If you have any further questions regarding the award, competition and submission process please send us an email to iva@velux.com.

Do I have to pay to submit my project?

NO, participation in the International VELUX Award is free – but you need to be registered in order to participate.

Do I have to be a student for being allowed to participate?

YES, you must be signed up as a student (bachelor or master) in the study year 2021-22. PhD students are not allowed to participate - neither individually nor included in teams.

Can students of engineering or other disciplines participate?

YES, we welcome interdisciplinary teams, but there must be students of architecture included as well and the project must be backed by a named teacher from a named school of architecture.

Are PhD students allowed to participate?

NO - neither individually nor in teams.

Am I allowed to reuse an old project from my university studies or do I have to create a new project for the competition?

You are free to use or further elaborate a previous project, if you believe in it. We recommend, however, that you prepare a new project specifically for this competition.

Can I include a country name as part of the location of my project, or is that forbidden due to anonymity?

You may specify the location of your project.

What are the requirements to the project; should it be a specific kind of project, with a specific size?

The International VELUX Award is open for your personal ideas about daylight in architecture and following the two categories: “Daylight in buildings” or “Daylight investigations”. See all requirements in the award brief here

Can I participate with more than one project?

We recommend that you are putting all your resources in only one, elaborated project – in either of the two categories. You can be a member of two different teams – but you will only be allowed to submit one project as a team `captain´ (=our contact person).

Does the teacher have to be a professor or PhD student to back up a student project?

A named teacher at a named school of architecture is enough, not necessarily a professor or a PhD student.

Can a teacher back two student projects and is it possible to have two teachers backing the submitted project?

YES to both questions. Teachers may back several student projects, and one project may be supported by two or more teachers.

Can I use other characters than English characters?

NO, you have to write English letters or the system will not be able to recognise the letters.

Where can I find the competition rules?

The full competition rules are available in the International VELUX Award brief.

Is there a limit to the number of team members in a project?

NO, there are no limits in the number of team members, but maximum two team members will be invited to World Architecture Festival and the final jury meeting.

Can we have more than one teacher supporting our project?

YES, you can have one or more teachers. Teachers will not be invited to World Architecture Festival and the final jury meeting.

Do I need to have a teacher supporting my project?

YES, and the teacher’s name needs to be included in your project registration details before you submit your project.

Do all team members need to be students of architecture?

NO, we welcome interdisciplinary teams, but all team members must be registered students in the study year 2021-22.

Can team members be from different schools - or even from different countries or continents?

YES, teams can be formed across schools, countries and even continents BUT it is the school and country of the team captain (=our contact person) that defines the region of the project will be submitted to.

If we are participating as a team with different schools, can we have only one teacher from any of the schools?

YES, you can select one teacher from any of the schools.

Can I participate if I graduated during 2021-22?

YES, if you have graduated (finalised your master) within the study year 2021-22 you are allowed to participate (individually or in a team).

Can I be part of a team if I am a postgraduate?

If you are undertaking a masters degree, you can still participate. If you already graduated as an architect earlier than the study year 2021/2022 or are doing a PhD you cannot participate.

If I am in doubt of which project category I should select for my project – what should I do?

You should select the one that you believe is the right one based on the award brief. In the first jury meeting, the jury will be allowed to shift a project from one category to another if they believe that it will be reasonable and fair for your project idea and for the category.

If I want to work with a public open space - in a square or street – which category would that be?

Your project will then meet category B; daylight investigations.

The award brief says that the overall theme is about “daylight”; so is it possible to work with “sunlight”, “moonlight” or “starlight”?

YES, you can work with all aspects of natural light.

Can I work with direct sunlight, shading and sun protection and do research related to shading materials?

YES, that is within the scope of the award – and will meet category B, daylight investigations.

If I am working with public infrastructure or landscape space, which category would that be?

Your project will be in category B; daylight investigations.

If I am working with housing or a cultural center, which category would that be?

Your project will be in category A; daylight in buildings, if you are including considerations about the interiors and their daylight conditions.

Do I have to use VELUX products for a project in category A; daylight in buildings?

NO, the award is not restricted to the use of VELUX products. Innovative thinking and use of specific VELUX components as daylight providers will however be within the scope of the award and the jury will be allowed to give special prizes to the best projects.

Can we work with any kind of building type within the scope of the award and category A; daylight in buildings?

YES, you can work with daylight in buildings of all scales eg. from a modest shed to a school or a railway station as you like.

Can we work with a project (for example) in South America, even though we are from Europe?

YES, there are no limitations to where you choose your location.