2011 marks the ninth year of this annual competition open to student members completing or returning to continue a program of design study.

The purpose of the scholarships is to recognize emerging excellence in design achievement and encourage a desire in students to go beyond expectations as a natural progression to professional practice. These awards have been funded by some of Canada’s most well known supporters of the design industry, including Veer, Adobe and Applied Arts.

The panel of judges comprised of professional members of the GDC and Société des designers graphiques du Québec (SGDQ) included: Jennifer Luckay CGD (Athabasca, AB), Janet Pacey CGD (Yellowknife, NWT), Aidan Rowe CGD (Edmonton, AB), Marc Serre SDGQ (Montreal, QC) and Ben Kunz CGD (Edmonton, AB). The adjudication took place at the Banff Springs Hotel and overseen by May Chung CGD (GDC Vice-President Education).

The criteria for eligibility was rigorous with submissions of: grade transcripts, a letter of endorsement from a design educator, a personal letter discussing their experience with design and reasons for applying, and one project that exemplifies their abilities and potential (including a description of project requirements and detailed rationale). Submissions were plentiful and the quality continues to be consistently high overall. Judges were asked to weigh all aspects of the submission in respect to cohesiveness of elements, quality of presentation, innovation and suit to purpose as well as demonstration of strong potential. This competition was initiated to provide a way to recognize Canadian design achievement and to fund deserving students to allow them to expand their understanding of the profession. The personal letters and design rationales enabled judges from different regions, backgrounds, and approaches to work to arrive at a high level of consensus in the results.

"I was impressed with the overall quality and thought that went into each piece,” said Janet Pacey CGD. "I look forward with interest to seeing how these young designers progress in the years to come.”

Aidan Rowe CGD commented that “Helping to judge the scholarships for the GDC was a great experience, it was wonderful to see work from design programs from across Canada that exemplified not only the present of what the GDC embodies but importantly the future of design in Canada.”

 

^ $2,500 Veer Scholarship
Iwona Faferek, University of Alberta, Edmonton  AB
Project: Mapping Typography: A Journey Through Typeface Design
Instructor: Jen Duby



^ $2,000 Adobe Scholarship
Samantha Smith, Capilano University, North Vancouver  BC
Project: Ethical Bean Packaging
Instructor: Dominique Walker




^ $1000 Applied Arts Magazine Scholarship
Carl Justin Shura, Red River College, Winnipeg  MB
Project: Simple Pleasures Baked Cookie Bars Packaging
Instructor: Neil McInnes

 

^ Honourable Mention

Markus Wreland, Capilano University, North Vancouver  BC
Project: Metric: Urban Disaster Benefit Concert Poster
Instructor: Shayne Letain
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The GDC National Scholarship Awards are Canada's pre-eminent educational awards founded in 2003, funded by Canada's top design-related companies, and coordinated by the GDC. Since 1956 the GDC has been dedicated to improving graphic design standards and practice, in the workplace and in schools. The GDC National Scholarship Awards encourage and support students in taking their design education to a level that will better prepare them for professional practice.

Talented individuals from across Canada who are full-time students enrolled in a 2-, 3- or 4-year graphic design program, who are returning to continue their studies, and who are also Student Members of the GDC, SGDQ or RGD Ontario are invited to enter the GDC National Scholarship Awards Program.

Winners receive scholarship awards which are applied directly to their next year's tuition fees. The winning students are profiled on the GDC national website, the national newsletter, and also receive prominent coverage in Applied Arts Magazine as well as other Canada design publications.

Adobe Canada
Applied Arts Magazine
Veer

Sponsor a GDC Scholarship: Your company can support graphic design education in Canada.