Graphic design has a wide range of career opportunities. Moreover, in recent years, with the explosion of online content, job opportunities for graphic designers have grown even more. A good choice of graphic design school can be the difference between having more or fewer chances of finding a job.
Graphic design has become a profession that, over time, has become more established and has grown in opportunities. It is possible to work in very different fields, from face-to-face communication or marketing to virtual via the Internet, etc.
The possibilities have multiplied in recent decades. Nowadays, graphic design is a professional activity with numerous opportunities.
Studying at graphic design schools
To be eligible for the professional market as a graphic designer, it is necessary to have a solid base that allows you to develop this activity.
Although the self-taught element (and talent) may also play a role, training is very important. However, it would help if you remembered that graphic design does not have a pedagogical regulation like other subjects.
Generally, schools offer courses directly related to communication, marketing, or visual arts.
When selecting schools to study graphic design, the main thing to do is thoroughly analyze the programs they offer. Depending on the training you want to obtain and the professional projection you want, some programs are more suitable than others.
We will review some of the leading schools where you can study graphic design in the United States. Indeed, there are not many specific ones, but some of them are very prestigious.
Parsons School of Design (The New School) Manhattan, New York
This school offers a communication design program. It is considered one of the best graphic design and art and design schools in the country. It also provides one of the best-known programs in graphic design with a four-year BFA in Communication Design.
One of the interesting things about this school is that many of its graduates end up working in big companies like Google or Facebook.
Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) Providence, Rhode Island
That is another of the most renowned art schools in the country. Suffice it to say that students as well known today as Seth McFarlane and the founders of Airbnb have studied at this school.
It is one of the most competitive and interesting schools for graphic design students.
The Pratt Institute Brooklyn, New York
It is a school that also offers a communications design program. One of the characteristics of this school is that it gives a lot of importance to the artistic vision that accompanies the practical part of the studies.
One of the things that stands out about this school is that it offers interdisciplinary programs in which subjects such as advertising, illustration, and graphic design can be mixed.
School of the Art Institute of Chicago Chicago, Illinois
In partnership with the Art Institute Museum, this school offers a BFA program in Visual Communication Design.
It offers a good combination of theoretical and practical studies. It also proposes internships and provides a wide range of lectures and accompanying work.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Cambridge, Massachusetts
Although we usually think of MIT as a more technical or engineering-oriented environment, it also has a fine arts program.
This arts program is generally oriented with a technical focus on both communication and graphic design. The program is a Bachelor of Science in Art and Design and is considered one of the most technically interesting in the profession.
ArtCenter College of Design Pasadena, California
This design school offers a graphic design program that combines traditional studies with new technologies.
An interesting aspect that stands out about this school is the combination of conventional pedagogical tools and new ways of learning, including some experimental models.
California Institute of the Arts (CalArts Valencia, Santa Clarita, California
One of the most interesting anecdotes about this school is that Walt Disney founded it. The famous creator dreamed of establishing an art school where students could combine the pedagogical with the practical.
The graphic design program has a broad orientation, although many graduates end up working in the film or television industry.