How does a graphic designer get hired?
I would like to know how a graphic designer gets hired and about how long it took to get a call back for an interview? #graphic-design #design
3 answers
Jennifer’s Answer
The time varies from company to company. The shortest amount of time I had it take from start to finish was 2 weeks with one job, the longest --- 4 months!
Michele’s Answer
Your portfolio will heavily drive your likelihood of getting hired. It is the representation of your technical and design thinking skills.
Make sure that your portfolio tells a compelling story about your process (how you think and how you work). While have visual design abilities is important, being able to solve a problem using design/creative thinking is as or more important.
There are various local design organizations that host portfolio reviews where professionals give you feedback on your portfolio. It’s really good practice for interviews as well as helps you improve your work.
Different companies will also look for different stories in your portfolio. Make sure you tailor your portfolio to your audience!
Interviews:
It really depends on the company. Different size companies have different hiring processes. Some can get back to you the same week and others sooner or later. It depends on their timeline and how many interviewees they have. Recruiters are always helpful with giving you a clearer and more accurate deadline!
Afifa’s Answer
I work in user experience which some graphic designers moved into and we also have some illustrators/graphic designers on the team. User experience is not just about making things look good but about understanding the user and designing for their problem. In either case you need a portfolio. An example of a what goes in a portfolio is below as well as what as a day in the life of a designers.
Day in the life - https://medium.com/vmwaredesign/the-day-in-the-life-of-a-product-designer-at-vmware-bfdf00e5a0f3
Product Designer Portfolio - https://medium.com/vmwaredesign/product-design-portfolios-63618e1692b6
How long it takes to get hired and how long it takes to get a call back differs greatly by company. From the time you apply it can take a day to 2weeks+ to hear back. Then you will get a call from a recruiter, if you pass that they will either immediately schedule another interview that is 1week-2weeks out. There can then be another interview or an offer at that point. It all depends on companies. It can be as long as a month or 2 or just a week or so. Big companies with many applicants tend to take longer. If you are looking for a small agency job that may be quicker of just sending a portfolio and then a couple of interviews and your hired. But it all depends. Fresh out of college it won't be as long of a processes, the more experience you have and the higher the position the longer it would be. Best of luck!