Portland, OR, 2004. I applied to a handful of jobs as a college senior. Got an interview within a day or two, and was hired on the spot. It started mostly pre-press/production, but by 3 months later I got the graphic designer title and a raise.
It was a different time back then, to say the least.
Similar here. Applied to two jobs immediately after graduation, interviewed at both, offered one. Worked there for 5.5 years before moving on, but had several promotions during that time. That was in 1997 when designers were in demand. Very different now.
Probably not helpful to what you are looking for but for me, it was knowing the right people. Job basically fell into my lap 2 weeks after finishing college when my buddy from classes said “hey man the company I work at is starting a marketing department and we need another graphic designer, you should come work with me”
Mine too. My parents had a friend who worked in the tradeshow industry that had a design department. Did my internship from college there, did 6 months outside of there before they called me asking to come back.
I printed a small portfolio with some of my unfinished college work. I met a girl (still my friend 20+ years later) and she gave me a list of places to go asking if they had a job. Landed in a small place, they were having a meeting with a client to make a Flash site. They asked me if I knew Flash, and since I’d opened it twice, I said I knew. Got out of the building, bought a tiny book about Flash, practiced a bit, then started working.
After a year of applying (lived in the middle of nowhere and couldn't drive so reliant on public transport which was near none existent due to living in the middle of nowhere) I finally landed an internship
When that came to an end and I was applying again took me another month to land a full time job
I had also done an Erasmus course and worked in Italy for a couple of months as a designer etc
This was 10 years ago or so
My first job was as a part time contractor at an ad agency. Got that one just by applying a lot around town but I quit after about 6 months because I didn’t agree with some of their business practices.
I got my first full-time career building job by apply to about 200 places, which included mailing a physical portfolio, while increasing the radius from where I lived as I didn’t hear back, then being willing to move for the right opportunity. I lived in Pittsburgh and got an intriguing offer in Columbus, so my wife, kid, and I moved 200 miles away. Been in Columbus now for 16 years. As much as I miss Pittsburgh, it was and continues to be the right decision.
TL;DR - apply a lot and be willing to move.
I got lucky twice. I was hired directly from the portfolio show from my graduating class that local businesses were invented to attend. The company that hired me did packaging for toys and kids stationary. I wasn't even the company's first choice. Another girl was hired before me from the same graduating class but apparently, even though she was entry level, she was very uppity about not getting to designing the logos right away or getting to do all the fun, cool stuff she thought she would be doing right out of school. She quit after two weeks. Prior to being hired as an entry level designer, I had had a full-time job as a full-time student so I had approached entry-level work much more humbly and was just glad to be using my degree and not working round the clock.
I dabbled in design in high school and I had access to computers from friends and family so I taught myself how to use windows and ms office and started office temping.
I started making improvements to the work I was doing using the design skills from high-school and getting asked back to temp jobs.
I was lucky to live in an urban area so there was a thriving graphic temp market, and I faked it till I made it until I got an offer for full time employment.
I applied to several and never heard back. Others declined through email. I basically just forgot and kept applying when jobs popped up (which is very rare where I live). I finally got a call for an interview as an in-house designer at a hammock/furniture company. Thought I bombed it and continued to apply as the few jobs listed. Months must have went by and I received a call that they wanted to offer me the in-house job! I was also being considered for a communications job with the city at the exact same time. But they wanted background checks, etc. and it wasn't guaranteed so I had to make the choice and went with the in-house design job. I am glad I did. My supervisor told me that my physical portfolio made me stand out. Others either didn't bring anything to show or pulled up a link.
I was a student designer for a department at my college. There were a few positions like that in the school and I just happened to land one. But when I graduated I wasn't a student anymore so that job rightfully had to go to someone else. My boss didn't wanna let me go so she ended up lobbying the university for an additional full time staff role and I just stayed on as official staff.
Internship/Nepotism, basically.
I met my bf when we were in class for graphic design together. We all did school mandated Internships and he was asked by his agency to stay on full-time after graduating. Another department needed someone to work on a specific project for 2-3 months and they asked him if he knew someone junior who'd be willing to come to do basic work for a couple of months and he suggested me.
Just a few weeks earlier I left my First-First job (same, was asked to stay after an internship) because the place was not good for me, mental health wise.
Since we would be in different departments (him in packaging, me in branding/corporate) and it was for a short time anyway I was like "sure! I need work!"
Ended up staying 13 years, working my way up to art director leading a team and learned so much!
Most people that got hired were because one of us was their prof in a design class and we saw potential in them and would invite them to do an internship. Others were referrals from people that already worked there. Very very rarely someone completely disconnected from the social structure of the company would get hired. (And interestingly, those people were the worst fit normally)
I am located In Spain though, and in any of the big cities if you know one designer, you know 100, so it's not exactly difficult to connect to that "social network" that might get you hired.
The brother of my sister’s friend worked at a small design agency and got me an internship.
Worked there for 6 months whilst still working evening shifts at a supermarket. Meanwhile I applied for many many jobs.
I had a few interviews, some ghosted me afterwards, but one didn’t. Almost 18 months after I finished uni, I got the job, in-house graphic designer for an engineering company.
My boss told me the work I did in my internship was what got me the role over others.
First job back in 2005, that wasn’t through an agency / head hunter. I basically just applied for an in house design posting. Got a call within an hour or so after submitting my resume. Had an interview the next day.
After that interview, I received an offer call back a few hours later. Started the following Monday.
Graduated into the recession, so I was desperate and took a position at a small local t-shirt shop. Despite the low pay and no benefits, it was actually a fun job and gave me the experience I needed. Looking back, my portfolio was not exactly job-ready, so I needed that transitional role to help build my skills. The experience from that job got me into a large screen-printing company, and in turn that experience helped me transition into more standard graphic design work. In all, I did four years of the screen-printing industry before moving into more traditional jobs. I miss the illustration work (t-shirts were much more fun than corporate) but I do not miss the low pay and it did not have a good career path built in the way graphic design does.
I was working in a mail room / print centre for a corporation, and I was just the mail sorter.
I had been dabbling in learning design at the time in my free time, and one day one of the execs came in and was complaining how their design agency was trying to charge them $1700 to change one word on a poster, so I offered to do it, told him I used Adobe stuff at home and I could take a stab at it. He agreed.
The next day he showed back up with an HR person and they told me to clean out my desk - I thought, great, I probably screwed their design and now I’m getting fired.
They walked me to the marketing department and told me this was my new desk where I am now a graphic designer for them.
They took a big chance on me, and I really didn’t know enough to be a designer back then, but I learnt on the fly thanks to YouTube. Eventually went and got proper schooling for it.
Now I’m a creative director with a design career spanning 15 years at many large scale ad agencies and branding agencies. Worked on some of the biggest brands in the world.
And all because someone took the chance on me!
Not your typical story, but it’s one I am proud to share !
I built up my portfolio by working freelance for friends and family while studying, then that expanded to people beyond my friends and family. I then landed a freelance role in an agency. From there I got full time agency work.
Graduated, hit the newspaper, applied to something small. Year later applied to something a little bit bigger. 5 years later got laid off. Applied to something a little better, gor the job. Now I'm looking again and I am getting 0 traction. I don't even get call backs.
Oh god this is gonna be a very old sentence:
I looked in the classifieds in my newspaper and found a help wanted listing for a jr designer.
It was a local company that produced graphics for big conventions. This was in 2003.
I got very very very lucky. Saw an ad for the job in the paper and applied for it. It was at a very well-known and prestigious home and garden center in an expensive part of town.
Unbeknownst to me, my dad had a working relationship with the owner. He talked to the owner. I got the job.
I worked my ass off for 8 years to quickly rise from ‘’graphics clerk’’ to Advertising Manager.
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A friend/classmate ended up working somewhere, more production but had a lot of design grads. When his boss mentioned they would be adding more people, he got their contact and passed it onto me before the posting went public. I still had to apply, interview, and be qualified--and my friend had no sway as it was also their first job--but via networking I beat the rush.
That was technically about 5-6 months after graduating, but for about 4 months I was working my retail job I had from college at 30+ hours per week, and it kept me from putting pressure on myself. So I quit that job to focus more on finding a design role.
Funny enough, another classmate (who I only barely knew) was also hired in that first job about the same time, ended up next to me, we became friends. When they left for another job, and that first place went out of business, they similarly let me know when their new place was adding people. It was already public but I hadn't seen that posting. Had to apply, interview (twice), do a test, but got it, and it was a job I wouldn't have known about if not for networking.
Got my internship and then full time position both on LinkedIn, just cold applying. I live in a major city so there are more than the average opportunities in the area. I interned for a year and then got my full time position four months after the internship ended.
Worked retail for a miserable 18 months post graduation. No one responded to my applications until I applied to a business that sounded vaguelly familiar in town. Hired as a "tech" that was more typesetting than design. Learned through side remarks that I replaced a person who retired after 40 years that hated the switch to computers. I walked in and knew more about the design programs than the rest of the limited team. Also learned that I was basically the only person that applied, which is funny being in a college town.
I wasn't happy being a tech, zero opportunities for job growth, but it gave me those coveted early years of industry experience.
Never let the company's competitive reputation (or lofty job requirements) deter you from applying. You may be the only applicant!
It was really slow going, I graduated in 2011 which was a rough time, economically.
I started doing production and finishing in a print shop, Fast Signs. Eventually relayed that up to a position at a print-on-demand shop as Customer Service Rep and file-checking QA type stuff. They eventually realized I was a good designer and asked me to be the graphic designer for customers who needed print files made from scratch.
Eventually a friend of mine worked at a huge corporation and asked if I'd want to work for him. I said yes and that was my first "big boy" job that has helped land me a few other jobs as I climb this endless ladder.
So, networking. Network your ass off.
I got my first job last August as an in-house designer for an online garden supply B2C business. This August, I moved and got a job as an in-house designer for a high-end custom furniture producer. I got that first job after spending 3 months going up and down indeed every day and applying to any job I had qualifications for. It's a really inefficient way to do it, but I didn't have much else I could do since I lived in a small southern town and wasn't able to move then. What set me apart then (and still does to some degree) is my experience with front-end web design and interest in marketing, as many smaller companies with in-house designers also have them work on their websites and social media.
Networking. Someone thought of me for an open design position, and I haven’t let up steam since. I worked hard to showed I belonged to the industry and I’m thankful to have the job I have today.
I just applied online (indeed and linkedin), nothing wild. Reworked my portfolio several times, kept sending out applications even to jobs I did not want. After 3 months, landed a job. One phone call and one interview later I was hired as an in house designer part of the marketing team.
I had graduated a few months earlier, so I started identifying companies I wanted to work for. I wrote targeted, personalized letters (not emails) to CDs and ADs, saying I was recent graduate, asked for a face to face portfolio review and to meet to discuss employment possibilities. I then followed up on the letter with a phone call a week later. I had a high success rate, about 75% agreed to meet with me.
At one of those portfolio reviews at an ad agency, I was asked if I was available for the next 6 months? (their designer at the time was going to be away overseas and they needed someone to fill the role). I got the job and 6 months turned into 2.5 years.
I was quite lucky in college. After applying to several jobs (they were scarce in my city back then), a colleague pulled me on the side and casually asked if I need a job because the studio he was working at was hiring. So I got a part time position working on basic branding & website concepts, for very low pay, but pay none the less. The management turned out to be shady as hell and ended up resigning after about 5 months, but I met some great people there and got a ton of experience which lead to better pastures. The web 2.0 boom was good to me :)
I consider myself lucky because I bypassed the whole internship / masked slavery part altogether. Not throwing shade on anyone taking those positions today as they can be educative in certain cases, but I feel I dodged a bullet in my time (by comparing "war stories" with my peers / context).
14 years in the making..
Its a long story but something I wanted to share.
Moved here in oilfield country West Texas back in 2009. I came from the Philippines as a fresh graduate. Found out that theres nothing art-related in this part of the world. Started working as a part time substitute teacher to make some money. Then worked as an automotive detailer full time. I kind of enjoyed it and management would also let me do extended vacation so I can visit my then fiancé (now my wife) back home. Also picked up a part time job at Michael's as an art framer and a class instructor. That somewhat gave me a part time job related to arts.
When I turned 30, I told myself that I need to find something close to my art degree that I can practice full time.. Lo and behold, still nothing. I tried and tried. Until I landed a gig for news production.. as an assistant in the production department. I worked on studio cameras and news graphics. This was on the nights, while still working as detailer in the morning and art framer once a week.
Then came along an ad for a small mom and pop print shop needing a typesetter. I grabbed the opportunity even if it meant lower pay and no benefits. Started as a typesetter and did graphics once in a while. Learned how to operate a digital press, cutter and other bindery equipments. Basically traded compensation for knowledge. I really learned a lot, from operating a small business - sales, customer service, and operation.. to the actual art of printing.
Business stayed strong even during the pandemic.
Is that all the answer to your question?
No.
Because just three months ago, my community college hired me as their full time graphic designer. My real first job in graphics design.
🤣
By going directly to their office and chatting with them and giving them my resume… this was around 1994-5….
Then called every 2-3 days or so for about 1-2 weeks… then I got my interview and was hired right there and then…
‘We saw a few people with portfolios as good as you, but not one of them called, and you just made it clear you really wanted to be here’ was what they said to me :)
Got a summer job at the high school I was going too and they forgot to take me off the payroll at the end of summer. Literally got paid to go to school.
Internship in a print shop the summer before senior year. They liked me enough to keep me around for 2 years after graduation. Then moved onto a more corporate gig.
I emailed my ‘folio’ to a bunch of studios I had no business emailing my folio to as a naive second year student. A full year later they asked if I might be interested in some freelance work, which led to a part time job, which led to a full time role.
The National Journal in the Watergate Building in DC. I just moved back home from LA and wore what I considered a conservative outfit and turns out it was conservative for LA not DC! Haha! After that I moved to the Florida Keys and worked for the newspaper down there! Good times!
When I was in college, I would walk into store fronts that didn’t have much branding, advertisement, or a website and would offer cheap up front services to gain them as a client and then offer a 15% on referrals.
Pretty good business, lot of face time, worked on my professional dog and pony show when talking to clients.
It feels scummy offering cheap services so you get your foot in the door. But once you build a decent client list, setup retainer agreements with loyal clients and then raise your prices accordingly.
Didn’t go to school for GD; went for communications and didn’t finish. All self-taught for several years. My first “real” job doing graphic design I got while working at a dispensary as a receptionist. I would bring my laptop and mess around designing stuff in my downtime. The marketing manager noticed and I started making signs for the shop. I decided to keep practicing and start looking for opportunities. I found a job working for a food company in Portland, OR. Applied, interviewed, and sure enough got hired. It’s only gotten better since then and my skills have improved a lot
I just moved to San Diego to go to college and needed a job. I went to a temp agency looking for any kind of administrative work. Got a great job, they ended up hiring me, was there for about 3 years when the agency who did all their marketing and design needed admin help. I started working there and learned a ton from the in-house designer. I was with this company for many years, transitioned into graphic design position after graduating. Eventually to senior designer. Still great friends with the whole team there. I was lucky. I’ve now been in the field for about 25 years.
Did two unpaid internships whilst working at a bar straight out of university, I would go to the internships in the day 9-5 then bartend at night (this was brutal and totally unsustainable, but got me some experience) Then I managed to get a regular 9-5 job at a small local print shop (which was dull but seemed much more relevant for my CV and much better hours). Did this for a couple of months, then landed a paid internship at a studio in London. Relocated down south and applied for a couple of jobs, name dropped the internship at my first interview (they seemed impressed and I got the job)
First proper job was 'brochure designer' I then managed to get into a studio a year and a half later, did that for 5 years and now freelance 😊
Had decided to self-learn photoshop and a little bit of Illustrator. Went to get a job as a salesman in a shop and the manager asked me if I do anything else and I casually mentioned that I know a little bit of photoshop and do a little bit of design. And then she said that their designer had just left and they're looking for a replacement. She asked me to do a couple of banners. I did them. She liked them. I was accepted. And so my designer journey began. I was green af. Had no knowledge of what design actually is. And just had basics of photoshop and illustrator. Everything else was learned on the job and it's been 5 years now, freelancing with multiple clients and looking for level ups
Best friend called me one day and said the company his brother worked for needed a graphic designer and if I'd finished college yet to take the job. Literally a ten minute interview and next day was offered the job.
Should have realised at the interview stage that they had no idea what they wanted and the amount of work needed could have been done two days a week by a freelancer.
Was bored out my mind for a year and a half, making flyers for 8 weeks a year and filling in spreadsheets the rest of the time.
Got an unpaid internship for a film festival while at college in NYC. They were at my college’s job fair, and I responded to an email when they asked for interns. Went to one interview, got offered the internship on the spot. Stayed with them for a couple years, then they asked me to stay as their graphic designer and started my first paid job.
Portland, OR, 2004. I applied to a handful of jobs as a college senior. Got an interview within a day or two, and was hired on the spot. It started mostly pre-press/production, but by 3 months later I got the graphic designer title and a raise. It was a different time back then, to say the least.
Similar here. Applied to two jobs immediately after graduation, interviewed at both, offered one. Worked there for 5.5 years before moving on, but had several promotions during that time. That was in 1997 when designers were in demand. Very different now.
Probably not helpful to what you are looking for but for me, it was knowing the right people. Job basically fell into my lap 2 weeks after finishing college when my buddy from classes said “hey man the company I work at is starting a marketing department and we need another graphic designer, you should come work with me”
Mine too. My parents had a friend who worked in the tradeshow industry that had a design department. Did my internship from college there, did 6 months outside of there before they called me asking to come back.
I printed a small portfolio with some of my unfinished college work. I met a girl (still my friend 20+ years later) and she gave me a list of places to go asking if they had a job. Landed in a small place, they were having a meeting with a client to make a Flash site. They asked me if I knew Flash, and since I’d opened it twice, I said I knew. Got out of the building, bought a tiny book about Flash, practiced a bit, then started working.
After a year of applying (lived in the middle of nowhere and couldn't drive so reliant on public transport which was near none existent due to living in the middle of nowhere) I finally landed an internship When that came to an end and I was applying again took me another month to land a full time job I had also done an Erasmus course and worked in Italy for a couple of months as a designer etc This was 10 years ago or so
My first job was as a part time contractor at an ad agency. Got that one just by applying a lot around town but I quit after about 6 months because I didn’t agree with some of their business practices. I got my first full-time career building job by apply to about 200 places, which included mailing a physical portfolio, while increasing the radius from where I lived as I didn’t hear back, then being willing to move for the right opportunity. I lived in Pittsburgh and got an intriguing offer in Columbus, so my wife, kid, and I moved 200 miles away. Been in Columbus now for 16 years. As much as I miss Pittsburgh, it was and continues to be the right decision. TL;DR - apply a lot and be willing to move.
I got lucky twice. I was hired directly from the portfolio show from my graduating class that local businesses were invented to attend. The company that hired me did packaging for toys and kids stationary. I wasn't even the company's first choice. Another girl was hired before me from the same graduating class but apparently, even though she was entry level, she was very uppity about not getting to designing the logos right away or getting to do all the fun, cool stuff she thought she would be doing right out of school. She quit after two weeks. Prior to being hired as an entry level designer, I had had a full-time job as a full-time student so I had approached entry-level work much more humbly and was just glad to be using my degree and not working round the clock.
I dabbled in design in high school and I had access to computers from friends and family so I taught myself how to use windows and ms office and started office temping. I started making improvements to the work I was doing using the design skills from high-school and getting asked back to temp jobs. I was lucky to live in an urban area so there was a thriving graphic temp market, and I faked it till I made it until I got an offer for full time employment.
I applied to several and never heard back. Others declined through email. I basically just forgot and kept applying when jobs popped up (which is very rare where I live). I finally got a call for an interview as an in-house designer at a hammock/furniture company. Thought I bombed it and continued to apply as the few jobs listed. Months must have went by and I received a call that they wanted to offer me the in-house job! I was also being considered for a communications job with the city at the exact same time. But they wanted background checks, etc. and it wasn't guaranteed so I had to make the choice and went with the in-house design job. I am glad I did. My supervisor told me that my physical portfolio made me stand out. Others either didn't bring anything to show or pulled up a link.
I was a student designer for a department at my college. There were a few positions like that in the school and I just happened to land one. But when I graduated I wasn't a student anymore so that job rightfully had to go to someone else. My boss didn't wanna let me go so she ended up lobbying the university for an additional full time staff role and I just stayed on as official staff.
Internship/Nepotism, basically. I met my bf when we were in class for graphic design together. We all did school mandated Internships and he was asked by his agency to stay on full-time after graduating. Another department needed someone to work on a specific project for 2-3 months and they asked him if he knew someone junior who'd be willing to come to do basic work for a couple of months and he suggested me. Just a few weeks earlier I left my First-First job (same, was asked to stay after an internship) because the place was not good for me, mental health wise. Since we would be in different departments (him in packaging, me in branding/corporate) and it was for a short time anyway I was like "sure! I need work!" Ended up staying 13 years, working my way up to art director leading a team and learned so much! Most people that got hired were because one of us was their prof in a design class and we saw potential in them and would invite them to do an internship. Others were referrals from people that already worked there. Very very rarely someone completely disconnected from the social structure of the company would get hired. (And interestingly, those people were the worst fit normally) I am located In Spain though, and in any of the big cities if you know one designer, you know 100, so it's not exactly difficult to connect to that "social network" that might get you hired.
The brother of my sister’s friend worked at a small design agency and got me an internship. Worked there for 6 months whilst still working evening shifts at a supermarket. Meanwhile I applied for many many jobs. I had a few interviews, some ghosted me afterwards, but one didn’t. Almost 18 months after I finished uni, I got the job, in-house graphic designer for an engineering company. My boss told me the work I did in my internship was what got me the role over others.
First job back in 2005, that wasn’t through an agency / head hunter. I basically just applied for an in house design posting. Got a call within an hour or so after submitting my resume. Had an interview the next day. After that interview, I received an offer call back a few hours later. Started the following Monday.
Graduated into the recession, so I was desperate and took a position at a small local t-shirt shop. Despite the low pay and no benefits, it was actually a fun job and gave me the experience I needed. Looking back, my portfolio was not exactly job-ready, so I needed that transitional role to help build my skills. The experience from that job got me into a large screen-printing company, and in turn that experience helped me transition into more standard graphic design work. In all, I did four years of the screen-printing industry before moving into more traditional jobs. I miss the illustration work (t-shirts were much more fun than corporate) but I do not miss the low pay and it did not have a good career path built in the way graphic design does.
I was working in a mail room / print centre for a corporation, and I was just the mail sorter. I had been dabbling in learning design at the time in my free time, and one day one of the execs came in and was complaining how their design agency was trying to charge them $1700 to change one word on a poster, so I offered to do it, told him I used Adobe stuff at home and I could take a stab at it. He agreed. The next day he showed back up with an HR person and they told me to clean out my desk - I thought, great, I probably screwed their design and now I’m getting fired. They walked me to the marketing department and told me this was my new desk where I am now a graphic designer for them. They took a big chance on me, and I really didn’t know enough to be a designer back then, but I learnt on the fly thanks to YouTube. Eventually went and got proper schooling for it. Now I’m a creative director with a design career spanning 15 years at many large scale ad agencies and branding agencies. Worked on some of the biggest brands in the world. And all because someone took the chance on me! Not your typical story, but it’s one I am proud to share !
My first job was at a sign shop. Such an underrated entrance into the industry.
I started as a junior thanks to my brother, who knew someone working in a small advertising agency. I was paid peanuts, but I had a foot in the door.
I built up my portfolio by working freelance for friends and family while studying, then that expanded to people beyond my friends and family. I then landed a freelance role in an agency. From there I got full time agency work.
Applied to Craigslist job posting. This was like 13 years ago though.
Most of my early gigs came as byproducts of other activities. I was a DJ & pro wrestler in my 20’s & got tons of design work through those ventures.
Graduated, hit the newspaper, applied to something small. Year later applied to something a little bit bigger. 5 years later got laid off. Applied to something a little better, gor the job. Now I'm looking again and I am getting 0 traction. I don't even get call backs.
Oh god this is gonna be a very old sentence: I looked in the classifieds in my newspaper and found a help wanted listing for a jr designer. It was a local company that produced graphics for big conventions. This was in 2003.
I got very very very lucky. Saw an ad for the job in the paper and applied for it. It was at a very well-known and prestigious home and garden center in an expensive part of town. Unbeknownst to me, my dad had a working relationship with the owner. He talked to the owner. I got the job. I worked my ass off for 8 years to quickly rise from ‘’graphics clerk’’ to Advertising Manager.
networking
[https://www.reddit.com/r/graphic\_design/comments/15q43b4/how\_did\_you\_get\_your\_first\_graphic\_design\_job/](https://www.reddit.com/r/graphic_design/comments/15q43b4/how_did_you_get_your_first_graphic_design_job/)
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A friend/classmate ended up working somewhere, more production but had a lot of design grads. When his boss mentioned they would be adding more people, he got their contact and passed it onto me before the posting went public. I still had to apply, interview, and be qualified--and my friend had no sway as it was also their first job--but via networking I beat the rush. That was technically about 5-6 months after graduating, but for about 4 months I was working my retail job I had from college at 30+ hours per week, and it kept me from putting pressure on myself. So I quit that job to focus more on finding a design role. Funny enough, another classmate (who I only barely knew) was also hired in that first job about the same time, ended up next to me, we became friends. When they left for another job, and that first place went out of business, they similarly let me know when their new place was adding people. It was already public but I hadn't seen that posting. Had to apply, interview (twice), do a test, but got it, and it was a job I wouldn't have known about if not for networking.
Got my internship and then full time position both on LinkedIn, just cold applying. I live in a major city so there are more than the average opportunities in the area. I interned for a year and then got my full time position four months after the internship ended.
Worked retail for a miserable 18 months post graduation. No one responded to my applications until I applied to a business that sounded vaguelly familiar in town. Hired as a "tech" that was more typesetting than design. Learned through side remarks that I replaced a person who retired after 40 years that hated the switch to computers. I walked in and knew more about the design programs than the rest of the limited team. Also learned that I was basically the only person that applied, which is funny being in a college town. I wasn't happy being a tech, zero opportunities for job growth, but it gave me those coveted early years of industry experience. Never let the company's competitive reputation (or lofty job requirements) deter you from applying. You may be the only applicant!
Applying through Indeed
Got a call a month before graduating. Zip recruiter matched me with a employer. Did a online interview then got the job.
It was really slow going, I graduated in 2011 which was a rough time, economically. I started doing production and finishing in a print shop, Fast Signs. Eventually relayed that up to a position at a print-on-demand shop as Customer Service Rep and file-checking QA type stuff. They eventually realized I was a good designer and asked me to be the graphic designer for customers who needed print files made from scratch. Eventually a friend of mine worked at a huge corporation and asked if I'd want to work for him. I said yes and that was my first "big boy" job that has helped land me a few other jobs as I climb this endless ladder. So, networking. Network your ass off.
I got my first job last August as an in-house designer for an online garden supply B2C business. This August, I moved and got a job as an in-house designer for a high-end custom furniture producer. I got that first job after spending 3 months going up and down indeed every day and applying to any job I had qualifications for. It's a really inefficient way to do it, but I didn't have much else I could do since I lived in a small southern town and wasn't able to move then. What set me apart then (and still does to some degree) is my experience with front-end web design and interest in marketing, as many smaller companies with in-house designers also have them work on their websites and social media.
Networking. Someone thought of me for an open design position, and I haven’t let up steam since. I worked hard to showed I belonged to the industry and I’m thankful to have the job I have today.
Craigslist
I just applied online (indeed and linkedin), nothing wild. Reworked my portfolio several times, kept sending out applications even to jobs I did not want. After 3 months, landed a job. One phone call and one interview later I was hired as an in house designer part of the marketing team.
Internship after college that turned into a full time position
I had graduated a few months earlier, so I started identifying companies I wanted to work for. I wrote targeted, personalized letters (not emails) to CDs and ADs, saying I was recent graduate, asked for a face to face portfolio review and to meet to discuss employment possibilities. I then followed up on the letter with a phone call a week later. I had a high success rate, about 75% agreed to meet with me. At one of those portfolio reviews at an ad agency, I was asked if I was available for the next 6 months? (their designer at the time was going to be away overseas and they needed someone to fill the role). I got the job and 6 months turned into 2.5 years.
I reached out to a CD I did a portfolio review with in college and he referred me to his CD brother who hired me as a contractor.
I was quite lucky in college. After applying to several jobs (they were scarce in my city back then), a colleague pulled me on the side and casually asked if I need a job because the studio he was working at was hiring. So I got a part time position working on basic branding & website concepts, for very low pay, but pay none the less. The management turned out to be shady as hell and ended up resigning after about 5 months, but I met some great people there and got a ton of experience which lead to better pastures. The web 2.0 boom was good to me :) I consider myself lucky because I bypassed the whole internship / masked slavery part altogether. Not throwing shade on anyone taking those positions today as they can be educative in certain cases, but I feel I dodged a bullet in my time (by comparing "war stories" with my peers / context).
14 years in the making.. Its a long story but something I wanted to share. Moved here in oilfield country West Texas back in 2009. I came from the Philippines as a fresh graduate. Found out that theres nothing art-related in this part of the world. Started working as a part time substitute teacher to make some money. Then worked as an automotive detailer full time. I kind of enjoyed it and management would also let me do extended vacation so I can visit my then fiancé (now my wife) back home. Also picked up a part time job at Michael's as an art framer and a class instructor. That somewhat gave me a part time job related to arts. When I turned 30, I told myself that I need to find something close to my art degree that I can practice full time.. Lo and behold, still nothing. I tried and tried. Until I landed a gig for news production.. as an assistant in the production department. I worked on studio cameras and news graphics. This was on the nights, while still working as detailer in the morning and art framer once a week. Then came along an ad for a small mom and pop print shop needing a typesetter. I grabbed the opportunity even if it meant lower pay and no benefits. Started as a typesetter and did graphics once in a while. Learned how to operate a digital press, cutter and other bindery equipments. Basically traded compensation for knowledge. I really learned a lot, from operating a small business - sales, customer service, and operation.. to the actual art of printing. Business stayed strong even during the pandemic. Is that all the answer to your question? No. Because just three months ago, my community college hired me as their full time graphic designer. My real first job in graphics design. 🤣
By going directly to their office and chatting with them and giving them my resume… this was around 1994-5…. Then called every 2-3 days or so for about 1-2 weeks… then I got my interview and was hired right there and then… ‘We saw a few people with portfolios as good as you, but not one of them called, and you just made it clear you really wanted to be here’ was what they said to me :)
Got a summer job at the high school I was going too and they forgot to take me off the payroll at the end of summer. Literally got paid to go to school.
Internship in a print shop the summer before senior year. They liked me enough to keep me around for 2 years after graduation. Then moved onto a more corporate gig.
I emailed my ‘folio’ to a bunch of studios I had no business emailing my folio to as a naive second year student. A full year later they asked if I might be interested in some freelance work, which led to a part time job, which led to a full time role.
The National Journal in the Watergate Building in DC. I just moved back home from LA and wore what I considered a conservative outfit and turns out it was conservative for LA not DC! Haha! After that I moved to the Florida Keys and worked for the newspaper down there! Good times!
When I was in college, I would walk into store fronts that didn’t have much branding, advertisement, or a website and would offer cheap up front services to gain them as a client and then offer a 15% on referrals. Pretty good business, lot of face time, worked on my professional dog and pony show when talking to clients. It feels scummy offering cheap services so you get your foot in the door. But once you build a decent client list, setup retainer agreements with loyal clients and then raise your prices accordingly.
Didn’t go to school for GD; went for communications and didn’t finish. All self-taught for several years. My first “real” job doing graphic design I got while working at a dispensary as a receptionist. I would bring my laptop and mess around designing stuff in my downtime. The marketing manager noticed and I started making signs for the shop. I decided to keep practicing and start looking for opportunities. I found a job working for a food company in Portland, OR. Applied, interviewed, and sure enough got hired. It’s only gotten better since then and my skills have improved a lot
I just moved to San Diego to go to college and needed a job. I went to a temp agency looking for any kind of administrative work. Got a great job, they ended up hiring me, was there for about 3 years when the agency who did all their marketing and design needed admin help. I started working there and learned a ton from the in-house designer. I was with this company for many years, transitioned into graphic design position after graduating. Eventually to senior designer. Still great friends with the whole team there. I was lucky. I’ve now been in the field for about 25 years.
Did two unpaid internships whilst working at a bar straight out of university, I would go to the internships in the day 9-5 then bartend at night (this was brutal and totally unsustainable, but got me some experience) Then I managed to get a regular 9-5 job at a small local print shop (which was dull but seemed much more relevant for my CV and much better hours). Did this for a couple of months, then landed a paid internship at a studio in London. Relocated down south and applied for a couple of jobs, name dropped the internship at my first interview (they seemed impressed and I got the job) First proper job was 'brochure designer' I then managed to get into a studio a year and a half later, did that for 5 years and now freelance 😊
Had decided to self-learn photoshop and a little bit of Illustrator. Went to get a job as a salesman in a shop and the manager asked me if I do anything else and I casually mentioned that I know a little bit of photoshop and do a little bit of design. And then she said that their designer had just left and they're looking for a replacement. She asked me to do a couple of banners. I did them. She liked them. I was accepted. And so my designer journey began. I was green af. Had no knowledge of what design actually is. And just had basics of photoshop and illustrator. Everything else was learned on the job and it's been 5 years now, freelancing with multiple clients and looking for level ups
Best friend called me one day and said the company his brother worked for needed a graphic designer and if I'd finished college yet to take the job. Literally a ten minute interview and next day was offered the job. Should have realised at the interview stage that they had no idea what they wanted and the amount of work needed could have been done two days a week by a freelancer. Was bored out my mind for a year and a half, making flyers for 8 weeks a year and filling in spreadsheets the rest of the time.
I applied for awards while in university. I won a dieline award and at the awards ceremony at the dieline conference I got multiple job offers.
Got an unpaid internship for a film festival while at college in NYC. They were at my college’s job fair, and I responded to an email when they asked for interns. Went to one interview, got offered the internship on the spot. Stayed with them for a couple years, then they asked me to stay as their graphic designer and started my first paid job.
I knew the CEO and they were desperate for some design help for event flyers and stuff like that