Entries open for James Dyson Award for Problem Solvers

It’s open to current and recent design engineering students, and is run by the James Dyson Foundation, James Dyson’s charitable trust, as part of its mission to get young people excited about design engineering.

The James Dyson Award supports budding design engineers at the start of their careers. If you’re a current student or recent graduate with an idea that solves a problem, they want to hear about it. They’ll be equally impressed by rough-and-ready prototypes as they will by mass market-ready samples.

Prize Information

• The James Dyson Award is your chance to make a name for yourself as an inventor. As well as winning a significant cash prize, you could generate media exposure to kick-start your career, earn the esteem of your peers – and perhaps gain the confidence to launch your own business:
  • National winner: £5,000
  • International runners up: £5,000
  • Sustainability winner: £30,000
  • International winner: £30,000

Eligible Countries

• All entrants must have undertaken their studies in one of the following countries or regions: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Mainland China, Colombia, Hong Kong SAR, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Philippines, Poland, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Eligibility Criteria

• The James Dyson Award is open to current university students of engineering, product design and industrial design – and those who have graduated in these subjects in the last four years. They’ll ask to see official documentation that proves it.
• They’re looking for designers who think differently, to create products that work better.
• James Dyson will also look for entries that address a sustainability issue, or have been designed, sourced or manufactured sustainably.

Application Requirements

• They’d like you to tell them:
  • What your invention does
  • Where you got your inspiration
  • How it works
  • How you developed your design
  • What sets it apart
  • What the future holds for it
• This information is what they’ll present, word for word, in their Project Gallery. So treat it as seriously as you would a university assignment. As with any essay, you should make a plan, get feedback from others, and proofread it before submitting.
• You must submit the entry in English. If you wish, you can also submit a copy in one of several other languages.
• Images:
  • You can upload up to five images, of up to 3MB each, to support your entry, including one feature image. You might want to share early sketches, CAD renderings and initial prototypes, plus an image of the finished product (if you have one).
  • Make them high quality, and have a look at past entries for inspiration on how to frame your idea. Your feature image will be the one which appears in their project gallery and must be a minimum of 1440px x 810px. Ideally this image should show your final product design.
• Video:
  • Some award entrants include a video. These often help to explain an idea or project, but you won’t be marked down if you don’t have one. Videos should be less than 3 minutes long and show both the development process of the design and your prototype in action. You’ll need to upload your video to YouTube or Vimeo first.

For more information, visit The James Dyson Award.