Our
Students

Where do you work?
I work for a graphic design studio in Nolita.
 

What is your role?
I am a junior designer for print and web. They give me portions of projects or entire projects to work on, and I report back to the senior designer.

Describe your typical day.
I get a creative brief (copy, parameters) and files containing the beginnings of or half-done projects e.g. dielines for packaging, wireframes for a website. At times I am given specific fonts and colors, other times I have creative control. Throughout the day, we are all in constant communicate with each other, asking for and providing feedback on the respective projects we are each working on. I work until any time between 5 PM or 8 PM, depending on how much work we get done, or how pressing our deadlines are.

What do you love about being a graphic designer?
I love the creative process and creating things with a purpose: I enjoy the reward of finding an effective solution to visually communicate a message.

When did you graduate from Shillington?
April 2011.

What were you doing before the course?
A marketing internship with an IT company.

Did you have any design experience before studying at Shillington?
I took a few design classes as a college undergrad.

Why did you decide on Shillington?
I was drawn to the idea of coming out of a 3-month program with a substantial portfolio. And while I had experience with Adobe Creative Suite, I wanted step-by-step instruction from square one, to make sure I was working with the programs as efficiently as possible. (As I've learned, I really wasn't doing so prior to the course.) Also, the realistic creative briefs and strict deadlines were exactly what I felt I would need to prepare myself for a job in the industry.

What was the most valuable thing you took away from your time here?
It's so hard to pick just one thing. A few that come to mind:

• Design principles - while I have learned them before, the practice of actually adhering to them did not happen until after I took this course.

• A realistic introduction to the way designers work in the industry, so there are as few surprises as possible.

• Keyboard shortcuts - I wasn't a fan of the quizzes at the time, but I would be working 10 times slower now if I wasn't expected to know them while at Shillington. (And I've already met a couple of people in the industry who don't know them near as well as I do, so I feel it gives me an edge!)

How did you find the environment, facilities and teaching?
I felt the environment at Shillington was a perfect blend of work and fun. 9-hour days and not a minute of it wasted, but at lunch or break time you have the option of blowing off steam on the ping pong table. I thought the balance between lecture/theory and hands-on was really beneficial.

How confident did you feel about entering the design industry after you graduated?
I felt even more confident than I thought I would when I began the course.

How long did it take you to secure a job?
I started working 10 days after graduating from Shillington.

What was the response like to your portfolio during interviews?
So far I have only showed my digital and online portfolios, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.

What's been the highlight of your design career so far?
I'm only on my third week, but so far my favorite project has been working on packaging for a high-end make-up line.

Where do you see yourself a year from now?
Hopefully working at a studio or in publishing.

Any advice for someone considering whether to take the leap into
graphic design?
One thing I was very stubborn about in the beginning was accepting that the process is just as important (if not more so) than the final product. Thumbnails, sketches, collecting visual references, being conscious of your surroundings, brainstorming, research - to do all that is the only way to do the best work possible. If you love the process, and/or are a typography nerd, and/or are a nerd in general, then I say take the leap!