The competition

The Real World Graduate of the Year competition rewards university students who have demonstrated practical flair and commitment, above and beyond their academic activities. It was sponsored by Edge, in partnership with Real World magazine, graduate headhunters Moloney Search, and the UK's largest private sector graduate recruiter, PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Learning by doing in universities

The competition was an opportunity to raise the status of learning by doing at universities, which are biased towards academic teaching and learning. Competitions like this also encourage employers to pay attention to the importance of non-academic credentials.