VIU students designed for success

 Vancouver Island University (VIU) Graphic Design students Faye McCoole and Josephine Duffy scooped up the 2009 Cady/Marshall Student Scholarships offered by the Society of Graphic Designers of Canada (GDC), Vancouver Island Chapter, in recognition of their talent and hard work.

Duffy is in her third year of a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design at VIU while McCoole will graduate with a Diploma in Applied Graphics this spring and proceed into the BA Major in Graphic Design this fall.

"I am not surprised by this win," said Karen Hodgson, chair of the VIU program. "Our Graphic Design degree is a demanding program with high standards, and our talented students have won many local, provincial and national awards over the years, often competing against students from design schools across BC and Canada.

"Both Faye and Josephine are hard-working individuals who have shown tremendous progress in the program so we are delighted that they have been rewarded with these scholarships," added Hodgson.

"I worked really hard for it," said Duffy. "I spent a long time writing a design rationale and a personal statement to go with my submission."

McCoole isn't new to the award circuit. She has also received a GDC Vancouver Island Rock Award for Graphic Design and was recently honoured at a ceremony in Victoria. She came to the program after five years doing design work in a mill and said her passion is designing books.

“There are so many talented people here – the students in my class and my instructors,” said McCoole. “I’m learning so much. You can’t help but be a sponge and soak it all up.”

"The new Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design degree allows students to get a deeper theoretical and practical understanding of good design and its benefits to our information society, and to explore creative experimentation in digital and print communication design," explained Hodgson. "So we hope to continue building on our previous successes."

Duffy said she enjoys the small class sizes and personal attention from instructors. "A number of the students are also returning students who have been working in the field, even up to seven years," said Duffy, who is one of the youngest in the Graphic Design degree program. She entered the Applied Graphics Diploma Program right after high school and received her diploma in 2008, but decided to come back and complete the degree. "I really love it and I would like to become more knowledgeable," she said.

For more information on the Graphic Design degree program at VIU visit www.viu.ca/calendar/FineArts. Seats are still available for the fall 2009 intake and applications are being accepted now in Admissions/Registration.