As the academic year comes to an end, the internships of the first-year students are also ending. This year group has been able to be a driving force in thinking and designing websites. Let’s discover some of these projects!
First-year students’ professional projects
You’re probably wondering what these first-year projects are all about. In a nutshell: the students find a client who needs a website, or a redesign of their current one. The benefit is mutual: the students get a real first experience, and the client gets a brand new website for free.
Finding out how to communicate, setting up a schedule, listing tasks, defining roles within the team… The group of students quickly starts to look like a digital agency. The goal is to achieve a functional website that meets the client’s expectations.
Once they have completed these projects, the students present them to their classmates and the pedagogical team. But this year, the COVID-19 epidemic forced the University to shut down. This has not been a problem for the courses as CAWEB is used to distance learning. As a result, the presentations have moved to online this year. The groups have therefore made videos to present the results of their work. And here are some of them.
A small selection of the latest projects
VIKA Agency
VIKA is a locally renowned language school located in the Czech Republic. However, its communication had not changed since 2010. The team therefore identified an interesting potential for modernization that would fit the professional project of the CAWEB Master’s degree. And the new website is now live !
The international aspect of the redesign was particularly enriching as French was not one of the working languages, to the benefit of English, Czech and German. Exchanges and negotiations were carried out exclusively in Czech as one of the team members is fluent in the language.
No role was defined at the beginning of the project: the objective was to allow everyone to discover each of the phases of creation and gradually find their place within the team. The experience was formative and proves the professionalizing aspect of the master.
The SPA of Haguenau
For the students in this group, the redesign of the SPA of Haguenau’s website. The SPA is the French society for the prevention of cruelty to animals. This turned out to be more than a university project: it was a commitment to the animal cause. Collaborating with a local actor was the opportunity to help and support a community association.
This enriching experience first taught the team to prospect around their relatives, friends and beyond to find a client. It also enabled them to consolidate the knowledge they acquired during the courses offered by the CAWEB Master’s degree. In addition, this redesign enhanced their autonomy and versatility, especially given the exceptional working conditions due to COVID-19.
These six months dedicated to this university project have been professionally instructive – a plus for their resume – and a genuine social adventure.
The Mother’s Life Supporter association
Mother’s Life Supporter is a non-profit organization that aims at improving the daily lives of single mothers facing difficult living situations in Japan, in areas where human services are insufficient. What motivated the students to choose this project was above all the association’s vision and the message it carries: to contribute to the well-being of mothers and children.
Although the organization already had a website at the time of the first contact, it was severely lacking in information. Moreover, it did not sufficiently highlight the activities it offers. The organization was aware that a redesign was necessary to improve its communication strategy. Therefore, they agreed to entrust this project to the CAWEB students.
To come up with this new website, the team had long discussions with the client to define the functionalities and elements that would allow it to be revitalized. Apart from a few specific requests such as the addition of a photo gallery, the students were given free rein for this redesign.
This project presented many challenges, and the amount of work to be done was significant. The site has no less than 5 languages, and a fully customized back-office interface was developed to allow the organization to modify and update the site without the need for web development knowledge. But the students’ motivation and the skills they had acquired during their first year of CAWEB allowed them to deliver a website that met the organization’s requirements.
The success of these projects reflects the potential of our students. Moreover, these testimonials prove that they enjoyed the experience. You can find the rest of the productions in the portfolio. What if it was your turn to embark on the CAWEB adventure?
Written by Léa Ferbos, CAWEB Master’s