Focus on graduate education

British Design and Art Direction will focus on graduate design students as part of its new education policy, according to an interim report unveiled this week.

Education & Training: Developing D&AD’s Role results from work by independent consultant Vicky Sargent (DW 5 May). “Nothing has been costed yet, we are at the ideas stage,” says director David Kester.

Sargent reveals that there is little support for the idea of a post-graduate design course, even though employers find college leavers’ portfolios predictable. She suggests a scheme in which graduates work for consultancies, sponsored by D&AD for the first year. The report includes an idea for a “high-profile event debating necessary skills and qualities”.