How do I become a Graphic Designer?
If a person wishes to become a graphic designer, an associate’s or bachelor’s degree is usually required. Most entry-level graphic design jobs require a bachelor’s degree, but some companies will accept an associate’s. Many universities, colleges, and technical schools offer programs in graphic design. Tuition prices vary, and the quality of the program will differ among schools. Typical course offerings in a four-year graphic design program include computerized design, commercial graphics, studio art, principles of design, web design, and printing techniques. A student may also be expected to take courses in writing, business, art history, psychology, foreign language, and other basic undergraduate classes. Associate degrees and certificate programs in graphic design allow a student to spend a shorter amount of time in school. An associate degree requires about two years worth of coursework while a certificate program may only require a few months. These kinds of graphic design progra
You do not need AutoCad or anything similar unless you are going to get into 3 dimensional design or product/industrial design. Nor is Photoshop the most frequently used software. Graphic design covers many disciplines, nearly all these disciplines are, to some degree, involved with combining text with image – one area you should work on is typography get (and read) Elements of Typographic Style by Robert Bringhurst (it can be daunting but the lessons learned here will serve throughout your career) and the Logo, Font and Lettering Bible by Leslie Cabarga (good grounding on creating logotypes), another area you could look at is the processes that follow design – printing or website creation these processes govern design to some extent in the professional arena. In short, graphic design is not about software (true, the software does make up a proportion of your tools) it is far more cerebral than that.
I wrote this article to give you a glimpse into what it takes to become a graphic designer, so you will know if you’ve got what it takes to become a graphic designer and how to go about becoming a graphic designer. To become a graphic designer you dont necessarily have to be artistic. If you are it will be an advantage, but you will need to have an interest in art and computers. You will also need to be a deadline driven person – a graphic designer’s life revolves around deadlines. Problem solving is also involved in graphic design, so if you enjoy problem solving and have the qualities above then you are halfway there. Where or how can I study to become a graphic designer? Well there are two options and it all depends on what you prefer. Firstly you can choose to teach yourself or secondly you can do a course or get a degree. If you are planning to teach yourself here is a list of books you might want to give a read, they all contain valuable information about graphic design and becom
Don’t worry about what you can’t afford right now. Start looking at graphic designs…It’s a big field. If there’s a bookstore near you, hang out in the graphics magazine section and look at what’s being done. You need to practice seeing a graphics world. Little by little it’ll come. When you find yourself studying cereal boxes, magazine covers, brochures, ads, logos and candy bar wrappers for the design and not for the product, you’ll know you’re there;-) In the meantime, if you want to get acquainted with vector graphics, download and play around with Inkscape. It costs a lot less than Illustrator – it’s free. http://www.inkscape.org As you get to know more about design, things will settle down for you. You’ll have a better idea about what you want to do and where you want to go with it.
The best thing to do is research the graphic design program that you want to apply to. Which colleges do you want to go to? Visit their web-sites and find out the requirements for application to their specific programs. Then begin to prepare a portfolio tailored to their needs. Most schools don’t expect you to be a graphic designer at the application point. You should build your portfolio with the strongest examples of fundamental arts like drawing (from observation), painting, photography and any graphic design you might have. again, the best thing to do is decide which programs (or schools) you might want to apply to and then work toward their application standard. Don’t be afraid to contact the school admissions counselor for advice. Remember, you are a potential customer bringer in thousands of dollars, they don’t want to push you away.
