Visual Communications
Choosing a Program
When you're looking for an education in Visual Communication, you can assume that any school you contact will be proud of its programs. You'll have to decide for yourself which program and which school is right for you. It's important to be comfortable with the size, location, and facilities. But, don't forget that it's the program, not the packaging of it, that will help you build the portfolio and industry knowledge you need to succeed.
Other factors that will affect the value of your degree include the school's reputation and presence in the design community, accreditation and faculty credentials, and faculty experience in the design business. Ask how local industry people are involved in designing the program and if they contribute time and expertise. Is there a student organization that has ties to the local design community? Don't forget to visit the campus and take plenty of time to look at the work that students are doing. Some students want to visit classrooms. If you do, remember that you may not find the day's project interesting because you don't know how it fits in the overall sequence of learning. But, if the school has a portfolio show coming up, attend that so you can see the level of graduates' work.
Visual Communications is a field that requires a wide variety of knowledge and skills. You're looking for a school that provides enough information and hands-on experiences to help you build that strong foundation. The program should offer a logical sequence of courses that develop art and design skills from simple projects to those with a complex, sophisticated level of problem solving. The general education courses must be substantial and varied. You will be working with all kinds of businesses, clients, and projects, so you need a broad understanding of the world and professional-level communication skills.
The design program should begin with some type of art sequence. In those courses, you'll learn the language and hand skills of art and design. You'll learn to think and design before you get too involved with computer programs. If you learn to analyze problems and design fresh solutions, your work will be truly competitive. If all your designs develop out of playing with software, anyone could potentially buy the software and come up with the same solutions. Graphic design is, after all, information design, whether you're using typography, images, or a combination of both to get your ideas across. And, drawing skills are still very important in the early development stages of a project.
The classroom experience should also include critiques. Critiques train you to analyze stages of your work and improve the sophistication of your solutions. You'll learn to verbalize your ideas, ask questions, listen to other opinions, and give constructive feedback to peers and, eventually, clients.
Critiques also get you used to talking about your work and the work of your colleagues in a professional, detached way. You're entering a field that is customer-service based. You'll be working in very team-oriented environments with other people. Those people may include your clients, other designers, an account team manager, an art director, support staff like production people and, probably even a vendor, such as your printer. Usually, you'll work though several stages of the design before a final solution is approved, and several people will have input into that approval. This means that communication skills are as important as design skills.
Computer skills are, of course, very basic to design work. Technical courses should be integrated into the design program as design tools, not as separate software training. Technical facilities should be up-to-date but not light years ahead of the local business community. Employers assume technical competency but interview for critical thinking skills. Portfolio samples that show you've come up with a great design using software competently are much more powerful than very technical samples showing lousy design solutions. No course can teach you everything about a software package. Plan on spending a lot of time learning software and practicing in the lab. The technical process should become second nature to you so it doesn't get in the way of your design process.
As you can see, graphic designers need a substantial period of preparation and training to be competitive in the industry. Most employers now are looking for a four-year degree, and won't interview candidates without a professional portfolio. They want to see effective use of typography and images. They love to find original solutions to common problems. Projects should reflect a variety of approaches to different areas of design, i.e., corporate branding and logo design, page layout and advertising, package and collateral design, and web or interactive design. The program you select should provide opportunities to design a variety of solutions for your portfolio. Your samples should demonstrate your ability to design for both print and electronic output.
Entry-level designers may work in corporate communications, publishing, advertising, training and development, public relations or marketing, and non-profit businesses. The design work might be for health care, education, media, transportation, arts, or any other business you might think of. The work environment could be freelance, or in a design studio, an ad agency, or an a department within another business. Salaries for entry-level designers average around $31,000 in the Cook County area (AIGA/Aquent Survey of Design Salaries 2002). Wherever you work, you'll use a broad range of skills on a variety of projects, usually all at the same time! I can't think of a more interesting, challenging and rewarding career in the creative fields.
Editorial provided by Susan Wrzesinski, Academic Director of Visual Communications at The Illinois Institute of Art - Chicago.
