The annual exhibition celebrates the work of graduating students, as well as giving them the opportunity to connect with potential employers, industry leaders, and the wider community.
From Friday 30 May 2025 – Saturday 7 June 2025, students from a range of courses will exhibit their work on campus, as well as on the online GradEX portal.
Activities begin with the Creative Industries Degree Show which officially opens to the public following a special ceremony on Friday 30 May, and will remain open until the following weekend.
Other events throughout the week will showcase the Institute of Education, the Institute of Policing, Business, Computing, Engineering, Games, Esports and VFX.
This year’s show features special exhibits to mark 100 years of Stoke-on-Trent, including Fenton’s new ceremonial mace which was created by BA (Hons) Product Furniture and Ceramics students.
Madeleine Sturmey was one of the students involved in designing the mace and is also showcasing her own project ‘Cwtch’. It is a collection of hand-crafted furniture that celebrates sustainable materials, including reclaimed wood and waste sheep’s wool, which would ordinarily be thrown away.
Madeleine, 20, from Sandbach, explained: “I wanted to create a simply designed furniture piece and marry this with responsible design, using new sustainable materials. I became fascinated with sheep’s wool when researching sustainable upholstery options and this being an amazing renewable resource provided the best material for my collection.
“I have collaborated with two amazing companies, Woolcool and Truewool. who have provided me with two very different types of woollen material. Truewool is made from 100% Welsh mountain sheep wool, this is an incredibly soft, creamy coloured wool which provides total comfort. Woolcool provide wool packaging for the pharmaceutical and refrigeration industry, this is a coarse textured material and a mix of darker coloured wool.”
Also among the projects on show is short film ‘Peepo and The Worry Monster’ created by BA (Hons) Cartoon and Comic Arts student Theodore Nicol to spread awareness about childhood anxiety.
Inspired by Theodore’s own childhood experiences, the film features colourful handmade puppets and animations to help children understand their emotions.
The 24-year-old from Weston-super-Mare, said: “Anxiety is something that I went through as a child. The goal for this project was to create something that children could watch and relate to, something that made them feel a little bit more normal in times of uncertainty. Something I, and I'm sure a lot of other people, needed as a child. I'm excited for people to see it!”
BEng (Hons) Electrical and Electronic Engineering student Matthew Hudson has created a smart assistant to help golfers improve their game. The device accurately measures the distance to a golf hole – even when the hole is not within direct line-of-sight – and recommends which club to use.
The setup includes a golf flag-mounted unit and a handheld device, which uses advanced Ultra-Wideband (UWB) technology to achieve real-time, centimetre-level accuracy in any weather.
The 39-year-old from Biddulph said: “I play golf myself, so it seemed like an ideal topic to choose for my project. I chose to use radio waves because it is more reliable than other products on the market that use GPS or lasers and can be affected by trees on the green.
“I have tested it out and it worked well, so I’m looking forward to sharing it at GradEX!”
On-campus degree showcases
🎨 Creative Industries GradEX Degree Show: Friday 31 May 2025 – Saturday 7 June 2025
🎓 IOE and Me GradEX Degree Show: Tuesday 3 June 2025
⚙️ IOP GradEX Degree Show: Wednesday 4 June 2025
💼 Business, Computing and Engineering GradEX Degree Show: Thursday 5 June 2025
🎮 Games, Esports and VFX GradEX Degree Show: Friday 6 June 2025
For more information and opening times please visit the GradEX webpage.