According to Indeed in January 2023, in New York City, the average salary for junior graphic designers is $53,267. In London, according to Indeed in January 2023, the average salary for junior graphic designers is £22,442. Finally, according to Indeed in January 2023, in Australia the average salary for junior designers is $56,439. You’re hopefully raring to go now and thinking how long will it take for me to become a graphic designer? The time taken to become a graphic designer will change depending on which route you choose to take to get there and the amount of time and effort you put into it. You’ve had interviews for jobs before but a graphic design interview can be a little different. You may be asked to talk through some of the projects in your portfolio.
Graphic design projects often come with tight deadlines, so you need to be able to manage your time effectively. You should be able to prioritize tasks, work efficiently, and deliver high-quality designs within the given timeframe. Look on LinkedIn for 2nd and 3rd degree connections to people who work at those companies and ask for intros. If you don’t have a connection, there’s still a lot you can do to give yourself an edge. It simply means that you should find out in which design area you excel and brand yourself as the best one in that particular area.
Establish a Study Schedule
Learning graphic design is not hard, but it does require creative thinking, an aptitude towards art and design, and time and dedication. Graphic design requires learning the necessary tools, as well as understanding and applying the principles and theories of design. Follow the latter path, and you’ll be able to study and work with real tutors, in real-time, at home, wherever you are in the world. Lectures, demos and critiques are delivered by your teachers during set class times, and you’ll get real-world briefs to work on individually, in pairs or in groups to practice what you’ve learned.
Kickstart Your Graphic Design Career
Not only will you give back to the community, but you will also build connections that can help you as you move forward in your graphic design career. The first and most obvious step is to learn about graphic design theory and elements.
Pros are increasingly using these tools, and your work can still be outputted in Adobe formats. Furthermore, if you don’t want to pay anything at all, free tools Canva, Figma and Gravit Designer are all good places to get started when you’re first learning graphic design. That said, studying graphic design is not about passively absorbing knowledge. So at the same time as studying, you’ll need to constantly work on your own designs and improve your ability to fulfil professional design briefs. Collaborate with other designers on projects to learn new skills and build your portfolio.
You should be able to think outside the box and experiment with different styles and techniques. If you want to work for an agency and have some certainty over your annual salary, you should consider a degree program geared toward the graphic design industry. Even if you hold a degree in graphic design, getting some real-world experience through an internship or junior-level job is always recommended.
To get your head around the fundamentals of design thinking, it’s important to read some foundational books, and here are a few good ones to start with. Excellent delivery, clear and will certainly inspire and equip you to be better in the world of graphic design. It is always daunting to meet new people, but a lot of designers who attend events are more likely to make valuable connections and be exposed to new opportunities. As a designer, you need to learn to market yourself and show off your work.
This is just a taste of some of the books that you can read to help you on your journey to becoming a graphic designer. There’s also very technical books that can teach you all the processes and programs you need to know. Any graphic designer worth their salt should be able to put these into practice in each and every design they create. The Design Principles work together to create a design that is both visually appealing and properly structured. We can’t stress how important they are to master if you want to be a graphic designer. No matter where or how you choose to become a graphic designer, you won’t get far without these. These principles are alignment, repetition, contrast, hierarchy and balance—they’re crucial in creating any successful design.
Companies need graphic artists to help them stand apart in a crowd of similar products. Having a cohesive and well-designed visual identity allows businesses to build trust with their potential customers and communicate information to their target audiences clearly and effectively. Graphic designers accomplish this by creating art and visuals that are consistent with the company’s messaging and on-brand. As I have understood a graphic designer doesn’t restrict himself to a particular style. With so many styles to choose from to represent the concept, how does a graphic designer approach choosing one? As I have understood so far, Context, Brand and Audience are deciding factors.
In addition, they will need to stay up-to-date with design trends and technologies. While all of this can be learned, it will require hard work and a passion for the craft. In the old days, that would have meant spending three years at university, then moving to a big city and interning at a design agency. All of which would involve a lot of upheavals, long commutes, and cost an absolute fortune.
