The Metal Building Manufacturers Association is accepting entries for the MBMA 2026 Student Design Competition.
“This is the sixth year of our competition, which has continued to grow while introducing students across North America to the advantages of utilizing metal buildings in their designs,” says Jon-Paul (JP) Cardin, MBMA’s director of research and engineering and contest organizer.
This year’s contest asks architecture students to tackle the following challenge:
Your community has issued an RFP for a public library, which includes an approximately 40,000-sf building and outdoor community landscape spaces. You have been asked to develop an innovative design using a metal building system to meet the needs of the community.
But there’s more:
The library will include a main lobby, café, bookstore, public art niche, great reading hall, quiet reading room, reading nooks, collection and reference zones, children discovery library, story time room, craft room, play zone, family lounge, teen commons, art gallery and local history collection rooms, curation and preservation labs, innovative learning studios, gathering and performance areas, staff-focused offices and rooms, and more.
The site will invite community members in while featuring parking, a children’s story garden, outdoor reading/reflection room, art and sculpture walk, plus more to explore.
“We are excited about this year’s topic and anticipate even more submissions from a variety of schools and universities,” Cardin continued. “Public libraries provide a real-world design opportunity for the students, and metal building systems are an optimal solution due to their high degree of design flexibility.”
MBMA says success in the competition depends heavily on a student’s understanding of this form of construction and on how to be creative with metal buildings.
Submissions are due by January 11, 2027. Registration is free for full-time graduate and undergraduate students, but all entrants are required to have a faculty sponsor.
More than $30,000 in prizes will be awarded across the graduate and undergraduate divisions. Individual students or teams interested in this opportunity can register at mbmaeducation.org.
Awards will be presented in both graduate and undergraduate divisions, with prize money shared between students and faculty sponsors. Team awards will be divided equally among registered team members.
- First Place: Student $5,000 • Faculty $2,500
- Second Place: Student $3,000 • Faculty $1,500
- Third Place: Student $2,000 • Faculty $1,000
Contest winners will be announced in March 2027. Additionally, honorable mention awards may be given at the judges’ discretion.
Further details about design parameters, judging criteria, and submission requirements are available at mbmaeducation.org. Questions may be directed to JP Cardin at mbma@mbma.com.
Visit this page to learn more about the 2025 Student Design Competition Award Winners.
Founded in 1956, MBMA is an association for metal building manufacturers and suppliers to the metal building industry.
