustainable hotel lobby and bar.
Jason Livingstone with his winning design for Linden Homes South
who, although they are now established in professional interior design careers, have offered to return as mentors to give undergraduates an insight into the world of work.
The added bonus of this, she says, is that when vacancies come up, the graduates will often turn to the university for suitable candidates because they know first-hand the value of the skills being taught.
Bax, who is undertaking PhD research in health and wellbeing connected to interiors, continued: ”New ways of interior design, including agile working, are making a real difference to the effective use of space and people, as well as helping to cut costs.
”Businesses are now using interior design as a tool to attract new business and the best employees, many of whom want, and are sometimes asked, to give something back to the community, such as by working with a university like ourselves.
”Our students are constantly working on live briefs, and the feedback from employers is that
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – FEBRUARY 2016
they are really inspired by their creativity and potential to work outside the box. They know our students are ahead of the game; they understand what‘s going on in the industry.”
Design competitions and live briefs are a popular choice for local businesses who want to partner with the university (see panel to right) and Bax says the resultant publicity is often a very good marketing tool, while the students can boast about their successes and experience on their CV.
Close to home, students are also being given the opportunity to work on the university‘s impressive new five-storey Spark building and on new designs for the award-winning Re:So store at Southampton‘s Marlands Shopping Centre.
Solent‘s interior courses are accredited by the Society of British and International Design (SBID), which works worldwide to promote the benefits of good interior design to businesses and employers.
• Interior design decoration student Nick Snow was crowned Valspar Young Interior Designer of the Year 2015 while in his final year.
• A local retail shop invited interior design students to design the interior scheme and signage for their new store, with the winner‘s designs being introduced.
• Southampton‘s historic Mayflower Theatre invited interior design decoration students to produce designs for the refurbishment of the balcony bar, with two final-year students project managing the final resolution.
Details:
023-8201-6043
academic.partnership @
solent.ac.uk
www.solent.ac.uk/cmda
www.businessmag.co.uk
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