Just when I thought it was hard enough for a design graduate to get a foothold into the industry, it just got harder.

“In an effort to find a new generation of British design talent, Philippe Starck, one of the world’s best known product designers, invites 12 hopefuls to a school of design [...] until one fortunate student wins the opportunity of a lifetime – to work alongside the master for six months”

If you missed the brilliant Design for Life on BBC 2 tonight it’s definitely worth catching on iPlayer. The series follows 12 product design graduates battling it out to impress Philippe Starck and ultimately win a sixth month placement at his agency in Paris. It’s going to be either unmissable TV, or another example of how ludicrously harsh design graduates get it. I’ll decide when I find out how much the winner is going to get “paid” on their six month placement. I bet the good ol’ BBC are paying expenses though.

I want to avoid getting into a rant about the cattle markets, slave labour and the “opportunities of [unpaid] experience” that plague the average design graduate…

…as a TV show however, it’s bloody brilliant! It’s basically the Apprentice but with a pretentious French guy. Starck is a pretty big name in the design world and he certainly knows it. His first task was all about finding out if the contestants, I mean designers, think the same as he does by buying 2 products following themes like eco/non-eco and male/female. An appropriate but fairly daunting task. I’d like to think the contes…er designers spent day upon day reading up on Starck’s attitude towards design (although they struggle to show it).

What I found interesting about this task was the lack of presentation ability. Almost all of the designers failed miserably at presenting their products. Perhaps the occasion got to them. I know I would have probably stuttered initially being eyed by such a legend like Starck. I bet the BBC editing didn’t help either but that can’t disguise such poor presentation. If you can’t express your ideas and thoughts vocally you’ll never make it as a designer. That’s the #1 on my self improvement list. Hopefully now they’re broken in they will get better.

My money is on Nebil Avas. He was the only designer in this episode who presented well and had confidence in his choices. He’s got an ego to rival Starck too but it’s not quite as charming nor hilariously French. In his intro he rattles on about how hard he works, so unsurprisingly in teaser for next weeks episode he sleeps in and rolls into work at 1pm ready to whip up a master piece. If he doesn’t cock it up for himself I can’t see any challengers. He will undoubtedly cock it up for himself.

I hope we get a design challenge next week. Then we can really see who has what it takes to go through the gruelling series of tasks for the ultimate prize as Sir Alan’s next apprentice with a six figure salary…oh wait that’s The Apprentice again.

I hope the winner enjoys their six month placement.

If you missed Design for Life watch it now.