UCLA Betas

Graphic design isn’t a single skill set, it’s an entire toolbox. And within the graphic design field there is a literally endless variety of work available. Finding that work as a freelancer or as a member of a company’s creative staff has a lot to do with your experience, your abilities and, of course, the degrees you hold.

Deciding on which degrees to pursue in graphic design can be as tricky as deciding that you want to work in graphic design in the first place. When you go to an academy like Miami College you need to have a plan laid out so that you can make the decision a little more easily. What it really comes down to is what sort of employment strategy you have in mind.

To create an employment strategy you can try to develop a broad repertoire of skills and sell yourself on your versatility, or you can master a niche and try to develop a name as one of the top designers in that particular area of graphic design. Chances are your strategy will sit somewhere comfortably between these two once you find the right balance.

Here are some examples of the niches you may want to pursue in graphic design:

3D and Computer Animation

Computer animation and 3D modeling degrees are a really hot field right now. If you learn 3D animation, you have access to work in the video game industry, in the television and film industry and you can develop your own animated stories for the internet or create your own animated pilots.

Sculpting and Traditional Animation

If you’re pursuing 3D animation, you would be wise to also look at sculpting and traditional animation. 3D animation, modeling, sculpting and traditional animation all reinforce one another and can, together, grant you a mastery of 3D shape and movement.

Drawing

Design and drawing degrees can be a tremendous help in securing well-paying, easy jobs in any number of industries. Somebody who can draw very well, who can paint and who can create solid costume, character, visual and set designs can find work in film, games, animation, comics, marketing, you name it. In fact, every other degree should be founded on life drawing.

When you really look into it, while there’s a lot to be said for having a specialty, it can never hurt to study every field of art. The more you know about sculpting, the better a painter you’ll be. The better you are at painting, the more capable you’ll be creating textures for 3D models, and the more you know about modeling, the better a sculptor you’ll be and on and on. It’s all tied together, so explore whatever grabs you. Feel free to buy dissertation online for your Master’s or PhD degree.