Blog #6
What do you consider to be your medium, style, and services of choice? Describe why you feel that is the case and find some examples that support why your approaches are viable.
I want to work for a design agency or an in-house designer, so my service will most likely depend on the company’s needs. Still, I want to become a digital graphic designer specializing in digital marketing, branding strategies, and UI/UX designs. However, I want to be able to focus on my area of interest rather than being a multitasking designer, so ultimately becoming a UI/UX designer is my main goal. I’m skilled in branding and digital marketing through working on various school projects, internships, and student jobs, and I aspire to work in the UI/UX field once I graduate with more knowledge about this field. Although I also have experience with prints, I will most likely work with digital assets in the future because it suits my career goals. My art style is modern, colorful, and illustrative; however, I am flexible and can adjust my style based on the client’s needs and wants.
What skills, aptitudes, and abilities are current jobs in your field requiring, and how do you think your skills align with them? Please provide links and or citations to where you are gathering this information.
Regardless of the position, a designer needs strong knowledge about design foundations such as typography, layout, color theories, etc. To be a digital graphic designer, we need proficiency in Adobe Creative Suites, especially Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign. To become a UI/UX designer, we need to learn prototyping software such as Figma, Sketch, and InVision. Besides, we will need to create user flows, wireframes, and mockups and conduct user research and testing skills. Knowing common coding languages such as HTML and CSS is a significant advantage. Other soft skills include time management, presentation, collaboration, and communication. I firmly believe I am skilled in using the Adobe software mentioned above through working with them for the past four years. As for UI/UX design skills, I am learning and honing my skills daily through school projects and personal research. I believe that by the time I graduate, I will have a solid foundation and skill set needed for the job.
References:
https://www.coursera.org/articles/essential-skills-for-ux-designers
https://www.monster.com/career-advice/article/5-essential-skills-for-graphic-design
After you graduate, what would you (either as a freelancer, employee, or business owner) offer that no one else in your market can? What would be your brand’s unique value proposition?
It is hard to say that I can offer anything no one else has. Still, I firmly believe every designer has artistic taste, visions, interests, and backgrounds that differentiate them from others. In my case, I think my experience and perspective of working with people from different cultures and having a strong empathy for others can bring inclusiveness and diversity into my designs. I think I can put myself in my client’s position and design from their perspective, which makes me unique.
Ideally, what kind of clients/industries would you like to serve and work with, and why? Please provide links to a few examples.
I want to work with local non-profits or companies focusing on social, educational, art, and cultural issues. I want to use my skills to support a good cause and contribute to making the world a better place for everyone. Ideally, I would work for small to medium size companies because I believe making changes can start small, and it is easier to create smaller-scale changes in your community than to fix big, complicated problems.
Some places I would love to work for are education, art, and cultural institutions such as the Denver Art Museum or the University of Colorado.
Through your research, please list the problems you are most interested in addressing after you graduate and why.
I am unsure how to answer this problem because of the confusion of the question context, but I would love to work with social and educational issues once I graduate. I believe education is how we can learn and progress as a society. Many social problems can be addressed and solved if the public has better access to higher education. If this question concerns skills, I would love to work on my design interests more. I have learned a lot from school, but I am not as well-versed as I wanted to on specific skills. I want to go deep down and understand the program better so I can utilize them for my job.
Based on your research, what attributes and services do you think you would need to offer to be competitive in your envisioned marketplace?
To improve my chance in this competitive market, I think I need to be able to adapt to learning new skills fast and efficiently. Even though I want to only focus on a specific area, it is known that designers who have a broader skill set have a better chance of getting job offers, so I will try to improve where I am currently lacking, such as motion graphic skills, so I can at least feel confident putting them on my resume and perform tasks if needed.
Mimi Nguyen's Design 