What were you doing before the course?
My background is in Learning and Development for a financial services organisation. I continued to work full-time whilst studying at Shillington College part-time. The role involves designing and developing interactive online learning; content authoring, graphic design and multimedia.
Why did you decide to do the course?
I'd always had an interest in graphic design and visual arts but had never studied it. It was also the part of my job that I enjoyed the most but was the least confident in.
I looked at loads of courses, both through vocational training providers like Shillington and through universities. I was really impressed with the attention Shillington paid to the design of their own material and surprised how many 'design' colleges had pretty poorly designed websites and marketing material. The examples of student work on the website was of a really high standard so that also gave me a lot of confidence in the course.
All this and being able to complete the course over one year, part-time and outside of office hours made Shillington the perfect option for me.
What did you enjoy most about the course?
Aside from the technical skills and knowledge that I gained, developing an ability to come in after a full day's work and turn on the creative tap has been really valuable. As the teachers are industry professionals they really helped with strategies to assist with idea generation and conceptual development.
The pace of the course was perfect for maintaining creative momentum from brief to brief and I left with a polished portfolio.
Where do you see yourself in 12 months from now?
While a lot of the briefs at Shillington are aimed at design for print, the techniques and principles taught are relevant and applicable to all forms of design. Since graduating I've been applying these skills to my interactive work and over the next 12 months I would like to investigate how I can take this further and explore other interactive and time-based applications of these skills and knowledge through film, motion graphics etc.
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