How did everyone find their first job in graphic design out of school?

I applied for a job at a copy shop. Nothing graphics related, had to copy old ladies bibles and photo models portis all night long. But they had a graphics department, which employed the copy shop's son, who never showed up on time for the job, so I had a chance to jump in for him. This was my half ass first graphic job. :)

Related fun video for BBH London Recruit.

Copy shops seem to be a popular place to start, and in fact might be what looks most promising for me too at the moment. I'm currently looking for my first real job, and it's not easy. Everywhere I go, they tell me: "We are looking for someone more experienced". Well where am I supposed to get that experience then? Just have to be patient and keep the faith up I guess :)

After graduating design school, I did an internship. Internships are great ways to learn the trade and see what it's really like - which is usually drastically different and more fast-paced than anything you saw in school.

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I moved to Minneapolis/St Paul where I knew I'd be able to find a job in one of the largest printing capitals in the US. And lo-and-behold a month after moving there with no place to live and no job, I found a great job at the University of Minnesota for a national non-profit organization there.

I think in regard to the comments employers always give about "we're looking for someone with more experience" ... I'd be likely to ask them what kind of experience they're looking for, and then, if that is a place I'd like to work, I'd go out and get that experience. Freelancing is a great way to do that. Just doing work on your own private projects is a great way to do that. Just bugging the hell out of the potential employers is a great way to keep their ears.

The squeaky wheel gets the grease.

It took me a while to find a job as a designer for the same reason -- no working experience. I did a handful of freelance jobs for friends and family to have some actual work for my portfolio.
I finally landed a job as an entry-level graphic designer in the advertising division of a newspaper -- a great place to learn the ropes and work under deadlines, IMHO. I had to give my resume to someone my parents knew from their church who also worked there, as the HR office was designed to filter out candidates rather than give someone like me a break. Don't underestimate the power of networking (it IS who you know, at least to get your foot in the door) and don't be afraid to do anything and everything to 'pay your dues', so to speak. Doing the tedious, grunt work that other people complained about taught me how to be both more consistent and efficient. Cheers,

I had to do an internship to graduate from my college program. My internship ended up hiring me. This was good, untill two months later they decided to disolve the company into 100% freelance only, so everyone got laid off including the owners and I was thrust into the freelancing world where I did well for 8 months. I went on about 20 interviews in that time and ended up getting 4 offers in January/February, when I finally got a new full time job. I searched using coroflot, aiga, creativehotlist.com. I used friends and connections, and my web portfolio was an absolute must. During the 7 months I didn't get any offers, I was on unemployment and living in Boston, and refused to give in and get a job I didn't want until it was absolutely necessary.

I got my first graphic design job through doing work with an agency; being successful at those short term gigs got me the chance to work for a larger company and I was off and running. You have to get over the first obstacle which is 'ya gotta have experience to get experience' catch-22.

I recommend you join a graphic design organization in your area (AIGA, Graphic Artists Guild), or even post an ad on craigslist (or whatever bulletin board is pertinent to your area) so you can network with other designers. Oftentimes you can get your best work referrals this way.

Also, you can get production jobs at commercial printers or through agencies because these are jobs that more experienced designers shy away from but they will give you very valuable experience.

Do freelance work outside of these experiences as well. Any work you manage to get on your own will make you a more valuable new hire in the future; just be sure to not mention 'freelance' to a potential employer. I usually say 'contract' or 'temp' work. Lets them know that you put the employer's work first, not your own.

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Powerpoint is not a design application

can't emphasize that enough. while you're *in* school, find an internship. not only does it give you some of that real world experience that employers are looking for, it can also get you references as well as people to give you leads to other jobs.

beyond that, a good internship will give you perspective for the things you're learning in school. too many design/art students graduate w/o any appreciation for typography. and in graphic design, there is rarely ever a job that doesn't involve type. yet i see portfolios from seniors or recent graduates with horrible typography. or sloppy craftsmanship. and by craft, i don't just mean how well did you do the handwork, but basic things like objects not aligned properly, poor typography (even the simple things, like double spaces after periods, double dashes instead of em/en dashes), inconsistencies.

couple of pieces of advice for getting in the door for your first job.

first: information interviews. really important, can't beat them for great advice and potential introductions. call up an art director you respect and ask them for an information interview. be prepared, treat it like a real interview, and ask for advice on your portfolio and presentation when you're done. then ask if they know of any studios/companies where your skills and goals might be a good fit. and if they have suggestions, ask for names and if you can use their name when you call on those companies. and who knows, if they have a job opening down the line, maybe they'll remember you. or if they need freelance help some time, they may call on you. you can even do information interviews while you're in school. i think it's particularly helpful to do as a senior, especially when you're nearing the end of that "portfolio" class most schools have and you want to get some reaction to your portfolio.

random portfolio advice: it's always nice to have sketches, comps, etc for at least one project. even if you just keep it in an envelope tucked in the back of your portfolio. that way when an interviewer asks you about your "process," you have something to show them. show them how you developed the concept from beginning to final concept. talk about your problem solving along the way.

second: network network network. join aiga or art director's club (or both). go to events and meet people. volunteer to help with events. two great benefits of volunteering: you get in free and you get to meet influential people in your design community. and those people remember that you were out helping the design community. they're great resources for informational interviews. i absolutely hate networking, i'm not great at meeting new people. but if you involve yourself, eventually other will introduce people to you and you won't have to go up and make cold introductions of yourself. and opportunities will happen if you make yourself available. and you don't have to wait until you graduate to do this. start meeting people and being involved in the community as soon as you're in school. the sooner you start, the better prepared you'll be when you graduate.

i've gotten two jobs and countless opportunities for freelance work from doing both of these things. i've gotten to know some national figures in design from working on AIGA programs.

dont' waste your time emailing or cold calling people. go physically knock on doors and say "hey, i'm looking for work". I studied in architecture, and my first job was by knocking on doors. I used to take the bus past a house i loved, so i knocked on their door, asked who the architect was, found out it was just down the street, went there with portfolio in hand, asked to see the HR people (which were the 2 owners) They were in a meeting, so i sat in the waiting room for over an hour. They came out, saw i was still there, had a quick interview where we basically looked at one anothers portfolios and next thing you knew i was working the next morning.

mind you, i had already been to a few firms. They all said "ideally we want someone with more experience" most however tacked on something along the lines of "but we like your initiative of coming out to find us and see us"

the line "we're looking for more experience" is a great one for them to bail out on. It normally means "we're keeping an eye out for something different". If they don't have enough work, they're usually honest about that.

Just remember, be wise with your time, the more you fiddle around trying to find a job, the less your making. don't give up, and don't give in to a low ball offer either.

Best of luck!

P.S. Since then, i've worked at 4 firms, 2 of them by knocking on doors cause i moved cities and knew nobody! so it's not just for first time jobs! :)

Or at least a better portfolio than others applying for the job.

My first job was for an outdoor sports retailer as an in-house designer. They didn't need overly high end design, but they still needed to see that I had a good understanding of form, color, etc.

Also, a good understanding of who it is you are interviewing with... Dressed in outdoor/business casual for the interview, I fit in more than the the others who came in suits.

~ spigotdesign.com

Question about portfolio, did you guys go horizontal or vertical?

Answered an ad for a graphic film proofer at a pre-press shop, 2nd shift. Spent all night doing match prints, some with powdered PMS. Was still going to school during the day at a community college. But I learned more from the scanner and mac operators and really got to learn a lot in Photoshop and Quark. The shop also had a couple of press. I was able to build a portfolio and a vast knowledge base on printing. I actually worked with a guy that started his career in printing as a teenager cutting "pigs" on a band saw, the lead that was used to make text in the old letterpresses. Yeah, he was old.

There is some really, really good advice in this thread.

This is going to be very print-related, so if you're thinking of web/interactive design, you might want to skip this one;)

I'll add that several of the people I graduated with found jobs relatively quickly doing pre-press work at commercial printers. This is often very tedious and frustrating work, but it can really put you into contact with a lot of design firms/departments in your local area.

But what really shines is gaining a knowledge of how printing really works. You get to see the problem areas and what it takes to fix them... then as you move up to more creative roles, you'll know better how to craft your files so they are printable with minimal hassle. Once an employer sees that your stuff runs more smoothly, you'll gain some real respect and be less disposable to your employers.

i got my first job through competition. i submitted my work and won the grand prize, then got contacted for the very first job.

Networking.

After a year or two of applying for uhh non-paid internships (I was incredibly desperate), I got a job at my mom's work as an intern in the web design department. I did get paid very well though, surprisingly. It only lasted for the summer though.

After another year and a half of applying, interviewing, being "the second choice"-- I got a job. My former college instructor worked here at some point (he was one of my references)-- I didn't even know it! He gave me an excellent recommendation and the rest is history.

Please note how long it took to get each of said jobs: about 2 years each. There are tons of people getting a graphics degree. I shake my head when I hear people getting Associates degrees in this field-- I had a BA and still it took me that long. An AS? Yeah, that would probably be incredibly hard. No graphics degree at all? I'd say you better have a dang good portfolio. You'll be lucky if they even interview you. I doubt anyone will. Just being brutally honest.

My first job was through an internship that I found out about through networking. I've had two via Monster.com and the rest from networking. The jobs I found on Monster each turned out to be a poor fit and I left within a few months. In my experience, the best jobs resulted from my network contacts. I feel it is due to my contacts knowing my work and my personality and directing me to jobs that were the best fit.

I had two of them—one while in college, and one right before and right after I graduated.

I always heard from visiting designers, if you don't have a job in the field, get an internship. Yes, it's typically without pay in our field, but nothing will get you exposure and experience like an internship. And definitely show up as though it's a paying job. That is key!

I agree with the above comments on typography. That's when I can typically tell an amateur "designer" (and I use this term loosely here) from a real one. Typography!!!

When I was in design school, we were required to take history of graphic design—this class taught us the components as well as the history of typography, not just design as a whole. It was very informative and crucial to our field. Too many people jump on Photoshop and think it's easy and they can do it, too. No. It doesn't work that way. A professional designer can spot this a mile a way.

I remember when I was a sophomore applying for my first internship, the first thing the senior designer noticed from my portfolio was that I stretched my type. He knew just by looking at it. He told me always play with the kerning and/or experiment with the different "families" (i.e. Helvetica Bold Condensed, Helvetica Extended, etc.) and to NEVER, EVER stretch my type. I haven't done it since. Now I, too, notice when somebody does that and it drives me nuts!

The rest just came from my doing lots of freelance work. You'd be surprised how suddenly word of mouth can really help.

suzanne maestri-walters :: graphic designer :: www.onegirlcreative.com

i kept on looking for a graphics job until i found one. it wasn't the best job in the world, but it was a place to start. a lot of my friends just went for any job they could get & ended up doing something completely different. if you really want to you will find the job! just keep on looking!

good luck! :)

I am going to try and keep this post short and sweet... I came to the US as a student and graduated with a degree in multimedia, which is a fancy way of saying that I just took all kinds of design classes from desktop publishing to web design to motion graphics and every creative thing you can do under the sun on a computer.

So with all of that under my belt, no real-world designs to show on my portfolio and an internship that went bad for reasons beyond my control, I was unemployed for 8 months. Now when I mean unemployed I mean I could not even get a job working at Wal-Mart since I am an alien in the US. Now for those of you who do not know immigration laws... aliens are only allowed to work in the field they went to school for.

So as a result I was forced to find a job that would pay the bills in the creative field. Now this was not only a problem when you are trying to get on your feet but also forces a fresh grad to pursue ones career and not settle for anything less. I must add that many of my class mates are NOT working in the creative field anymore after 4 years of private college education.

Now that I have given you my lengthy background, my fist job out of college was working as a web designer for a small advertising firm that paid next to nothing. But it definitely pushed me to look for something better and I did find something better.

It is very sad to see so many students graduate with a design degree and end up not pursuing it. It IS a very competitive field if you want to climb it to the top. But my advice is, don't give up, work hard and do what ever it takes.

Sorry! This was not short at all :)

I am going to try and keep this post short and sweet... I came to the US as a student and graduated with a degree in multimedia, which is a fancy way of saying that I just took all kinds of design classes from desktop publishing to web design to motion graphics and every creative thing you can do under the sun on a computer.

So with all of that under my belt, no real-world designs to show on my portfolio and an internship that went bad for reasons beyond my control, I was unemployed for 8 months. Now when I mean unemployed I mean I could not even get a job working at Wal-Mart since I am an alien in the US. Now for those of you who do not know immigration laws... aliens are only allowed to work in the field they went to school for.

So as a result I was forced to find a job that would pay the bills in the creative field. Now this was not only a problem when you are trying to get on your feet but also forces a fresh grad to pursue ones career and not settle for anything less. I must add that many of my class mates are NOT working in the creative field anymore after 4 years of private college education.

Now that I have given you my lengthy background, my fist job out of college was working as a web designer for a small advertising firm. I found it after turning in resumes all over a small town in the mid-west. They asked me to come in for an interview 3 months after I turned in my resume. I spent an entire day (8 hours straight) at the firm and built a fully functioning site from scratch and offered to work for free for a week. I ended up getting the job, the pay sucked but it definitely pushed me to look for something better and I did find something a lot better.

It is very sad to see so many students graduate with a design degree and end up not pursuing it. It IS a very competitive field if you want to climb it to the top. But my advice is, don't give up, work hard and do what ever it takes.

Sorry! This was not short at all :)

I was able to clear away a full-time graphic design job before i graduated as i was dating a guy that worked for this small company that had a web development department. I worked there for about 8 months and needless to say i was taken advantage of, and often not paid (illegal--yes). I was the only graphic designer and the owner was a real sleaze. I put up with all of it only because it was my first job and i knew i needed to stick it out as long as i could to better get the next job.

However, the economy went bad as we all know, and i was laid off (sort of.. this guy is so horrible he claims i wasnt laid off... just that my salaried position wasnt available anymore making it impossible to collect unemployment). Also, my last two paychecks never came in because "he didnt have the money"--he really didnt, he was getting evicted but somehow still refused to claim bankruptcy. I contemplated going to the labor board, but he threatened to take away the right to showcase the work i did (the only post-college work i have) for my portfolio which he can do.

So. Now I cant find another job with the economy this way, and all that's available is unpaid internships that have a slight chance of leading into a job. This obviously means I'm also looking for a side job (waitressing?) to cover the bills I've collected since my job (ie- cell phone, health insurance, new car, car insurance, rent, etc.). So it's not really like i've gotten any farther even with a legit first job.

It was from Sept 07 to May 08 when I got laid off.

The job was being the assistant designer at a small printing company that put out a bi weekly ad magazine in Northern Kentucky. The place had been around since the 70's had a lot of regular clients, and was just a nice little place. The old owner was retiring and the guy's that took it over hired me to replace the person would went on to a corporate job. I got it with help from the job placement people from my school(graduated in 07).

Now let me say this if you have job placement services. BE PROACTIVE. The world doesn't revolve around you, you are not the only person to graduate and want to work. I know so many whiners that just gave up on Design because no one from the school gave them job placement on a silver platter.

Anyway the job was cool, learned a lot about pre press, ran the Xerox digital copier there and was totally responsible for the digital printing(that was cool, and I put 'Head of Digital Printing' on my resume now). The only complaint was the lead designer was a 60 year old churchy woman who was so out of the loop it was insane. I showed her how to work with layers in Photoshop and I think it blew her mind to give you an idea. She did teach me some technical stuff, but the new VP taught me the most about pre press and design(it was his background, his partner was supposed to be the business/sales guy).

Well, apparently the new owner didn't think starting the first quarter of his business by actually being there was important so he was always away on his old sales job. He didn't pay the bills, live up to other commitments in the transfer of ownership, totally f'ed up the advertising paper we put out(this was the top distributed one in the area too), laid me off in May because he was running out of money. Of course he pulled the whole "boo hoo I got to pay too many taxes" crap, when it was his bad management that ruined the business he invested in, in under one year.

Place could have survived too. Nobody would be getting rich or raises but it could have supported the staff. I still miss it, just because it was a great opportunity for me and it was a shame it went under needlessly.

In between that and now, I had a production job for about 4 months and am currently looking for a new job.