For many undergraduate students, being creative is a career goal – and getting a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design is a great way to produce thoughtful, creative, and original work in a variety of fields. Students entering the field of graphic design have more career options than ever. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary for a Graphic Designer was $52,110 in 2019.
Typically, graphic designers can find work in an agency setting, preparing various materials, such as ads, posters, magazines, and websites. Depending on the area of study, students can pick an area of concentration. For example, some designers are solely responsible for Flash animation projects, while others may specialize in designing emails by using HTML and CSS.
Other graphic designers may prefer to focus on the User Experience – these types of designers are responsible for building and testing personas of potential customers and map out different scenarios for how the customers could engage with a website or other media. There are also User Interface designers, who make sure everything is running smoothly by writing code. User interface designers typically use HTML, CSS, and Javascript.
Graphic Designers also have the opportunity to climb the corporate ladder into a variety of c-suite positions, such as art director, creative director, or a creative services manager, which oversees the development of projects from start to finish or implementation.
There are other options for graphic designers as well. Some graduates may decide to go back to teach up and coming students, while others may take the freelance route and work as a consultant for large corporations or work with multiple clients at a time. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, one in four graphic designers was self-employed in 2014.
Are you looking for the best online degree programs for a graphic design degree? These are our top picks for Online Graphic Design Schools!