Design destiny

[rendered]

alright, here's the skinny:
i'm a *clears throat* 3rd year jr. college student with a passion for art and design. i'm majoring in graphic design and will have my a.s. degree by next year.
my question is, what do i do once i get it? i would really like to get out of central california and live along the coastline, but other than that, i really don't know what to do. wha kind of a job do i look for? do i seek further training? should i try to go for a higher degree and spend zillions more dollars on school?
can anyone out there with a bit of hindsight wisdom send some advice my way?
i can make pretty things on the computer and draw until my fingers bleed, but what do i do with it all?

[Marz]

Well... You take that "slip of paper" you are about to get...

And you send out resume's to alot of big time companies.. Depepdning on what you want to go for... Vid Game GRaphics.. Website Graphics.. Plain Graphics.. Artistry.. Whatever.. And then say you have a big "GA DEGREE"

Trust me.. They like seeing things like that.. And then work freelance til one comes along.Have FUn

[eyeinfinitude]

I'm kinda in the same situation with you, I'm graduating next month with my AS degree in Graphic Design, but after searching around here in southern California, I realized that a AS degree isn't gonna cut it so I plan on continuing my education for my BS. Most of the companies that I want to get in require atleast an BS degree, some of the other ones that only require an AS requires atleast 2 yrs working experience. I'm currently working at a print company, but I print isn't my thing, I like web and multimedia more.

[DDD]

One word "PORTFOLIO". A degree will get you in the door but a portfolio will make sure you dont get the door slammed on your foot. Do as much freelance work that you can handle. because BS degrees just mean you have the persistance to stay with school. But the portfolio is what separates you from the rest and believe me the first question will be what have you done. That is when you WOW them with the portfolio. Then see how fast they forget about your degree. Where I work like 60% of the folks here either have a AS or a incomplete BS or nothing at all. A degree is good but you will get beat out by some guys with a good portfolio.

[rendered]

who do i send resumes out to, though? design companies? do i look for little ads in the paper? do i start offering my services to people who i think are in need of my designs? i don't want to come off as offensive ;)

or do i just need to get over it and go gung-ho? :pirate:

*sigh*

[rendered]

what do i include in a portfolio? what do the best of the best do? what are portfoilo no-nos?

*so may questions* :q:

[eyeinfinitude]

You need to look for the jobs, they don't come to you. I've been browsing in newspapers and online and there are a lot of openings out there, but expect to hear the things I've said above. I have a pretty decent portfolio and some places didn't even bother looking at it since I'm barely gonna have my AS degree. The one company that did hire me after reviewing my portfolio didn't bother to ask if I had a degree or not so 3d-iva has a point too.

So the point is, set up your portfolio, make sure it's top notch and go out and be ruthless, look for the job.

[senocular]

:whips out a lengthy prepared response:

"ANY JOB"

the end


Of the masses of Art Majors which Ive known throughout my 5 years of college and have graduated with, only 3 (yes 3) have gotten jobs post-graduation. Myself, a friend whos working for the government and another friend whos now an interpreter at a hospital. So 2 of those 3 jobs are actually art related, the other is not. Another friend, who graduated a year before me, has been looking for 2 years with nothing, having sent out literally hundreds of applications - still with no job. Hes becoming bounty hunter (yeah, a bounty hunter).

Now things maybe different in your area, but here its take what you can get. So my advise, if applicable, is to find what you can, take it, and look for something better in the meantime. 'Better' being something which relates to what youve learned/know and what you love. Here, there isnt much room for being picky.

my 2c.

[rendered]

i feel the need to get into the biz now, but i'm at school from 10am to 6pm mon-thurs so it's kind of difficult. my only source of income is my weekend job at the mall. :*(

should i wait until i'm out of school to really look into it all, or should i do it now, knowing i have a very limited time avaliable?

[eyeinfinitude]

Senocular is absolutely right, you're gonna be fresh out of school so don't be picky about jobs, just get your foot in the door somewhere and work your way up. I'm happy where I'm working now, but I would be more happy if I was working at 2advanced which I will attempt to apply sometime this year.

As for your portfolio, since you're into graphic design, I say you throw in some print samples (ie. brochure, stationaries...etc) I have a few print pieces in mine, some magazine layouts and covers, some photo editing pieces, some packaging designs.

The important thing is to have your best work in your portfolio but don't overflow it at the same time with junk.

I have about 8-10 pieces of work in my hardcopy portfolio and it was enough.

[RenaissanceGirl]

Read this: Tips for Aspiring Web Designers (http://www.verybigdesign.com/verybigblog/archives/week_2002_03_17.shtml#000123).

Everyone has been giving some great advice above... especially the portfolio. At this point - you should already have a portfolio... if not you better get going! In my experience, having personal projects on the site helped a ton (especially if you can't find work right now). Get involved and meet a lot of people. Networking is the best way to land a great job.

[rendered]

thank you all so much :love:

[Marz]

It doesn't matter how you do it... Just make sure you do it...

I'm still trying to get into college (20 years old and struggling)....

:(

[=VALOR=]

3d-iva and Senocular are absolutely right.

Get ANY job, to make your PORTOFOLIO bigger.

The uni degree is just a piece of paper which says "I am competent". Your portfolio says "This is what I really CAN do", and companies will go for the guy with the proven skills.

=V=

[rendered]

ok, so what do i put in the portfolio? what do employers want to see? can any one send me a link to any kind of photos or scans of nice portfolios? i'd like to see others' ideas and kinda' get inspired for my own. i've got plenty of content for one, i think, i'm just not too sure what to use and what not to.

[morse]

Go to Ren's website, go to EG's website (although he doesnt have a ton up right now)

[RenaissanceGirl]

Originally posted by rendered
ok, so what do i put in the portfolio? what do employers want to see? can any one send me a link to any kind of photos or scans of nice portfolios? i'd like to see others' ideas and kinda' get inspired for my own. i've got plenty of content for one, i think, i'm just not too sure what to use and what not to.

It depends on what kind of job you are applying for. If you are going for a web design job... it's kind of ironic if you don't already have a site. You can look at mine to see how I did it (http://www.pixelsensei.com/cgi-bin/dl/). Rev (http://www.aulman.com/) and Elec (http://www.electrongeek.net/) have nice ones too. Here is a list of my favorites:

http://www.andylim.com/
http://www.yobotica.com/portfolio/
http://www.clairetown.com/

[RenaissanceGirl]

By the way, I also bring hard copies of any print work I did into interviews. You can find some great tips on creating your portfolio here: A few things that I found helpful (getting a job) (http://forums.macnn.com/showthread.php?threadid=142713)

[senocular]

and a website is important for this kind of work; its something I know my employer puts into consideration as it reflects personal creativity and design capability - or just capability in general. Having that, and showing you know what your doing with that, and a good portfolio will help you get a decent job. Experience is a huge factor too, so thats something to think about, especially in terms of internships etc.

[=VALOR=]

Hey RenaissanceGirl, your site gives this error btw:



Microsoft OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers error '80004005'

[Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver]Cannot generate SSPI context

/helper.asp, line 556


=V=

[Marz]

Well.. You guys ahve so much help for Graphic Designers.. What about us lonely programmers...?

[RenaissanceGirl]

Weird... I don't know what's up with that. You can still access it at http://www.pixelsensei.com/cgi-bin/dl/

[RenaissanceGirl]

Originally posted by playamarz
Well.. You guys ahve so much help for Graphic Designers.. What about us lonely programmers...?

Actually these days - I'm seeing a merging of web design and programming. If this trend continues, you might have to pick up some design skills and these tips would work out for you too ;)

[DDD]

I was lucky I worked my way up. I started out as a video game tester now I am a developer plus freelancer. I live in the technology mecca and it is ruthless out here so take what you can get. Remember you are selling yourself. I am going to give this little tidbit out to everyone. Develop a digital business card. I have made myself some cds, flash presentation put a nice label on it. And I mail that to clients, maybe you could do the same with a job. It really made the difference for me. Do something to elevate yourself above others.

[Marz]

I know everything from C++ Programming for DirectX to PHP, HTML DHTML JavaScript ASP and all that stuff....

But.. What does Designing and Graphic Arts have todo with Programming?

That's my dilemna.. I used to be very good at designing... Graphics and everything.. Freehand drawing and all that good stuff.. But it's slipped lately.. :(

[RenaissanceGirl]

Originally posted by playamarz
But.. What does Designing and Graphic Arts have todo with Programming?

I don't know... but I think someone out there decided to make us ("internet folks") do more work and in some cases, less pay.

[DDD]

If you know like ASP and Coldfusion or some other web language then you really boost your stock. Since the web is still one of the biggest growing professions. Alot of legacy systems are going to web. Now people want Cool lookin Smart websites. If you can do both you save them from having to hire 2 folks plus boost your pay and value. I myself and pretty good with ASP Coldfusion and some javascript. On top of my design knowledge PS 7 FW 3DS SV3........makes my company very happy.

[RenaissanceGirl]

Originally posted by 3d-iva
If you know like ASP and Coldfusion or some other web language then you really boost your stock. Since the web is still one of the biggest growing professions. Alot of legacy systems are going to web. Now people want Cool lookin Smart websites. If you can do both you save them from having to hire 2 folks plus boost your pay and value. I myself and pretty good with ASP Coldfusion and some javascript. On top of my design knowledge PS 7 FW 3DS SV3........makes my company very happy.

That's what I'm saying. Most companies nowadays don't just look for "programmers" or "web designers" like they used to... they require you to have a solid grasp of both.