Job Outlook for Graphic Designers...

Here I am in the library surrounded by thousands of books, which invoked me to think about education. The words "college," "tuition," "job," and "future" floated around my head. The combination of words made me wonder if I'm heading in the right direction as a junior Interactive Design major in an university. My graduation date is May 2012. It's really not that far away, so I thought what is the job outlook for Graphic Designers?

After some research, I stumbled upon the United States Department of Labor website. After clicking a few links, I got to the Graphic Designers page that provides information about the nature of the job, the qualifications, the projected job outlook and the estimated salary.

The qualifications for the job is usually a bachelor's degree in Graphic Design. Looks good so far, because I am currently pursuing one at Waynesburg University.

"Employment of graphic designers is expected to grow 13 percent, as fast as the average for all occupations from 2008 to 2018, as demand for graphic design continues to increase from advertisers and computer design firms." -Bureau of Labor Statistics

"Graphic designers are expected to face keen competition for available positions. Many talented individuals are attracted to careers as graphic designers. Individuals with Web site design and animation experience will have the best opportunities." - Bureau of Labor Statistics

After discovering those facts, I was pretty confident that I would be able to get a job because my career field is expected to grow, which is encouraging to hear, especially the way the economy is now.

I am confident that I'll be able to stand out from my competitions when I apply for jobs because I currently have two jobs that is related to my major and is helping me to have real world experience in Graphic Design. I also had other jobs in the past that helped me to get Graphic Design experience in the newspaper, TV, book publishing, and sports world.

But I realized that the graphic designers with the skills in Web Design has the best opportunities as the internet has continued to grow exponentially in the past two decades.

So, I hope for the next two years, I will be able to learn EVERYTHING about making, building, and maintaining websites from the sketching process, to HTML coding, to Dreamweaver, to making flash advertisements, and websites. The more I learn about that, the better chances I have at getting a job that I will love to do.

According to the Bureau, the estimated salary for Graphic Designers were:

Computer systems design and related services $47,860
Specialized design services 45,870
Advertising, public relations and related services 43,540
Newspaper, periodical, book, and directory publishers 36,910
Printing and related support activities 36,100

I'm pretty content with the projected salary. I can see myself working in design firms, advertising, or the book publishing industries. According to the list above. The pay is not bad either.

So all in all, the job outlook for Graphic Designers are looking good. I'm over halfway in getting my BA and is on the right track. But I have a feeling that it's impossible for WU or any other school to teach me everything I need to know about Graphic Design in four years. The rest I will have to learn over time on my own through experience. Hmmmm...maybe I'll go to RIT to get a Masters in Computers Graphic Design....