Three Hautlieu School Jersey DEC Level 3 students, Clara, Joao, and Jakub, recently completed a one week work experience placement with 9×5 Architects, where they were given the opportunity to work on a live community focused design brief.

Rather than observing from the sidelines, the students were set the same challenge as the practice itself. A local social housing provider had identified an underused area of land and commissioned ideas for a “teenage hangout”, a space designed with and for young people.

Recognising the value of authentic insight, 9×5 invited the students to respond to the brief as designers, placing them at the centre of the process.

Over the course of the week, the students worked through the full architectural design process. They began with research, exploring ideas through online sources and precedent studies, before analysing the site using Sketchup.

Initial concepts were developed through hand sketches, then refined using digital modelling tools, physical models and AI generated visualisations.

The experience culminated in a professional style presentation, where each student presented their design to the 9×5 team, explaining their ideas, decisions and approach with clarity and confidence.

This structured approach closely mirrors the DEC methodology, enabling students to transfer their classroom learning directly into practice.

“Working at 9×5 has helped me put the things I learnt in DEC into real life scenarios. It has improved my understanding of the design process and made my DEC work more realistic.”

Joao – DEC Level 3 Student

“Being able to work on a live project, from research and sketch ideas through to modelling and presenting a final concept, helped me apply the skills I’ve developed in DEC in a practical way. It also gave me more confidence in pursuing a future in engineering.”

Jacob – DEC Level 3 Student

Students were encouraged to think freely and design for their own age group, resulting in creative, relevant and thoughtful proposals.

Clara’s project demonstrated this particularly strongly, combining research, sketching, material studies and advanced use of SketchUp to produce a well resolved concept.

She also had the opportunity to visit a live construction site, gaining insight into how design ideas translate into built reality.

“I was given total creative freedom to create a teenage hangout area. I did this by conducting research for inspiration, making sketches of my initial ideas such as floor plans and elevations, creating material studies, and finally using SketchUp to a higher level than I ever had. I was also lucky enough to go on site where I got to see the true construction process from initial ideas to the actual construction going through. This week was very inspiring for me and truly solidified my enthusiasm for this type of work.”

Clara – DEC Level 3 Student

Following the placement, Clara has since secured a paid summer placement with property developer Dandara, having been introduced through 9×5 – a clear example of how meaningful industry engagement can open doors for young people.

Tom McAviney, Director at 9×5 Architects, emphasised the importance of giving students genuine responsibility:

“We gave DEC students a real, live brief and asked them to design something meaningful for their own age group. They worked through the full design process, from research to presentation, and produced work they can take forward and show to future employers.

Clare, Jakob and Joao are all basically at the level I was at when I was at the end of my first year at university (or even midway through second year!) in terms of discussing a wide range of topics quite confidently. It’s impressive seeing the technical range of topics they present, such as structural diagrams, planning and legal issues and how they impacted their design. And it’s been really quite heartening to hear sustainability talked about by everyone in their proposals.”

This placement highlights a key strength of the DEC programme.

Students arrive with a strong foundation in technical knowledge, digital skills and an understanding of industry processes. This allows them to contribute from day one, engaging with real projects and adding value to the workplace.

Experiences like this build confidence and help young people make informed decisions about their future pathways, whether through university, apprenticeships or direct entry into industry.

For employers, it demonstrates that DEC students are not just work experience candidates, they are emerging professionals, ready to engage, contribute and progress.