My fascination and curiosity to learn about different cultural and educational settings motivated me to enrol for the student exchange programme at World University of Design (WUD), Haryana. This provided me with an opportunity to broaden my perspective and network with people from different cultures and nationalities. It also helped me adapt to the competitive and changing environment.
After doing some research and going through the websites of partner universities and student forums, Emily Carr University of Art + Design (ECUAD) in Vancouver, Canada, was the one I opted for, for the exchange programme.
I met the eligibility criteria and was nominated by WUD, after which I completed the online application that included writing a Statement of Intent and why I am probably the best option as an exchange student. Plus, I had to submit a portfolio with around 15 samples of my work to highlight my skills and talent; and a copy of my resume .
Myriad projects
My exchange turned out to be an incredible experience as the administrative staff and the faculty at ECUAD were extremely supportive. The courses and classes were interactive, based on theoretical and practical orientation of opportunities for research, trips, discussion and critiques. It was a great privilege to work under mentors such as Jon Hannan and Birthe Pointek who are renowned and highly esteemed in their field.
Some of the projects I work on at ECUAD are:
Zeitgeist project: The project was about co-designing a publication with the residents of Haro Park Centre in Vancouver, who are coping with dementia. This project is part of the Zeitgeist journal programme that the Health Design Lab at ECUAD has worked with Vancouver Coastal Health to bring to life.
The Zeitgeist programme is essentially a intergenerational storytelling between students and residents where stories of life and love are shared and visually translated into a book. Each content generation session was filled with many interesting and meaningful exchanges with the residents. We collected fragments of their stories that they were so happy to share.
Issue zero: Under the project, I had to design a fictional magazine which could focus on any mundane topic. I designed one that focused on scenes from daily life, as well as, the secret life of different creatures in an unusual and bizarre way and named it Look . The issue also featured strange beings interviewed about their daily life.
Studio photography: It was a very successful course where I learnt a lot about light, background, composition and visual narrative.
Through this exchange programme, I have gained so much knowledge which has changed me drastically. I have become independent, outgoing and confident. The experience also taught me that the world is a lot bigger than I could ever perceive.
Sambhavi Gupta is pursuing B.Des, Graphic Communication Design at World University of Design (WUD), Haryana.
