When you blend highly motivated students, visionary guest lecturers, and a passionate, knowledgeable tutor team, you create an eco-system where impactful design thrives, talent blossoms, and the foundation for an exciting career in the industry is laid. Throughout the Diploma courses, both full-time and part-time graduates have immersed themselves in diverse design projects across residential, commercial, and hospitality sectors.

Collaboration is a cornerstone of the design industry, what we do and how we work at KLC, particularly via our Group Project, with this year’s client being the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability. An inspiring and humbling experience for all involved.

Each year, extra-curricular design competitions play a significant role in our programme. This year, a full-time Diploma student won first prize in the Jacaranda Rug Design Competition. The winning design is currently being manufactured, making it a fantastic portfolio addition and an inspiring story for future students. The opportunities to work on real designs with real clients is unique feature of all KLC courses.

With alumni who have made their mark in the industry returning to to lecture and lead design projects,  we've experienced an incredibly challenging, rewarding, and productive year. Our students now emerge as promising  designers, ready to make their mark on the industry.

This year’s graduates engaged in a range of projects exploring various aspects of design across multiple sectors, supporting them to develop their creative and technical skills. Combining knowledge built upon the previous years of their study, students were given opportunities to tailor the direction of their projects across commercial, hospitality and retail design, resulting into diverse portfolios.

Challenged to respond to the question ‘What is the future of Retail?’, design proposals ranged from a flagship site for an online clothing platform, to a store for a boutique dog clothing and accessory brand. In addition, students completed some ambitious staircase design and construction proposals, but their skills and abilities were challenged the most in the final project, which saw a culmination of all skills achieved across the BA programme.

Students proposed re-use strategies for a disused Chapel and a historic department store with culturally driven projects that included a staycation membership club, a restaurant and an arts club. Furthermore, several students engaged in projects that explored current social issues, such as the design of a women’s shelter and a circular economy retail and workshop space.

Professional practice also played a pivotal role in the course curriculum in preparing the students for the challenges of the industry and supporting their future careers. We are proud of the achievement and commitment shown to their studies and wish them all the best as they embark on their industry journey.