Graphic Design students pitch easyJet campaign to international design agency

Before half-term, Stafford College and Newcastle College BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma Graphic Design students took part in an inter-college competition, from international advertising agency, VCCP to design a new easyJet campaign advertising Staffordshire as top tourist destination for Italian and Spanish holidaymakers.

VCCP are an advertising agency based in London, who have recently opened their VCCP Stoke Academy in Stoke-on-Trent, designed to attract more diverse talent. Set against a backdrop of recent art colleges and advertising school closures and a global pandemic, the pathway into creative industries has become narrower with more and more opportunities being removed, with those outside London are struggling to see advertising and media as a career option.

Working in teams, students were tasked in producing a clear campaign creative across print advertising and social media, pitching their finished campaigns to representatives from VCCP.

NSCG Stafford College, Curriculum Leader in Graphic Design, Dave Holcroft said: "Working with VCCP closely on an advertising brief like this has been fantastic. Students have been guided along the way by professionals from industry who have provided crucial insights into job roles and processes within the agency itself. The feedback has been amazing and I know that the Team at VCCP have been massively impressed by the campaigns that the students have conceived and just as impressed with the professionalism the students have displayed.

He added: I’m incredibly proud of the students for engaging with the project in such an enthusiastic way and for producing some phenomenal work. The biggest positive for the whole project for me has been the noticeable increase in confidence when it comes to presenting work and discussing ideas. Every student played a vital role in their teams and had the courage to stand up in front of a panel of industry experts to pitch their thoughts and ideas.”

NSCG Stafford College, Curriculum Leader in Graphic Design, Dave Burgess said: "I thought the students did really well. Especially given that Newcastle students were at a different venue with unfamiliar faces in front of them. They performed admirable. Each of the students contributed appropriately and really pushed themselves outside of their comfort zone. It was a real taste of industry for them, something that they wouldn’t normally have chance to participate in. A tricky brief, but there was lots of opportunities for fun and creativity. I couldn’t be prouder of their attitude towards this project."

NSCG Stafford College students, Ross Burlington, Chloe Hope, Jess Hankin and Toby Walton-Sanders who's “Easy to Visit, Hard to Forget” was chosen as VCCP's winning pitch and will now compete against the winners from The City of Stoke-on-Trent Sixth Form College and Stoke on Trent College head-to-head to decide on outright winner.

For more information about studying a creative course at Newcastle College or Stafford College, click here, email info@nscg.ac.uk or call 01782 254254 (Newcastle College) or 01785 223800 (Stafford College)