Whether you are just starting college or attempting to change your career field, pursuing a BFA in graphic design may be the right choice. Graphic design is a good career field because there are many career paths and people can often work both as employees or freelancers.

Marketing

Marketing is one of the most common paths of graphic designers. Since your coursework entails elements of typography and color theory, you can help businesses devise logos, advertisements, and brand consistency to improve their visibility and sales. Marketing often involves the use of sophisticated software that is capable of editing photos and building vector images. Some graphic designers may also use animation as part of creating marketing material for businesses. Psychology is also an important part of marketing because advertisements and branding are often designed to appeal to the emotions of those who view the material.

UX Designer

User experience (UX) designers are the bridge between consumers and products or software. Their job is to improve the experience people have with websites, software, and products. For example, they may develop and maintain websites that are user-friendly to the average visitor. This information is based on best practices and often rely on surveys. Many businesses recruit a small number of participants to view a sample website and have them record audio and visual information as they go through the website and use different features. The UX designer can take this information and make suggested changes to the website that will improve UX.

Web Designer

Web designers can be involved in both website and app development. Although there are many types of software that make website and app design easier, such as a drag-and-drop interface, web designers generally have coding experience. This coding experience allows web designers to take a basic website template and create a unique website that fits the specific business and allows unique functionality. For website design, HTML and CSS are the most common languages used in the development of websites. For app development, a coding background in C++, Java, and PHP is essential since these are the most common programming languages for apps. Not only are these languages necessary for making the visual components of the app, but it is necessary to create databases and other functions of the app.

Graphic design is an excellent option for a first or subsequent career due to the versatility of job options. Additionally, the option of an online degree program in graphic design means more flexibility to pursue your education.