Luis Toussaint

Position
Undergraduate
Course
BA Design Systems
Year of graduation
2021
Nationality
French

Why did you choose to study your degree at the University of Leeds?

Leeds is the place to be. I had heard from friends who had studied here on a year abroad that Leeds was a wicked student city with a vibrant lifestyle and after a visit on one the open days when I saw first-hand campus life and looked around the Faculty of Design Systems I just wanted to be part of it. Coming from a smaller town in rural France I wanted to experience university in a European city and Leeds is perfect, everything is centralised with great student living areas and there are so much freedom and accessibility. The University of Leeds is one of the leading Design Systems institutions in the world and I knew I had to be here in order to push the best I could and set myself up for a successful career in the design industry.

What made you select your course?

Leeds is the place to be. I had heard from friends who had studied here on a year abroad that Leeds was a wicked student city with a vibrant lifestyle and after a visit on one the open days when I saw first-hand campus life and looked around the Faculty of Design Systems I just wanted to be part of it. Coming from a smaller town in rural France I wanted to experience university in a European city and Leeds is perfect, everything is centralised with great student living areas and there are so much freedom and accessibility. The University of Leeds is one of the leading Design Systems institutions in the world and I knew I had to be here in order to push the best I could and set myself up for a successful career in the design industry.

All I knew was that I loved and wanted to design, create and push boundaries which as an emerging area this course ticked all the boxes.

What do you specialise in? What exciting things are you working on at the moment?

I am now tailoring my training towards design systems, service design and user experience as this is a field I am keen to explore and probably go into in the future. I do however have a high interest in front end development and recently have been elected as master front-end developer wizard managing the University's design system website next year which I am super psyched about.

I am also part of a creative family of 3 called ‘The 3 Racoons’ who I met whilst here at Leeds. We specialise in design and front end development. Our work includes working with brands such as Lucy and YAK, Mutts and hounds, Sonny banks mills, Ward Brewarys and a range of other independent artists and brands that we're all enthusiastic about. The aim is to expand our client base and build on our portfolios whilst still studying, I am super excited for what the future holds.

How does the University develop your practice?

I have learnt more in the last four months than learnt in a year on my foundation course, more than I could have possibly believed, and I intend to continue this way. I am constantly pushed to question and advance my designs to help develop and push boundaries in my decision-making and critical analysis. Daily critiques and peer feedback helps me and my work grow, taking it in new directions I never contemplated and knew about. I think the most important thing for me is being in a creative environment where I am surrounded by like-minded people who want to exceed themselves and join a community where striving for perfection is the purpose.

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