The Design Truth Student Awards are open to final year students in both the UK and Ireland who are studying Industrial Design, Product Design, or similar. Students must be able to work in the UK without sponsorship. 

Entries to the Design Truth Student Awards open on May 1st and close on June 10th. We will not accept any entries after June 10th. Entries are free. Advice: give yourself the time to submit with the level of care and attention it deserves. Entries on May 2nd are not as successful as those on June 9th.

You are expected to send through one project only. Our submission process is built around creating best practise in when applying for work in a design studio. We stick to two key parameters: a file size limit of 10mb and a page limit of 25 pages.  If you are unable to stick to both of those constraints we will not judge your project. It is expected within those 25 pages you demonstrate your thinking and design process. Please do not just provide us with visuals and a glossy render. We accept submissions of digital design projects and have previously had finalists who have only offered a digital solution. Advice: you are onto a winner if you can contextualise your project and why it exists into one condensable sentence.

Please hit the apply button found on this very webpage. You will be directed to a google forms document that will ask you multiple questions combined with the capability to send us your final year project. The form has been designed to be pain-free and not take up too much of your time.

Our judges will be assessing your work in 4 distinct areas—all treated with the same level of importance. Viability (That is either commercial viability or viability of thinking) – originality of project – skill & execution – social need. It is important you apply to our awards with the same level of care and attention to what your application would be looking like for any design role you apply to. Please remove all personal information on the portfolio you provide. We do not want to see what you look like, where you studied, what gender you are, what your name is. We believe in fair representation and our role here is to remove any potential bias that can influence decision making. We just want to see the best work and let that be the star of the show.

The celebration for student awards winners will take place at Central St. Martins on July 8th 2026, 6pm until we call it a night. Our celebration will take place after an exhibition at Central Saint Martins of the top 10 student projects.  Tickets can be purchased here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/design-truth-student-awards-celebration-tickets-1986911193867?aff=oddtdtcreator

Judging concludes on June 24th. Soon after you will receive either a call or an email from Design Truth directly notifying you have been successful in making our final shortlist of 10. If you require any assistance with travel you need to let us know immediately. We will provide financial support if necessary. We have previously provided support to students who require interpreters and will do everything we can to facilitate you and your needs during your exhibition. You will also be provided with an InDesign template which you will be asked to complete and print off. This template will be on your respective stand which will contextualise your work. If you need support with printing, please liaise with the contact with Central Saint Martins. A member of the events team at CSM will be in touch to coordinate. If you are heading to New Designers the week before, please make CSM aware as this can be an opportunity to drop off your project and any material you want to bring. Our exhibition will be free to attend and last for one day only. During the evening, our award celebration will be attended by 300+ industry attendees and will be an amazing opportunity for you to showcase your talent.

Winners will receive their respective £1250 prize on July 9th. A contact at Sky and Studio Wood will be in touch directly to discuss the details of the paid internship and when they can facilitate your arrival. You can decline the opportunity and there is no guarantee of permanent employment beyond the paid internship period.