This online Graphic Design degree is completed in 72 credits at a cost of $250 per credit for a total cost of $18,000 to attain an online Graphic Design degree. The coursework includes 22 classes in Design and 7 classes in General Education. This online degree program runs for 6 semesters of 15 weeks each. Sessions College offered reduced tuition rates for students affiliated with the military, including active duty, veterans, and military spouses.

The coursework for the online Graphic Design degree includes Color Theory, Typography I, Drawing I, Photoshop I, English Composition, Design and Composition, Logo Design I, Illustrator I, Digital Photography I, Computer Technology, XHTML and CSS I, Typography II, History of Art, General Psychology, InDesign I, Graphic Design I, Intro to Marketing, History of Design, Business and Technical Writing, Dreamweaver I, Print Production, Branding and Identity, Logo Design II, Layout Design, Packaging Design, Graphic Design II, Design Business, Capstone Project, and Portfolio Review.

The Associate of Occupational Studies Degree in Graphic Design at Sessions College for Professional Design is a good opportunity for a student to quickly enter the Graphic Design job field! The online classes, accelerated degree plan and relatively inexpensive overall tuition make this a valuable option for students who prefer to enter the job market sooner and with less debt!

Their online Graphic Design degree offers the following areas of degree focus: Print and 2D, Motion Graphics, Interactive Design, and Portfolio Development. Shift Magazine hailed Full Sail University as “one of the top ten new media schools.” This online Graphic Design degree takes 120 credit hours to complete. Tuition for this degree program is $6,750 per semester and the online degree is completed in 8 semesters.

Full Sail has an extremely engaging website—a testament to the vivacious style of its educational culture! The online classes are generally 4 weeks long and 4 credit hours apiece, and online classes begin every month. The coursework for this online Graphic Design degree includes Designing Computer Graphics, Advanced Computer Graphics, Design and Art Theory, Color Theory, Digital Storytelling, Logos and Symbols, History of Visual Communications, Art History, Typography and Page Layout, Digital Publishing, Digital Audio Design, Motion Graphics, Digital Video, Editing Digital Video, Intellectual Property and Law, Corporate Branding, Media and Society, and Portfolio Creation.

Full Sail University seems to have captured a valuable niche—the well-respected, technology-focused Arts school that recognizes that Graphic Design jobs are often performed online, why shouldn’t an awesome Art school offer a Graphic Design degree online? The fact that Full Sail highlights its impressive list of prominently employed alumni shows another important consideration—the purpose of an online Graphic Design degree is to score a fantastic job!

All of the Graphic Design classes can be completed online, but the college also offers the opportunity to take some classes online and some in the classroom—you have the option to mix traditional classroom experiences with the convenience of online classes. This online Graphic Design Associate Degree is completed in 107 credit hours. The tuition is $4,435 per term, and the degree online generally takes 8 terms.

The Graphic Design degree is based on a strong foundation of drawing, color, basic design, and leading industry software. The Graphic Design classes approach this degree from the perspective of communication through type, photography or illustration. The coursework for this degree includes technical and general education classes such as Introduction to Graphic Design, Digital Illustration, Digital Layout, Image Editing, 3D Modeling and Animation, Web Page Design, Advanced Design Portfolio Review, and Multimedia: Audio-Video.

Westwood College’s Associate Degree in Graphic Design and Multimedia will prepare you for Adobe InDesign CS4, Illustrator CS4, Dreamweaver CS4, and Photoshop CS4 certifications. These certifications will be a major help in advancing your career as a Graphic Designer! This degree will enable you to create layouts and illustration in industry-standard software. You will understand, design and create web sites, create and animate virtual objects in a 3D environment, and create and edit video presentations.

As a Graphic and Web Designer, you will analyze and plan the overall design of a web page. As an Advertising and Design Coordinator you would be able to proof copy, press checkfiles, compress and optimize images, organize advertising for print, and coordinate scheduling or promotions.

As a Graphic Designer or Graphic Artist, this online degree would teach you to plan, analyze and create visual solutions to communications problems. You would convey a message effectively through color, type, illustration, photography, or animation, using various print and layout techniques.

The Professional Association For Design was founded in 1949, and is the largest and oldest professional organization for graphic designers. It also serves as a registered federal non-profit.

The Mission of the Professional Association of Design

The Professional Association Of Design is a clearinghouse for the discussion, discovery, appreciation and inspiration by and of design. It’s the first place designers go to exchange information and ideas, critically analyze design trends and problems, and advance the education and ethical practices of all graphic designers.

The Professional Association Of Design represents over twenty two thousand professional designers, design educators and student designers through a series of sixty four chapters and two hundred and forty student groups. The Professional Association Of Design serves designers with five critical functions:

• Information
• Communication
• Inspiration
• Validation
• Representation

The Professional Association Of Design serves as the authority in communicating and promoting standards for the ethics of graphic design. They also stimulate discussion and debate of effective and innovative design, while at all times being open to new ideas.

Regardless of where they may be in their career, The Professional Association Of Design supports graphic designers. From typeface and book design through traditional design methods to up and coming interactive design methods, The Professional Association Of Design is there to help. The Professional Association Of Design serves as the main hub of leadership, thought and activity for the graphic design community. Through inspiration, education and information, The Professional Association Of Design helps graphic designers reach their talent and be a successful advocate for the graphic design field all across the world.

The Professional Association of Design is also an endorser of the Designers Accord, which is a not for profit collection of design and innovation professionals and firms focused on spreading a positive social and environmental message.

That about wraps this article up – for more information on The Professional Association Of Design, visit their website at http://www.aiga.org/content.cfm/professional-resources

Graphic designers – sometimes known as graphic artists – analyze, plan and create visual answers to communication problems. Graphic designers seek the most concise and effective method to get the intended message across, in both electronic and print media, using elements of photography, animation, type, illustration and color. Various print and layout techniques are also utilized.

It’s a graphic designer’s job to create and develop the layout and design of newspapers, magazines, journals, promotional displays, marketing brochures and packaging. They design logos for businesses and products, develop environmental graphics (signage and sign systems), and the credits that appear after and before movies and television programs. Increasingly, graphic designers are developing material for the internet, including web pages, multimedia projects and interactive media.

The First Step in a New Design

Creating a new design is an exciting and inventive process. Your first step as a graphic designer involves assessing the needs of your client, including what message the client is trying to get across and how the product or service will appeal to users or customers.

Graphic designers consider the physical, cultural, cognitive and social factors in executing and planning the design for the client’s target audience. Designers collect relevant data through meeting with art directors, creative directors and clients – additionally, through the graphic designer’s own independent research – then mould that data into an illustration of the design. Graphic designers prepare layouts or sketches – either through the aid of a computer or by hand – then select sound, artwork, animation, typeface, photography and colors for the design.

Designers then make a presentation of the finished design to the client for the client’s approval or rejection. Once the client’s given the go ahead, graphic designers complete the design for deployment in the public sphere.

Graphic designers, at time, hire and supervise assistant graphic designers. This frees up the graphic designer to networking, cultivating new industry contacts, selecting new equipment for use in graphic design, and upgrading existing communications equipment and computer hardware.

Final Thoughts on the Definition of Graphic Design

The above definition, provided by the United States Department of Labor, is hardly the only definition you should consider. But it does provide important insight into how your government views your field.

Researching the Market in Your Area

There’s a good chance your first job will be local – a small business in your town or city needing a print or web advertisement, business card, logo or brochure. Do your research – find out what other graphic designers/graphic design firms exist in your area, visit their websites and get a sense of what sectors of the community they serve.

Creating the Perfect Portfolio

When creating your portfolio, and I know this sounds obvious, make sure to chose only your best and strongest work. Additionally, remember that your portfolio tells a story about you as a designer. Don’t just throw seven great pieces in and call it a day – choose pieces that balance each other out and show your full range as a designer.

If your university or school offers advisory sessions or courses for putting together a portfolio (or assessing the one you’ve all ready made), be sure to access those resources. Bring your portfolio to your professors and any local professionals you may have met. Make sure to take their feedback seriously, and thank them for taking the time to assess your work. Even if his or her notes are total garbage, it’s important to appreciate anyone who helps you start your career.

Writing the Perfect Resume

At this stage in your career your resume will be thin – it’ll involve mostly student projects and internship work. That’s okay – nobody’s expecting a huge resume out of a recent graphic design graduate. The most important part of your resume at this stage is its design. Your resume needs to be a work of art, much like the pieces in your portfolio. The perfect typographic design, logo and business card will take you far.

Also, don’t forget the basics – facts about yourself that a prospective employer would want to know, your telephone number and address, your specific technical skills, etc.

Getting the First Interview

This is the hardest part of the process. Compile a list of places you’d like to work or clients you’d like to work for. Access your school’s job placement services. Network, network, network. There are jobs out there – you just need to hang in there long enough to find one.