Getting Into a Graphic Design Firm
So, you have finished your college education or are close to getting that Bachelor's Degree in graphic design completed, and you're looking to get your foot in the door at a good, stable graphic design firm. But, you don't know where to start. Getting into a graphic design firm can be difficult or easy, depending on your luck and the resources available to you.
The best way to get your foot in the door at a graphic design firm is through an internship program. Internship programs with local graphic design firms should be available through your college or university internship programs. If you are not sure if this assistance is available for graphic design firms in your area, ask your graphic design university or college department head. When all else fails, you can contact graphic design firms on your own to request interviews and information about possible internship programs.
When looking for an internship in a graphic design firm, you need to consider several things about yourself and what you are looking for in an internship at a graphic design firm. Are you willing to work without pay or with little pay? Many internship programs at graphic design firms do not pay their interns.
If you have a hard time finding an internship program in a graphic design firm, you can always check out graphic design departments in other types of companies, such as advertising agencies.
Using an internship is not the only way to get your foot in the door of graphic design firms. You can talk to your academic advisor or career counseling center within your college or university for help and options. If you have an instructor in a graphic design course that you have impressed, you might find that he or she has contacts with designers or management at local graphic design firms. Alternatively, you may be able to get involved in a professional association based on your credentials and references from your college or university academic advisor, department head, or instructors. Contacts in these professional associations can easily help you get your foot in the door of a graphic design firm.
Once you have your foot in the door, you have to impress the decision making or hiring managers within the graphic design firm. This requires showcasing your best work. If you are doing an internship at a graphic design firm, do your best work while you are there, and you might get a job offer. If you are going to an interview that you've gotten through contacts at a graphic design firm, make sure you come prepared with a professional graphic design resume and a graphic design portfolio that showcases your best work.
As more and more people become interested in graphic design as a career, it will become harder and harder to get into a good graphic design firm. However, with careful planning, networking, and the help of your college or university departments, getting into a graphic design firm should become a fluid transition from education to experience.
