An increasingly popular career choice, graphic designing encompasses planning, analyzing, and creating visual solutions to communication problems. Creativity, attention to detail, artistic skills and being able to communicate visually, verbally and in writing are the most important traits you need to become a graphic designer.

Skills alone, however, are not enough to get you in the industry. A bachelor’s degree in graphic design is required for most entry-level and advanced graphic design positions. Choosing the right school for you amongst the many that offer graphic design related degrees is an important decision to make. In addition, a good portfolio often is the deciding factor in getting a job.

Graphic designers use a variety of graphics and layout computer software to assist in their designs. Increasingly, employers expect new graphic designers to be familiar with computer graphics and design software. You must continually keep up to date with the development of new and updated software.

While artistic and technical skills are the foundation of graphic design, keep in mind that clients also increasingly rely on graphic designers to develop the content and the context of the message in addition to performing technical layout work.

A bachelor’s degree from a 4-year college not only gives you the technical skills required by the job, but also educates you in social sciences, examples include art history, psychology, sociology and cultural studies, which are useful when it comes to working effectively with the content of your work.

Associate degrees and certificates in graphic design also are available from 2-year schools that focus on technical aspects of design. Graduates of 2-year programs usually qualify as assistants to graphic designers or for positions requiring technical skills only. These programs are also helpful if you wish to pursue a career in graphic design but already possess a bachelor’s degree in another field.

The highest level of degree you can get for graphic design is Master’s of Fine Arts (MFA), which is important for getting the highest level jobs in the industry.

Among the five design occupations, graphic designers are expected to have the most new jobs through 2014. However, job seekers are also expected to face keen competition for available positions. While publishing and advertising are two of the most prevalent industries when it comes to employing graphic designers, almost every industry relies on the services of graphic designers when it comes time to produce printed materials.

The average earnings of a graphic designer is $35,000, with most designers earning between $20,000 and $60,000. While full-time salaried graphic design positions are available, a lot of graphic designers work on a contract, freelance basis. For graphic designers who set out on their own, having a business sense and confidence play an important role in their ability to succeed.

Graphic designers generate the visual presentation and design of goods, including anything from websites to detergent boxes, album covers to dog food cans. The work is usually done on a project basis. You must be able to work under extreme time constraints and very defined financial and design limits to produce quality material.

Graphic designers also must be creative and able to communicate their ideas in writing, visually, and verbally. Because consumer tastes can change quickly, you need to be well read, open to new ideas and influences, and quick to react to changing trends.

• Problem-solving skills, paying attention to detail, and the ability to work independently and under pressure are important traits.
• It is essential to keep up-to-date with the new software technologies that develop everyday. Some important ones to master are QuarkXpress, Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, Acrobat, Dreamweaver, and Flash.
• Career opportunities include those in advertising, television and film, publishing and private businesses.

Web Design is a large and growing industry that combines the fields of graphic design, computer programming, multimedia, and writing. With the dramatic growth of the Internet and exciting technological advances in the design field, web graphic designers have many opportunities. Today, every business, large or small, needs a strong web presence in order to thrive and this means a large web design base within the graphic design industry.

Main skill sets that are required include HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, Flash and Photoshop. It is important to have a good grasp of graphic design and layout and text editing. The best web-designers know more than just the technical skills, they also know what a good looking page is supposed to look like.

Using computer software, desktop publishers format and combine text, numerical data, photographs, charts, and other visual graphic elements to produce publication-ready material.

Desktop Publishing Specialists create such documents as reports, brochures, instruction manuals, magazines, books, tickets, cards, newsletters, advertisements, and forms. In some companies, graphic designers may supervise these workers, while other DTP Specialists apply their knowledge of graphic art to complete the job unsupervised.

Most of the career opportunities are in printing and publishing industries. However, other desktop publishers print or publish materials in-house or in-plant for business services firms, government agencies, hospitals, or universities, typically in a reproduction or publications department that operates within the organization. The essential skills include QuarkXPress, Adobe InDesign, PageMaker, FreeHand, Illustrator and Photoshop.

As an advertising designer, you would create visual and print ideas for advertising and marketing campaigns. Advertising designers tackle communication problems regarding how to best convey their message to consumers and stimulate demand for their products. In order to do this, a range or factors should be considered, to determine the most appropriate and effective design for the given advertisement. Advertising designers need to use various combinations of print, electronic, and film media to create designs that visually solve communication problems.

As a professional in the field of advertising design, you would need to combine skills in design, writing, strategic planning and branding to develop integrated multimedia marketing campaigns. Knowing how to use programs such as, Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, PageMaker, and Quark are also an important part of the skill sets required for the industry.

Marketing Managers are responsible for conducting and evaluating market research for a product or service. As a marketing manager, you will be in charge of designing, writing, and overseeing the production of printed promotional materials including catalogs, brochures, flyers, and program and media guides. You will also often be in charge of developing advertising campaigns for various media and designing layouts and preparing copies.

In addition to experience in marketing, the necessary skills for marketing managers include experience with design, print and web production and a strong knowledge of design applications and tools - Illustrator, Photoshop and InDesign to name a few. Marketing Managers can get into the fields of advertising, television, film and print media.

Packaging design is the discipline of creating the container, graphics and visible outer presence of a product a consumer buys at retail or might receive in the mail. This container may range from a simple bottle and label to an elaborate box or system of boxes and inner packaging.

The discipline of package design focuses on producing a container that will get noticed. By skillfully teaming colorful graphics, a unique shape, or any other eye-arresting method, the package designer is a key player in any company's marketing effort.

Packaging designers need the ability to develop marketable ideas and translate design concepts into three-dimensional packages of all shapes and sizes. They must also be in tune with today's market and knowledgeable about competitive strategies to communicate the essence of a consumer brand, product, or service over a wide variety of mediums.

As a packaging designer, you need to be able to combine the knowledge of a structural engineer with the esthetic sense of a graphic designer. You also need to have knowledge of computer-aided design software (CAD) in addition to QuarkXPress, Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.

In the world of print, graphic designers that specialize in print use their creativity and computer skills to layout advertising material, brochures, and other print items that artfully bring together text, photos, and illustrations to create the kind of visual impact desired by clients.

Career fields of print designers include newspapers, magazines and similar print media, in addition advertising. It is important to have knowledge of latest versions of design softwares such as Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Acrobat, and Dreamweaver.