THE IAA BIG IDEA CHALLENGE
The IAA BIG IDEA Challenge gives students the opportunity to:
Work collaboratively in agency-style teams.
Develop a marketing solution for a real-world business challenge from a real-life Client Partner.
Build an integrated communications campaign across relevant channels and touchpoints.
Apply research, insights and strategic thinking to creative concept development.
Develop professional-standard campaign recommendations and presentations.
Present their thinking to and be evaluated by a judging panel comprising respected industry professionals and client Partner representatives.
Gain practical experience that helps bridge the gap between university study and a career in the marketing communications industry.
WELCOME TO THE IAA BIG IDEA 2026 CHALLENGE
IAA BIG IDEA is Australia’s leading national student competition providing undergraduate students with hands-on experience in developing an integrated marketing communications campaign for a real client.
Open to universities and tertiary education institutions offering advertising, marketing, communications and related programs, the competition gives students the opportunity to put their learning into practice while responding to a genuine industry brief.
Initiated in 2003, IAA BIG IDEA has attracted entries from institutions across Australia for more than two decades and has helped generations of emerging talent build their strategic, creative and presentation skills.
In 2026, Bupa joins IAA BIG IDEA as the Client Partner, giving participating students the opportunity to apply fresh thinking and creativity to a real-world business challenge from one of Australia’s leading health and care organisations.
We invite students and universities across Australia to take up the IAA BIG IDEA 2026 Challenge and show us their next BIG IDEA.
Presented in 2026 by
IAA BIG IDEA AWARD PROGRAM
Each year in Australia there are many ‘award’ programs within the advertising and broader marketing communications industry. The IAA BIG IDEA is different in two critical ways. Firstly, it is an undergraduate students' award competition, designed to foster the talents of the next generation of communication professionals, in line with the IAA’s on-going commitment to professional development. Secondly, the client is a "real-life" respected organisation that will truly appreciate the work produced by the student teams and offers the potential to take their efforts to market implementation.
IAA BIG IDEA clients have consistently acknowledged and praised the creativity and high quality of workable ideas they received from student teams since its inception in 2003.
Students are invited to devise a marketing solution for a 'real-life' client, working in agency-style teams to develop a fully integrated communications solution to a 'real-world' business challenge. In response to the client brief, the teams deliver an end-to-end plan from the research stage to the creative concept, right through to the final presentation of their ‘Big Idea’. The winning ‘Big Idea’, as well as all the other 'big Ideas' submitted by the students, are made available to the client with the potential for market implementation.
The IAA BIG IDEA Challenge is designed to challenge students to:
Work in agency-style teams
Produce a marketing solution to a 'real-world’ business challenge for a ‘real-life’ client
Develop integrated concepts across all mediums, from research and strategy development to creative conceptualisation and presentation standard
Be professionally evaluated by a judging panel of respected industry professionals as well as representatives of the client and the support partner organisations
WELCOME TO THE IAA BIG IDEA 2025 CHALLENGE
IAA BIG IDEA is a unique Australian national student competition that provides hands-on integrated marketing communications campaign development experience for undergraduate students at universities and tertiary education institutions which conduct advertising and marketing communication courses and programs. Initiated in 2003, the IAA BIG IDEA has attracted entries from right around Australia over the last 22 years. We invite you to take up the IAA BIG IDEA challenge and participate in the competition.
IAA BIG IDEA 2025 SUPPORT PARTNERS
Our sincere appreciation to this year's IAA BIG IDEA Competition partners for their leadership in supporting this IAA initiative to foster the professional development of the upcoming talent in the marketing communications industry and their trajectory into the practitioners of tomorrow:
Telstra as Client Partner and MultiConnexions as Planning Partner, have taken up this opportunity to support the student teams to sharpen their skills and talents in career development as practitioners in our dynamic industry.
Presented in 2025 by
Supported by
Client Partner
Planning Partner