Work placements whilst studying Graphic Design can provide valuable experience of the design industry. It can provide a first hand account of the every day life of a designer and how a design agency works. I can see having a placement will gain you a lot of knowledge about the design world, but also could help you decide if working as a designer is the right job for yourself.
“Placements aren’t for everyone. But I feel that whether the experience is good or bad it is worthy. Ultimately it will make you realise that you’re in the wrong game or totally reassure you that you were born to design.” (Oldham, 2007, pp5.)
I personally haven’t had a placement as of yet. I feel this is because I didn’t have a gap year or the opportunity to do a placement. This is partly because of my own fault not emailing companies during my holidays. If I could turn back time, I would of gone about this in a completely different way, spending my holidays doing something valuable and productive, but also more importantly gaining contacts in the industry. Hopefully getting my foot in the door, if you like.
“Any placement, whether at a big agency or small, pokey one, in-house or independent, one week or 12 months, is a unique and valuable insight and experience. No doubt about it.” (Oldham, 2007, pp5.)
I would of loved to gain precious insight of the mechanics of a design agency, the structure of how the offices runs, from talking directly to the clients, handling the accounts or coming up with the ideas.
But doing a placement can mean doing some work that you maybe don’t want to do. Taking advantage of the fact that you might get unpaid or that when you leave you may never see your work colleagues again. I have mixed feeling about placements sometimes, hearing stories around the studio whilst studying at university. According to practitioners that have come into university to do talks, say that the most important thing of a placement is making a lot of tea and coffees, but this is a good thing because it can get you around the studio. Going to different people in different departments, giving you a chance to see what they are doing, maybe offering a helping hand. This is what can get you remembered. Staying late and putting a lot of effort in will get you remembered for working hard. Also working in the studio will help you begin to understand the design language, learning more about paper mechanics. Learning the correct names for each different fold such as a ‘Gatefold’ and learning different paper stocks, weights and sizes. You will get to see some high quality finishes like spot varnishing. It will provide experience with working in teams; it will help your professional practise develop.
Another thing about placements is not a lot of information has been published about them. Only a few people have written and documented their experience whilst being on a placement. A great help to all students who are currently in their last year is Craig Oldham, “12 In 12”. This is Craig’s own opinion on his experience as a designer in his first year after finishing university.
“Well simply put, it is 12 things (lessons, maxims, ideas, facts and opinion-amongst other stuff) that I have learnt in my first 12 months as a Designer that I had no way of learning whilst in education.” (Oldham, 2007, pp17.)
I feel working on a placement could possibly provide work for you portfolio. In my opinion this is a good thing, the more work the better. Also its nice to have some work in your portfolio that maybe could have been printed. Maybe if you where lucky enough you could even see it in situation out in the real world. So you don’t have to mock it up using Live Surface. It will also look good on your personal CV. Design agencies won’t be interested in your shelf stacking skill or till operating skills. They will look at your experience. People who are offering placements will want people who can benefit them, and their studios. They will want people who can get on with tasks that were set, not constantly being bothered, asking them what to do.
I personally think placements do matter. I just not had to opportunity myself to do one.
“Placements do matter, so do them, get stuck in and give ’em a go” (Oldham, 2007, pp5.)
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