Our work » Case studies » Danish Technical Colleges
In Denmark, technical colleges provide 16-22 year-olds with a range of vocational education in subjects ranging from fashion to carpentry. But they are generally undervalued, especially by the schools from which they draw their new students. The national governing body of these institutions asked us to improve the colleges' own perception of their status, culture and identity, and to enhance their image in the eyes of the next generation of technical college students
The central function of technical colleges is to teach technical creativity, and the students consistently develop wonderful inventions and ideas - some playful, some practical - that combine technical ability and youthful imagination. We wanted to let the students' work speak for itself, by showcasing their creative skills in front of their peers, teachers and youngsters thinking of enrolling in a technical college
We developed a competition/awards show entitled Skab Dig, a Danish phrase meaning ‘Make something of yourself'. We pre-publicized the competition by distributing 25,000 Skab Dig dolls to technical colleges and schools, and developing a website to encourage user-generated content such as video clips showing how creativity and technical capability can turn great ideas into reality.
Student entrants were given a day to create their own spectacular Skab Dig projects. At the same time, we created an online voting system which enabled us to select 12 finalists. Finally we hosted the high profile Skab Dig Awards ceremony where the finalists competed by presenting their ideas and creations in front of a jury panel and an audience of students.