Caring, creative and connected – meet the Plymouth Design Forum Student of the Year

Nakia Lucas-Culverwell wins a tailored internship programme and cash prize
Nakia Lucas Culverwell collects Plymouth Design Forum Student of the Year award
Dave Rowswell

A recent University of Plymouth graduate has won Plymouth Design Forum’s Student of the Year award, which recognises outstanding emerging talent in the creative sector.
Nakia Lucas-Culverwell, who has just graduated in graphic design, impressed the panel with her ‘deep research, creative experimentation and ability to communicate meaningful ideas with clarity and style’.
 
The competition invited final-year graphic design students from the University of Plymouth and Arts University Plymouth to share their final major projects for judging, which was whittled down to five talented finalists. These students were then invited to an in-person interview to discuss their work, process and creative ambitions.
Nakia’s projects saw her create a kinetic brand identity for a wildlife park, and a sustainable book-trading platform Bookloop – impressing the judges with her strategic thinking and dynamic visual storytelling.
Originally from Staffordshire, Nakia explains how her time at the University of Plymouth prepared her for her chosen career.
BookLoop winning design for Nakia Lucas-Culverwell
 

I am so happy to have been named PDF Student of the Year. I knew I wanted to do something involving making and creating visuals when I left school, and the Graphic Design course at the University of Plymouth has been amazing.

The lecturers here show overwhelming care for their subject and show that it’s not just a career, it’s a responsibility, and we need to respect the craft. 
The course was very personalised and gave us time to connect, we were like a family working in the studio side by side. 

The Plymouth Design Forum have been amazing too, ever since we were introduced to them at the start of our course.

Design can feel like a challenging industry sometimes, but PDF support you early on with building a career path alongside your studies and after graduating. I'd encourage current and future design students to attend PDF events as they offer incredible insights from industry professionals and are a great source of creative inspiration. Having just graduated, I know I’ve got good grounding to build my career and am looking forward to the opportunities in the internship that PDF have organised.
Nakia Lucas-Culverwell
Nakia Lucas-Culverwell at Graduation 2025 Nakia Lucas-Culverwell
Nakia Lucas-Culverwell at Graduation 2025

Nakia’s work stood out for its originality, craft and clarity of thought.

It was a powerful reflection of the creative energy coming out of Plymouth right now and marks her out as one of the city’s brightest new talents. 
Her achievement perfectly captures what the PDF Student of the Year Award is all about: recognising emerging talent and giving it the platform it deserves.
Darren Foley, Co-founder of the Plymouth Design Forum
 

More information

BookLoop winning design for Nakia Lucas-Culverwell

More about Nakia's work

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