By Tomás Callanan Yeats College
DCG 2025 Exam Review: A Fair Paper with Some Challenging Elements
The 2025 Design and Communication Graphics (DCG) exam was broadly considered fair by students, though several core questions featured challenging aspects requiring higher-order thinking and precise spatial reasoning.
Section A – Short Questions
Students were presented with four short questions and asked to answer three. The topics included:
- Axonometric
- Conic Sections
- Oblique Plane
- Interpenetration
These familiar and well-practised areas offered students a comfortable start to the paper. While each question included some challenging elements, they remained accessible and allowed students to demonstrate core skills effectively.
Section B – Core Long Questions
- Intersecting Planes
- Perspective
- Orthographic with Rotation and Parabolic Geometry
The orthographic question tested 3D spatial awareness through rotation and parabola-related projection work, while the intersecting planes task challenged students with dihedral angles, true shape, and traces, demanding solid geometric understanding. The perspective question featured a well-known laundry kiosk, concluding with a typical (c) part asking students to determine the height of a specific point in the perspective drawing.
Overall, Section B was fair and well-aligned with expectations, rewarding students with a strong grasp of the fundamentals.
Section C – Optional Areas
The continuation of the one-question requirement in Section C allowed for a more focused approach. The questions were straightforward and fair, providing students who had consistently prepared their chosen option with a clear opportunity to perform well.
Overall Impression
The 2025 DCG paper was fair and balanced with challenging aspects, featuring accessible core topics and well-framed optional material. With a few components tested higher-order thinking and complex visualisation, the exam rewarded students who had engaged fully with the course and maintained broad preparation. Those who relied on selective study may have found certain parts more difficult, but overall, the
paper offered a solid and reasonable challenge.
