Four male students holding framed certificates. One is wearing a green jumper and the others are wearing grey jumpers.
Four male students holding framed certificates. One is wearing a green jumper and the others are wearing grey jumpers.

UWL students take first prize in national contest

UWL students take first prize in national contest

A team of four students from the University of West London (UWL) have won first prize at the Chartered Institute of Building’s (CIOB) Bright Futures Challenge. The annual competition sees Built Environment students from British universities competing in regional heats before progressing to the final in London for a chance to secure top prizes.  

This year’s final, sponsored by VolkerFitzpatrick, an industry-leading engineering and construction company, saw teams take part in a problem-solving round which involved answering questions on construction management and presenting their findings to a panel of industry experts. The final, a quick-fire question and presentation round, saw a head-to-head between UWL and the Royal School of Military Engineering, with UWL winning first prize with the highest all-round score. 

Hailing the team’s success, Professor Amir Alani, Executive Dean of the School of Computing and Engineering, said:

At UWL, we are proud to be able to offer our students top opportunities that enable them to gain invaluable experience to get ahead in their careers. We were thrilled to see our talented students gaining national recognition and demonstrating why more and more top employers are choosing to recruit from ‘The Career University’.” 

The event ended with an awards ceremony and an opportunity for contestants to meet fellow Built Environment students and network with top professionals in the construction and engineering industries. 

The team representing UWL consisted of four second-year students: Lewis Cain and Alex March, (both completing a BSc (Hons) in Architectural Design Technology), Lewis Mayley (BSc (Hons) Building Surveying) and Eliass Arfal (BSc (Hons) Construction Project Management). Special recognition goes to Lewis Cain, who was recognised as the ‘highest commended outstanding student’ for impressing judges with his unequalled professionalism and industry know-how. Prizes included an internship and gift vouchers provided by Reef Group, the Apex project’s client.  

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