graduate guide to design

A graduate guide to design.

 With graduate employment at an all-time low, design student Kristina Chapleo talks to northern creatives to get their tips on breaking into the design industry.

As the impact of the recession continues to bite hard, graduates are finding it harder and harder to get a foot in the door of the design industry.

What do you need to succeed in this increasingly competitive environment? The right balance of skills alongside creativity, passion and enthusiasm is key. It’s not enough to be a whizz at Indesign or Photoshop; companies are looking for people that can think for themselves, and apply their own knowledge to the job in hand.

“You can teach a monkey to kern,” says Ian Anderson, founder of The Designers Republic, “but you need to understand what you are doing it for in the first place.” Designers that want to get on need to have “a real attention to detail and pride in what they do, and a willingness to get involved in all aspects.”

“You can teach a monkey to kern, but you need to understand what you are doing it for in the first place.”

New skills, new contacts
Being committed to developing skills beyond what you learnt at university is also critical in this ever-evolving industry. Having the motivation to learn new skills, either through reading or through work experience, is a must.

Leanda Ryan runs her own design company in Manchester. She recommends that designers “read lots and read widely”, for both inspiration and information, whilst “working hard and staying on top of their game.”

Web designer John Ossoway, of RAGINGTrifle Design, agrees. “Make sure you don’t purely rely on your course,” he offers, “You need to read around the subjects in your own time – University can’t give you all the information you need. You need to do your own work, keep thinking about it, set yourself goals and projects. And be prepared.”

Jane Astley, freelance web designer trading under the name Worped, believes that self development will pay dividends when trying to get work. “A broad range of skills shows a potential employer that you have a keen interest in other creative areas,” she says. “It shows that you can adapt to changing situations.”

Good communication and strong attention to detail are top of the list of desirable skills for budding designers, explains freelance graphic designer Graham Jones, who trades under the name GMAN, “You need to be able to talk about your work with the client, but also to negotiate, so personal skills are one of the main things [to develop].” Ian Anderson goes further, suggesting that it’s not just verbal communication that graduates need to be confident in: “They need to know how to write.”

It’s also important to recognise the value of networking – who you know is just as important as what you know. “You’ve got to go out and meet people,” says Jones. “Even if it’s just ringing up studios and asking them to look at your portfolio. It’s about making contact with people and letting them know that you’re about and that you’re hungry for work… eventually something will come up somewhere.”

John Ossoway also emphasises how important it is to get yourself plugged into networking. “You need to get out there and talk to people,” he says “Look at the amount of meet ups they have in Manchester, it’s just networking really. All these things exist to help you meet other people.”

Make yourself indispensable
And when you get that longed-for work placement or job, make sure you go the extra mile. “You’ve just got to really be indispensable,” believes Jones, describing how, at his first job, he would be waiting on the steps for the boss to arrive with the keys.

“Showing a potential employer that you’re prepared to go that extra mile with your application demonstrates your determination, creativity and interest in the company, all before you’ve even been invited for an interview,” adds Jane Astley.

Inevitably, things can go wrong as you go about your day-to-day work. Whilst learning from your mistakes is tough, it’s vital as you build a career in the industry.

“Be careful when it comes to accepting a freelance project,” advises Astley. “Make sure that you get the requirements and agree a price at the beginning, and avoid starting work until you are happy with both.”

Graham Jones agrees on the importance of contracts: “I got screwed over a few times with money, but thankfully it wasn’t a lot of money for the job. I was probably a bit naive and thought everybody was going to be trustworthy. When you’re working solo, most of the time is spent chasing people for money. Always get things in writing.”

Ian Anderson warns of the dangers of putting too much time into free pitches. In his experience, it’s often the case that more time and energy is lost in trying to win work than the contract is actually worth. “Learn as much as you can about the business side [of design]…copyright and IP,” he adds.

Once you start taking on work, says Leanda Ryan, freelance designers should keep a watchful eye on their workload. “Taking on too much work can be a mistake. You end up trying to run so many nice projects and not being able to say ‘no’. It definitely affects your health and the amount of time it takes you to do the work.”

Beating the recession
So how do our designers feel about the recession? Is it a threat or an opportunity for people starting their careers in the industry?

“I’ve got busier as a solo designer,” says Graham Jones. “I’ve actually ended up getting a lot more work from people who would have gone to bigger agencies and have had to go to smaller, independent people like myself. It’s just that you’re a cheaper option.”

John Ossoway is similarly positive about the opportunities for graduates. “I’ve heard of some companies closing down,” he says, “but there are still jobs out there. It depends on your mindset, spotting opportunities. It’s easy too just say ‘there is no work’.”

However, Ian Anderson offers a more cautionary take on the impacts of the recession. He describes how, with larger companies shedding designers, more and more people are going after the same work. “It all gets messy, and much more like a lottery,” he says, ”it’s never really the best designer that gets the job.”

Leanda Ryan echoes Anderson’s concerns about the lack of work, but sees opportunities for those willing to go out and find them. “I think there’s less jobs and less people employing,” she says. “Manchester’s been somewhat shielded [from the recession]. I think most people are still doing OK from it, in the digital sector certainly. But I know a few graduates who graduated last year and they focused mainly on print work and they’ve still not managed to get jobs.”

Despite the gloomy outlook, our interviewees all demonstrate an ability to turn bad situations into positives. Spotting the opportunities when they present themselves, continuing to be adaptable and responsive to changes as they happen, means that they’ve managed to carve themselves successful careers.

The message for design graduates is clear: keep developing your knowledge; build your communication skills; get networked; and (perhaps most importantly) make yourself indispensable.

Kristina Chapleo is currently studying Graphic Design at MMU

source: http://www.creativetimes.co.uk/articles/a-graduate-guide-to-design