Thoughtful 6

This is a collaboration worth talking about. Basically, it turns internships around. It's called the Thoughtful 6 and I found it showcased on the D&AD blog today.

A small, 3-person design shop in the UK called Thoughtful joined forces with graphic design educators at Stockport College. Instead of offering an internship or two on site at their office, Thoughtful established an on-campus program called the Thoughtful 6. The three principals went to Stockport College once a week for 3 months, working with a class of 30 graphic design students. After this initial period, they selected six students to join forces with the agency. Those six students worked on real agency projects and walked away with a condensed, authentic experience without ever leaving campus.

I would imagine placing design industry folks within a college environment taught quite a bit more to everyone involved (students, college administrators and agency folks) than a conventional internship. The school gets insight into real-world projects and how their curriculum may or may not be teaching the right skills for what's current in the industry. The agency folks get to see how a graphic design college is molding future recruits and then be able to provide essential feedback to make college programs better. And, most importantly, the students get a wonderful "internship" experience far beyond typical intern placements.