Iddy Awards

It’s almost that time of year! The 2nd Annual In Search of Design Student Identity competition will begin accepting entries on October 1st. Let’s go over the rules–if you’re currently a student or recently graduated and have STUDENT work you’d like to enter then you’re eligible.

Unlike many other competitions, that charge exorbitant competition entry fees, The ISOD Iddy Awards is a strictly STUDENT Competition designed to expose the best of the best Student Identity Designs. The best part is, because we understand the expenses of higher education, this competition only costs $10 per entry.
Now, the best part! Because the contest is for Identity packages, each entry must consist of a student-designed, Logo, Business Card, Letterhead and Envelope. These pieces can be actual pieces created for clients, self promotional pieces or concept pieces created for fake or imaginary clients. Entries are based on the following criteria:

Awards are granted for the following categories:

Grand Prizes:

1st Place – Overall Package

2nd Place — Overal Package

3rd Place — Overall Package

The Overall packages are judged based on the following criteria:

Clarity of Message, Piece Integration, Consistency of Design, Overall Use of Color, Overall Creativity

There are also Certificates awarded for the following criteria:

Logos: judged on the following criteria: Creativity, Use of Color, Uniqueness, “WOW” Factor, Scalability and Color Conversion to BW.

Letterhead: judged on the following criteria: Creativity, Use of Color, Logo Integration, Main Letter “Area”, Contact Info. Placement, Use of Whitespace, Overall Appearance
Envelopes: judged on the following criteria: Creativity, Use of Color, Logo Integration, Address Placement, Overall Appearance
Business Cards: judged on the following criteria: Creativity, Use of Color, Logo Integration, Placement of Elements, “WOW” Factor, Overall Appearance

Click here for a breakdown of rules and award information.

The Entry deadline for the 2009 Competition is January 1st, 2010, students, start your designs!

Bookmark This!

Enjoy this guest post by Senior Designer, Amanda King! With a solid degree in Communications, Amanda King found herself exploring her creative nature through an internship with a ministry in Tulsa, OK. Quickly her innate creativity was revealed as she was assigned more and more tasks and today, the rest is history. King’s responsibilities include creative branding for a variety of groups and ministries. She frequently finds herself working on print projects ranging from letterhead to magazine layout.

I know we have all had to work with people that aren’t always easy to work with and lets be honest, that drive us crazy! But sometimes, we get the opportunity to work with someone that is not only easy to work with, but that challenges you to do better. And you come out with a product that wouldn’t have been as good if you hadn’t worked with that person.

Collaboration is one of the most important tools at our disposal as designers. I had the opportunity this last week to pick up a job from another designer in the office. Long story short the job I picked up should have taken about an hour or two to complete, but the concept behind the design was a little more difficult to create than initially anticipated. So, it literally took myself and the original designer assigned to the job, a whole day going back and forth on the design until we really nailed it. And I have to say, I definitely couldn’t have gotten to that point without the collaboration with my co-worker.

So don’t be afraid to ask some of your co-workers, colleagues, friends, whoever, that you trust of course, for their input. They may be able to see something you don’t, or have an idea you haven’t thought of, and that’s okay. Sometimes we get stuck in this competition mindset. There are times to be competitive, don’t get me wrong, I like a good competition, but sometimes you need to let someone else give you an honest constructive opinion, and that’s when something good can become something awesome!

Bookmark This!

The Student Identity Competition has been completed and the results are in! The Judges had some tough decisions to make as they looked over the entries.

The room where the judges sat for hours was silent. As judges, they were not allowed to discuss the pieces, simply grade the pieces based on the scorecards provided!

In the next post, I’ll reveal the winners! Stay Tuned!

Bookmark This!

I just wanted to take the opportunity to send a shout out and remind everyone that the Student Identity Design Competiton will be coming to a close on December 1, 2008. That leaves you approximately 4 weeks to get your submissions created/uploaded and sent.

Due to the nature of this type of competition, I do want to mention that there will be category winners for specific pieces in the package. These categories include:

• Logo Development
• Use of Color
• Graphic Theme
• Creative Content
• Stationary Design

Each category will contain awards of Excellence, Distinction and Merit.
 

I have also had a few questions regarding whether or not an entrant may enter multiple design packets. The answer: Absolutely! As long as the individual design packages contain all the necessary pieces, contestants are allowed to enter as many packages as they wish.

If you have any other questions or need to contact me do so here and I will respond to your questions. You may also email me if you prefer.
 

Bookmark This!

Getting your work noticed and bursting through the door of opportunity is one of the biggest challenges for student designers. With that in mind, In Search of Design is proud to announce that the Student Identity Package Design Competition has officially began.  Online entry will be available before the day is over! 

In the meantime, read the entry details and check out the awesome prizes being offered. If you are in school ANYWHERE. . . you’re eligible to enter. Show us your creativity!

All the information you need to enter can be found here! Good luck!

Bookmark This!