Posted: 21/08/2026

Bachelor of Media Design Sweep Awards across Two Design Competitions

MDS Lecturer Awarded at Type Here 2026

Type Here is an Aotearoa poster competition, focused on contemporary and expressive typography. This year’s theme was Wāwāhia Te Tahā (Break The Calabash), focusing on risk-taking and creative experimentation.

Miguel Jones, a lecturer for the Bachelor of Media Design, was the overall winner with his entry, ‘It is the People’. Inspired by the whakataukī “He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata,” this typographic piece weaves street signs from across Tāmaki Makaurau.

Miguel’s entry description: “Throughout history, it has been people who have driven change, especially in times when systems seemed to push against them. In questioning when New Zealand was truly “great,” we find answers not in the past, but in the continual act of Wāwahia te taha. It is the voices and kōrero of people and communities that push for change and progress amidst the chaos.”

But that wasn’t the only success MDS saw at Type Here. In addition to Miguel’s entry, four Year 2 students in the Bachelor of Media Design programme and one student from our Graduate Diploma of Creative Technologies were also nominated as finalists for their own submissions:

Don't Play with your Food by Cat Boesley (GDCT Design)

Let the Light In by Alyssa Bult (Year Two BMD)

Let it Flow by Jaedan Ravenswood (Year Two BMD)

Language by Ben Faulkner (Year Two BMD) (Judges Choice: Tana Mitchell)

Think Outside the Box by Daris Toguay (Year Two BMD) (Judges Choice: Chris Flack)

Lloyd Osborne, founder of Type Here, noted that student and professional entries were judged together, and that this year’s Convenors, Kann Hiini and Shabnam Shiwan, were impressed that two MDS student entries were chosen as Judge’s choices.

The exhibition is open from 21 August to 10 September during normal gallery hours at Auckland University of Technology’s Te Wai Ngutu Kākā Gallery.

Miguel Jones, Lecturer for the Bachelor of Media Design at Media Design School at Strayer wins the top prize at Auckland University of Technology's Type Here 2026 Poster Competition — Congratulations to Miguel for his outstanding win at Type Here 2026

MDS earns 19 Finalists at the DINZ Best Awards

Media Design School at Strayer is celebrating 19 finalists at the Designers Institute of New Zealand (DINZ) Best Awards 2026, spanning three programmes: 15 from the Bachelor of Media Design, 1 from the Graduate Diploma in Creative Technologies, and 3 from the Master of Design. The finalists' work is represented across Digital Design, Graphic Design, Industrial Design, Social Good, and Toitanga categories, reflecting the depth of talent and dedication from both students and lecturers

The Cost of a Question (BMD)

Category: Digital

Students: Aston Gregory

Stories of Separation (BMD)

Category: Digital

Students: Rory Ronald Maddren

Aside (BMD)

Category: Digital, Industrial Design

Students: Elijah Francis

Tether Multisensory Installation (BMD)

Category: Digital

Students: Yeongkeon Shin, Seoha Kim, Claudia Mitchell, Rachel Chang