{"id":722,"date":"2016-08-09T17:38:32","date_gmt":"2017-07-28T18:43:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wayup.com\/guide\/?p=722"},"modified":"2018-06-29T14:12:38","modified_gmt":"2018-06-29T14:12:38","slug":"what-is-a-graphic-designer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wayupstudent.wpengine.com\/what-is-a-graphic-designer\/","title":{"rendered":"What is a Graphic Designer?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Graphic design is an increasingly in-demand career that offers exciting opportunities to work on branding campaigns for companies and individuals. If you\u2019re an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wayup.com\/guide\/arts-major-right\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">arts<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wayup.com\/guide\/design-major-right\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">design major<\/a>, or even if you\u2019re just interested in finding out more about graphic design, you might be wondering what you can expect from a graphic design career.<\/p>\n<p>We recently sat down with Emily Shellenberger, a graphic designer at Adweek, to learn more about what it means to work in graphic design and to get some tips on how to do it right.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>What does a graphic designer do?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>According to Emily, a graphic designer does \u201ca little bit of everything from digital banners to social media materials to website design and print ads.\u201d Since designers are responsible for creating a variety of marketing and branding materials, their day-to-day tasks can vary widely depending on what particular type of project they\u2019re working on. But one thing remains constant: the ability to come up with designs for a broad range of platforms and to adjust those designs for print, digital and mobile platforms. This can include resizing a design multiple times to adapt it to a specific platform, or coming up with a concept that is relevant to only one channel, like print. Because graphic design is both creative and technical, designers also have to be skilled at using programs like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator<\/p>\n<h4><strong>What are the benefits of a graphic design career?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Graphic design is a cross-functional field and one that requires you to stay nimble when moving from task to task. \u201cI\u2019m on the marketing team and we kind of do a little bit of everything when it comes to Adweek\u2019s marketing needs,\u201d Emily explains, emphasizing that being a designer is a great way to be involved in many areas of a business. \u201cEvery day is different and for me, that\u2019s great.\u201d What\u2019s the best part of being a designer? For Emily it\u2019s not just about finding ways to execute creative concepts at work but also coming up with ways to apply those skills to her personal life. \u201cA few of my friends found out that I could do design Snapchat filters and now everybody wants them for their weddings and birthday parties. It\u2019s nice to know that you can help people out in a fun way too.\u201d<\/p>\n<h4><strong>What are some of the challenges graphic designers face?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Because the day-to-day job of a designer can vary widely depending on what they\u2019re working on, one of the main challenges is being able to think about how the particular task you\u2019re working on fits into the overall design concept of the brand. \u201cYou always have to think about how a design would look on mobile or how it would look on desktop,\u201d Emily explains. In addition to the challenge of creating designs for multiple platforms, graphic designers also have to contend with the technical challenges of design itself. \u201cFor me personally, HTML and CSS are not my strong points,\u201d Emily says, explaining that understanding how and when to apply this type of code is not always easy. However, she also emphasizes that learning basic coding like HTML and CSS is a great way to give yourself an edge in the industry and to continue developing your skills. \u201cIt definitely gives me an edge to know a little bit about them so I\u2019m always pushing myself to get in there and try to make edits.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Graphic design is an exciting field with plenty of great opportunities. If you\u2019re interested in becoming a graphic designer and want to learn more about the industry, consider taking on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wayup.com\/member\/jobs-listing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">an internship<\/a> and getting some hands-on experience in the industry.<\/p>\n<p>Next, get more career tips for internships and entry-level jobs such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wayup.com\/guide\/use-a-blog-to-apply-for-an-internship\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">How to Use a Blog to Apply for an Internship<\/a>\u00a0and find answers to common interview questions such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wayup.com\/guide\/answer-whats-dream-job\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">What&#8217;s Your Dream Job?<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Graphic design is an increasingly in-demand career that offers exciting opportunities to work on branding campaigns for companies and individuals. If you\u2019re an arts or design major, or even if you\u2019re just interested in finding out more about graphic design, you might be wondering what you can expect from a graphic design career. We recently &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/wayupstudent.wpengine.com\/what-is-a-graphic-designer\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;What is a Graphic Designer?&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":868,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[32,92,122],"tags":[44,70,197,198,199,223,224],"class_list":["post-722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry-major","category-arts-major-101","category-design","tag-entry-level-job","tag-full-time-job","tag-underclassman","tag-postgrad","tag-senior","tag-fine-arts","tag-arts-entertainment"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>What is a Graphic Designer? | Career Advice &amp; Interview Tips | WayUp Guide<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you\u2019re passionate about design, you may be thinking about a career as a graphic designer. 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