OPTIONS SERIES
Options with graphic design
Your skills
Over the course of your degree you develop a good mix of subject specific and technical skills as well as transferable core skills. Consider these alongside other achievements, such as paid work, volunteering, family responsibilities, sport, membership of societies, leadership roles, etc. Think about how these can be used as evidence of your skills and personal attributes. Then you can start to market and sell who you really are, identify what you may be lacking and consider how to improve your profile. Traditional drawing and sketching abilities are necessary and any graphics course extends and hones these. You also learn to use a variety of computer packages such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign and QuarkXpress, and the skills involved in your chosen options, e.g., illustration, printing, and web design. You learn to be open to new inspirations and techniques. Most teaching takes place in tutorials and workshops rather than lectures and original work is produced in project groups, so you develop teamworking skills. On the other hand, you also have to come up with your own ideas and personal projects and much of your time is studio or computer based, which needs self-discipline, good time management and the ability to meet tight deadlines, all qualities that will be valuable no matter where you take your career. Your efforts are evaluated by both teachers and classmates: dealing with criticism and learning from it are important if your work is to move forward, and that will apply to all areas of your life and future work. Students often submit items to external exhibitions and competitions and many courses also offer the chance to focus on promoting yourself and your work in preparation for entering employment. A key part of this is building up a portfolio that is both commercial and imaginative, which will stand you in good stead when it comes to applying for jobs.
Job options
Bear in mind that it’s not just your degree discipline that determines your options. Get hold of the AGCAS Special Interest booklet 'Your Degree... What Next?' from your careers service. This looks more generally at the options for today’s graduates and offers informed advice on career planning. Or try ‘What jobs would suit me?’, an online career planning tool, at www.prospects.ac.uk/links/pplanner. You can choose between jobs that are degree-related or those that appeal because they use other interests or elements of your degree.
Jobs directly related to your degree
• Graphic designer - communicates visual messages and ideas, mainly in 2D, but sometimes in 3D. May work on a variety of paper-based documents or on the web and with other interactive media. Works to a client brief and needs to come up with ideas and results speedily, often juggling several different accounts or commissions. • Advertising art director - creates or directs the production of visual images to promote client products. Uses pictures, illustrations, lettering and interactive designs, plus film and TV to deliver the end result. Usually part of a two-strong team and collaborates with a copywriting partner who provides complementary style. • Medical illustrator - makes drawings and photographs of medical conditions and treatments for training and information purposes. Works with patients and medical staff and may be present during surgery. Usually works in a hospital, but may freelance for publishing companies. • Illustrator - creates drawings, sketches and artwork to communicate, stories, trends and ideas. Most work is freelance and is generated by book, newspaper and magazine publishers. Must be able to follow a brief with flair and a distinctive style.
Employment prospects
Every year, statistics are collected to show what HE students do immediately after graduation. These can be a useful guide but, in reality, with the data being collected within just six months of graduation, many graduates are travelling, waiting to start a course, paying off debts, getting work experience or still deciding what they want to do. For further information about some of the areas of employment commonly entered by graduates of any degree discipline, check out 'What Do Graduates Do?' and the AGCAS Special Interest booklet 'Your Degree... What Next?' Unlike certain other design degrees, a graphics qualification may give you the chance to go straight into permanent full-time work in graphics or related areas such as web design/development or illustration. However, these opportunities are highly competitive and are often not widely advertised and some employers want graduates to have a mix of skills across several design disciplines. Statistics show that over half of graphic design graduates find work in this area soon after leaving their course, though others take a year, or even longer, to find suitable employment. Only a lucky few graduates obtain jobs as a result of their final degree shows. A more common way of finding work is to do an unpaid placement(s) to build up experience, make contacts and add to your portfolio.
Jobs where your degree would be useful
• Multimedia specialist - combines graphic design, art and IT expertise to produce DVDs, videos, games, interactive websites. Needs imagination and technical skills to keep up with constantly evolving computer packages to create cutting-edge products. • Animator - uses sketches, pictures and drawings to create an illusion of moving images. Normally employed in the film and TV industry by independent production companies. Work is often contract based, not permanent. • Photographer - sets up and takes photographs, develops and manipulates images to create a striking or attractive result. Usually specialises in several areas e.g. advertising and fashion. Most work is freelance with the exception of high street and press photography. Although for many graduates the jobs listed here might not be their first, they are among the many realistic possibilities with your degree, provided you can demonstrate you have the attributes employers are looking for. It’s worth noting that many graduate vacancies don’t specify particular degree disciplines. To find out more about the above options and other jobs, see AGCAS Occupational Profiles and other sources of occupational information available in careers services. Occupational Profiles are also available on www.prospects.ac.uk/links/occupations.
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Where are the jobs?
In the private sector you can work with design consultancies, studios, advertising agencies, PR agencies and publishers. In the public sector, jobs exist in museums, local authorities, schools, colleges and hospitals. For more information, look into the following sectors: • Advertising and PR - creates positive images of organisations, individuals and products. It delivers imaginative solutions that generate sales or a growth of interest for the clients’ businesses. • Broadcast, film and interactive media - designs, produces and sells visual entertainment. It covers films, animation, TV programmes, videos, web and pod casts, DVDs and an ever growing range of interactive media. • Publishing - concerned with the evolution, design, production and marketing of books, magazines, newspapers and journals. Many publishers are moving into interactive products and on line works of fiction, non-fiction and information. Career management is an ongoing process, one that you’ll no doubt develop all your working life. For further information on all the above employment areas, visit www.prospects.ac.uk/links/sectorbs or ask to see the AGCAS Sector Briefings at your careers service.
Freelance opportunities are rarely given to new graduates, but this is a common way of working once you have a background in the industry.
What next?
This should have started you thinking about your future. Whatever stage you are at, your careers service will be able to help you. A huge number of resources, including most of those mentioned here, plus a wide range of other services, including individual careers guidance, employer presentations and workshops on topics such as successful applications and interview techniques, are likely to be on offer. A full list of useful resources plus case studies of graduates in this subject can also be found on www.prospects.ac.uk/links/options.
(c) Content copyright of or licensed to AGCAS (www.agcas.org.uk) Written by Gillian Sharp, AGCAS, October 2006. Edited by Carol Bebawi, AGCAS, October 2006. The work of writers and editors is gratefully acknowledged. To view the terms and conditions for the material provided in this publication, please see http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/disclaimer.
Further study
In 2006, six months after graduation, 10% of recent graphics graduates had gone into some form of further study. Many chose a Masters degree to develop their work, gain a more in-depth knowledge of a specialist topic, e.g. typography, or move into a related area such as multimedia. Some Masters allow them to collaborate, either formally or informally, with other creatives such as fine artists or film makers. Additionally, a Masters also gives the student additional time to hone their portfolios and build a bigger network of contacts in the industry. A part-time MA is a way of combining study with work experience. A Masters is also useful if you want to teach, particularly in higher education. Comparatively few graphics graduates go on to do a PhD and it will certainly not guarantee a job in the profession. Short, further education courses to learn or polish up different computer packages are another popular option. These trends show only what previous graduates in your subject did immediately upon graduating. Over the course of their career - the first few years in particular - many others will opt for some form of further study, either part-time or full-time. If further study interests you, start by taking a look at the AGCAS Special Interest booklet 'Postgraduate Study and Research' or the ‘Further study’ section of www.prospects.ac.uk. For a comprehensive list of courses, see 'Prospects Postgraduate Directory'. Refer too to the 'Prospects Postgraduate Funding Guide', the AGCAS Special Interest booklet 'Postgraduate Study and Research' and AGCAS Vocational Course Surveys for further details relating to finance and the application process.
Other options
Don’t forget there are alternatives to entering employment or postgraduate study, such as taking time out, volunteering or travelling. Longer term, you may want to consider starting your own business. Check out the AGCAS Special Interest booklets 'Beyond Nine to Five: Flexible Working', 'Self-employment' and 'Working Abroad', all available from your careers service. Your portfolio is key, as all job interviews will centre on it. Anything you can do to build up your book and keep it fresh and exciting - with commissions from friends, by voluntary work and placements, through temporary jobs - will enhance your prospects.
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