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Are You Drawn to a Design Career?

By H. Staples
Learning & Life Columnist
June 1, 2007

If your dream career means setting your own hours, deciding with whom and for whom you work, and turning creative ideas into realities, you might enjoy a freelance design career. About a third of designers are self-employed, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In fact, the U.S. Census reports that more and more people are working for themselves. The associated perks no doubt help explain why.

As a freelance designer, you can:

• Work from home
• Decide the dress code
• Enjoy flexible hours
• Select clients
• Take on as much or as little work as you like
• Set your own rates

An Eye for Art and Education

Having an eye for art will take you a long way, but you can further hone your talent and greatly increase your career prospects by getting formal training. Many colleges and universities offer degree programs in graphic, Web, interior, or fashion design. You can get your degree in either an online or traditional classroom format. The creativity required for work in design goes beyond color and composition know-how. Some designers find great personal satisfaction in solving design problems in innovative ways, as an interior designer might do to maximize space in a small condo. Other designers enjoy bringing a concept to life that communicates an idea successfully to lots of people, as graphic and Web designers do. Regardless of your particular inclination, a design education could be just the right splash of color for your resume.

Sources:

• Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Interior Design"

About the Author
H.L. Staples teaches at Syracuse University. Her articles have appeared in The Boston Review, Denver Quarterly, The Georgia Review, and elsewhere.

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