uOttawa Software Engineering Student Association
Logo Design Process – Munir Aljawahari
Based in the heart of Canada, the Software Engineering Student Association (SESA) aims to enrich the student experience of students interested in the field of Software Engineering. As a design VP, I felt that the brand needed a fresh redesign to appeal to future students.
The goal of the redesign was to refresh the logo so that it had a more modern feel while retaining the simplicity and versatility of the logo.
Original Logo
Things I liked about the original logo:
- Had programming notations
- Simple color scheme
- Modern feel
Initial Sketches
I began by drawing programming symbols alongside different ways of writing the word "SESA". The aim was to identify ways I could incorporate programming symbols easily into the word "SESA".
I kept my workbook everywhere with me and often spent an unusual time staring into my drawings trying to find ways to put together the text with different symbols.
Vectorization
After gathering a collection of symbols and ways to write the word "SESA", I vectorized the best combinations in Illustrator. I love using illustrator when designing logos because you can easily make changes to an idea while retaining all your information. I approached this problem the same way that Aaron Draplin and how he approaches problems in logo designing.
When analyzing popular logos, I realized many company edit their fonts to give it a unique feel to their brand. I approached this logo with the same mindset, and decided to round the edges of all corners of the text to give it a more fluid and modern feel.
I loved the concept of illustrating the ">_" command with network lines, but felt it was too plain on its own. When playing with illustrator, I saw how the backslash symbol could fit in the square shape of the logo, and edited it to complement the rounded nature of the text.
Final Rendition
The last step was to test the final rendition on different mediums, dimensions, and colors to ensure its versatility. I decided to debut the logo on the official SESA Facebook page, alongside a new motion graphics cover that highlights the new logo.
