Gain ‘work experience’ in a large design company run by students, staffed by students, answerable to a client (not to teachers). Work as a researcher-designer and/or stand for election for roles of company President or department leader for one of several technical departments designing structures or operations or humans/bio factors or systems and/or serve in the business department. Collaborate, using or developing skills from organiser to technical researcher; communicator to designer; ideator to evaluator. Your company will give a slideshow to the Client team (judges) before all stand to participate in a short Q&A.

The aim is to win a company contract or subcontract from the client, the Foundation Society, by covering as much of their Request for a Proposal as is possible in the time available. The most comprehensive proposal usually wins.

Reasons why you can do this: on Earth, you’ve always lived in a community as a consumer using structures, infrastructure, utilities, serving human needs and requiring IT, Communications, security and businesses. You’ll switch from consumer to designer more easily than you think, even if designing for an unfamiliar location with significant issues.

Your collaboration on a complex challenge will make great memories and let you have your own personal detail-rich stories to tell to family, friends, future employers and university recruiters. You’ll gain confidence borne of knowing that even complex tasks can be broken down into manageable steps. And, even in just 4 hours of design work, a group of 20 would produce a presentation backed by 80 hours of work: far greater than you’d ever do in a group of 2 or 4 at school.