FALL 2026
Inspired by Design
The PAVE Student Visiionary Award
Recognizing one exceptional student whose innovative design thinking demonstrates the potential to shape the future of consumer environments.
The selected recipient will receive a $7,500 cash award, travel to the PAVE Gala in New York City, and national recognition from industry leaders.
Quick Facts
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Award: $7,500 USD + Travel and Recognition at the 2026 PAVE Gala in NYC
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Who: Full-time, undergraduate or graduate students studying design, architecture, or visual merchandising
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Where: Student must be studying within North America
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Deadline: October 21, 2026
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Time to apply: ~1-2 hours
The Award
The PAVE Student Visionary Award recognizes one exceptional student whose work reflects exceptional creativity, thoughtful design thinking, and the potential to influence the future of consumer environments.
The recipient will receive:
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$7,500 USD cash award
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An invitation to attend the 2026 PAVE Gala on December 10th in New York City to be recognized alongside industry leaders.
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$1,250 Travel Grant to cover airfare, hotel accommodations, and per diem to attend the PAVE Gala.*
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$1,250 awarded to the recipient's school, department, or educator to support travel to the Gala (to be determined by the school/department).
* Should expenses exceed the provided travel grant, reimbursements will be addressed on a case-by-case basis with receipts.
Eligibility Guidelines
To be eligible for the PAVE Student Visionary Award, applicants must:
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Be currently enrolled in a 2- to 4-year undergraduate or graduate program studying design, architecture, visual merchandising, or a similar program.
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Be interested in pursuing a career related to creating and designing consumer environments.
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Be enrolled in at least 12 credit hours, or the full-time equivalent required by their program.
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Be studying at an institution located within North America.
If you are unsure if you are eligible to participate, please contact us at info@paveglobal.org.
Submission Materials
To complete your application, you will need to submit the following:
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Four (4) 11" × 17" presentation boards in landscape (horizontal) PDF format.
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A current transcript* (official or unofficial) to verify your enrollment.
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A completed application form submitted through the PAVE Submittable portal.
To ensure a fair and unbiased review, PAVE uses a blind judging process. Your name, school, or any identifying information may not appear anywhere on your presentation boards.
* Transcripts are utilized by PAVE administration to confirm your eligibility to participate as a current student. Transcripts will not be visible to judges on the review panel.
Submission Process
Your submission should showcase one existing design project that demonstrates innovative thinking, thoughtful design solutions, and your individual contributions as a designer.
Follow the steps below to prepare your application.
Step 1: Select Your Project
Choose one existing design project that best represents your work and aligns with one or more of the following design themes:
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Human-centered Design
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Inclusive/Universal Design
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Cultural Awareness & DEI
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Contemporary/Reactive Design
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Sustainability & Adaptive Reuse
Important Note About Group Projects
Group projects are eligible. However, the PAVE Student Visionary Award is an individual award. If submitting collaborative work, you must clearly identify your individual contributions, demonstrate the significant role you played in the project, and appropriately credit your collaborators. Only one student may be recognized and receive the award for any submitted project.
If you're unsure whether your project aligns with one of these design themes, please contact us at info@paveglobal.org, and we'd be happy to provide guidance.
Step 2: Prepare Your Presentation Boards
Create four (4) 11" × 17" landscape (horizontal) presentation boards using the same project selected in Step 1.
Each board should include the following:
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Board 1: Design Thinking
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Project title
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Project imagery
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Project Inquiry: Describe your approach and research process. What informed your design thinking? (Examples: concept development, parti, evidence-based design, design theories, etc.)
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Board 2: Design Impact
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Project title
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Project imagery
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Project Inquiry: Explain which design theme(s) your project addresses and why this area of design is important to you.
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Board 3: Reflection
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Project title
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Project imagery
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Project Inquiry: What did you learn during the design process? Were there any unexpected discoveries or challenges?
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Board 4: Design Outcome
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Project title
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Project imagery
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Project Inquiry: Reflect on the success of your solution. How did your final design respond to the project's goals and the needs of the user?
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Submission Tip: Before uploading, flatten your PDF presentation boards. This helps reduce file size, speeds up uploads, and ensures your work displays properly for the review panel.
Step 3: Submit Your Project
Upload your presentation boards, transcript, and completed application form through PAVE's Submittable platform by Wednesday, October 21, 2026, before 11:59 PM ET / 8:59 PM PT.
Once your submission has been received, you'll receive a confirmation email from Submittable.
Before You Submit
Before submitting your project, make sure you can check off each item below:
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☐ I selected one existing design project.
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☐ My project aligns with one or more of the PAVE Student Visionary Award design themes.
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☐ I prepared four (4) 11" × 17" landscape (horizontal) presentation boards.
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☐ My presentation boards do not include my name, school, or other identifying information.
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☐ If submitting a group project, I clearly identified my individual contributions and credited my collaborators.
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☐ I have a current transcript (official or unofficial).
Application Deadline
Wednesday, October 21, 2026, before 11:59 pm Eastern/8:59 pm Pacific
Have a Question?
For the quickest answers, check the Frequently Asked Questions page. If your question is still unanswered, please contact us at info@paveglobal.org.
Meet Our Student Visionaries
Each year, the PAVE Student Visionary Award celebrates students whose work demonstrates exceptional creativity, thoughtful design thinking, and the potential to shape the future of consumer environments. Meet the students whose innovative work has earned them recognition as PAVE Student Visionaries.
