Advice for a mature designer

B

bill_uk

New Member
Hello all,

I have completed a design degree as a mature student and am now looking for work in the industry. My problem is that I have a small amount of experience with graphic design from previous jobs and dealing wit clients in particular. Because of this I would not necessarily class myself as a "junior" and if I would apply for these jobs the pay would be quite terrible.

Does anyone have any advice for such a situation? Would I be able to land a middleweight designer job, or would something else be more suitable/attainable? Any help anyone can offer would be appreciated.
 
Employers are not allowed to take age, sex or race into consideration when recruiting so all they have left is experience & ability. If you've got no directly relevant experience, you're on par with any other graduate trying to shoot for a mid-weight position. It might be advisable to think how your skills and abilities can work in an employers favor, then work those into your CV/covering letter. You will struggle to get past the creative recruitment agents without 3-4 years studio experience and a portfolio bulging with blue chip clients (They really are the biggest bunch of self important w**kers you could ever meet!).

I can see how you feel you are perhaps beyond a junior position but it's worth remembering that working as a junior gives you a valuable insight and technical knowledge of the industry as well as the opportunity to work under and learn from more experienced designers.
 
That said, if you have previous experience within the industry and are now armed with a degree to boot then, arguably, you would be ahead of plenty of those graduates and perhaps more in line to go into a slightly more senior position.

As Dave says, just because you're a bit older and may not want the lower wage isn't cause enough to demand a higher position. Before getting the degree, you may have felt that lacking one was holding you back despite a bit of experience and so now you have it you may be able to go for that higher role, but the type of experience is pretty key and you'd need a decent portfolio to go with it.
 
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