10 Interview Tips for Recent Graphic Design Graduates

June 4, 2008 • 2:36 pm • POSTED BY spenning

It is that time of year again. Hopeful design school graduates have finished their portfolios and are entering the job market ready to change the world one pixel at a time. Now it is time to get that coveted first job and starting paying all those student loans.

Here is a list of 10 interviewing tips (in no particular order). Some may seem glaringly obvious but as an interviewer I run into the same issues time and time again.

1. Remove anything incriminating from social networking sites. Employers are checking them. Reading about your latest bender may be seen as a negative.

2. Be on time for your interview. Duh.

3. Research the company. Not knowing who their clients are, how long they have been around and what their culture is like will show.

4. Be humble. It is great if you had the best portfolio in your class, interned at six nationally recognized places and have won a ton of awards. Broadcasting that over and over again is off-putting.

5. Dress to match the culture of the agency. Don’t wear shorts to Vanguard. Don’t wear a suit to 160over90.

6. Ask good questions. If you have no questions during the interview it can give the impression that you aren’t interested, weren’t listening or are too timid.

7. Modify your portfolio based on where you are interviewing. The expletive driven campaign you think is hilarious won’t be appropriate everywhere.

8. Presentation skills. Amazing work with no explanation or presentation is not so amazing.

9. Quality over quantity. Having 7 or 8 stellar pieces is better than having 15 where half are just ok.

10. Follow-up with a thank you. Even if you felt the interview went horrible or the interviewer was a jerk always follow-up and thank the person. Their is a good chance they know someone else you will be interviewing with at another company. And believe me, we talk.