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Having graduated this year with a degree in Communication Design from the University of Portsmouth I experienced a big transition from being a design student to a design professional. I felt that I should pass my experiences onto anyone else who is in or going to be in the same situation.

Firstly, I would suggest that having a degree in the field of design is definitely not an essential when it come to finding a job in the design profession. When I started applying for jobs I quickly learnt that a degree doesn’t count for much, an employer will usually assess you by the quality of your portfolio. A good example here is Ben, another Web Designer here at do1. He didn’t go to university but he is still a highly talented designer and an asset to the team.

Having said this, I still don’t regret going to university one bit. My course helped me to develop a strong appreciation and understanding about true graphic design. Any final outcome which I produced came after months of research into my chosen subject area. It made me realise that good design isn’t about simply making something ‘look nice’, but that it has to have a strong concept as its underlying foundation. I spent a lot of time experimenting with different typography and printing techniques such as the letterpress and screen-printing. This helped me to understand the history of graphic design and the expressive, powerful nature of presenting information through graphics.

Once I was approaching the end of my degree, I knew it was important to get some experience before applying for full time jobs. This in itself can be very difficult. Design agencies receive a huge number of applicants for internships. Employers know that having an intern within the company can be very time consuming, as initially, you may require a lot of their time when it comes to making sure that they are doing things correctly. This can be a big strain for small companies as often their time is very limited. I recommend being selective about who you approach. Make a list of the companies that you really like and who you think would suit your design style. When you come to apply, make yourself stand out from everyone else; include clever ways of showing your portfolio and develop self branded business cards, letterheads and a CV, which are presented in such a way that separates you from the norm. This will help to make any potential employer remember you when they have a vacancy.

If you are accepted for work experience then make yourself indispensable. This will make it very hard for the company to get rid of you when your placement comes to an end. Hit the ground running and try to sort things out for yourself so that you don’t become a burden. Make lots of tea, everyone loves a person who is happy to make the tea.

Employing a graduate can also be a big risk for employers. They usually have little or no industry experience and it can sometimes take a long time for graduates to make the transition from student to professional. Personally I believe that taking a year out of my degree between level 2 & 3 would have been a big benefit. Not only would this have increased my overall knowledge of the industry, it would have also made me a far more attractive proposition for potential employers.

However, I was lucky enough to be offered a job at do1 before I had actually completed my degree. As brilliant as this was, I must admit it did make the final stage of my degree challenging. You are left with the thought “do I really need to do this, after all I do already have a job”. Luckily I managed to ignore this thought and continue to complete my degree and achieve the result which I had been chasing for the last 3 years.

When I started at do1, the hardest thing for me was applying my design skills in a way that would meet client briefs. Creating design which adheres to corporate guidelines is a challenge, and sometimes a bitter pill to swallow. However, the beauty of do1 is that there is quite a lot of freedom to produce creative designs, where appropriate. An example of this is the initial concept that Ben produced for R J Winnicott. Although sometimes it can be difficult to judge how open minded the client will be to these experimental and creative designs.

For me, the best part of this industry is that no two days are the same. Every day I have a new task to complete. Having not worked at any other design firms i do not know what the normal working environment is. However, I can tell that here at do1 the atmosphere is brilliant. Working alongside talented co-workers really pushes you to continually improve in everything you do. Overall, I am pleased with the path I followed and would thoroughly recommend it to anyone else considering a future in design.

If you’re a skilled designer or developer, with or without a degree, why not apply to us on our jobs page.