How to Become a Digital Designer

Even if not everyone gets it, becoming a designer is a big deal, so if you’ve decided to pursue digital design as a career, pat yourself on the back. When you’re just beginning your journey, becoming a professional Designer can feel so far off. However, breaking the task down into clear, manageable steps can make it easier to get started and avoid getting lost along the path. Just stick to your road map, and before you know it, you’ll be starting your first job as a Digital Designer. 

What is a Digital Designer?

The simplest way to describe a Digital Designer is as a visual media creator who emphasizes interactivity. These designers are distinguished from other classes of designers by their focus on how people experience their designs. Rather than focusing solely on what their designs communicate visually, Digital Designers spend considerable time perfecting components like information architecture and accessibility. To improve user-friendliness even more, digital design projects often include prototyping and preparatory phases that incorporate demographic research. 

Digital Designers are best known for their digitally generated graphics, animations, and visual effects, but many Digital Designers also create full-scale websites and apps. If one type of project piques their interest more than others, a Digital Designer can specialize in a unique aspect of digital design. Some Digital Designers choose to highlight primarily digital projects, while others work exclusively on preparing interactive print designs for marketing. 

Because digital design is an umbrella term that includes many different design niches, most digital design professionals collaborate with a team. Their team may include fellow Designers, Project Managers, Product Designers, and IT professionals. 

What Tools Do I Need To Get Started?

Design-Friendly Computers

Since digital design work takes place in a digital arena rather than on paper or canvas, you’ll need a good computer to get started. Many designers swear by the desktop-sized iMac with a Mac Mini. Combined, these tools offer a large screen to visualize designs, plenty of storage space, and a powerful processor for running design software. Designers who don’t like Macs may prefer to work with a Microsoft Surface Studio 2+, Dell XPS Desktop, or HP ENVY 34 All-in-One. 

If your computer doesn’t have built-in drawing capabilities, you may also choose to add a drawing tablet to your tool collection. These tools will enable you to draw in Illustrator with a digital stylus rather than trying to hack it with a mouse. In today’s market, there are many different models available, with options including tablets that connect directly to your computer and others that provide independent mobility. 

Digital Design Software

To create user-oriented designs, Digital Designers rely on a combination of software applications to create designs with multiple layers. While some design tools are available for free, other digital design software will cost you something. To access these tools, you’ll also need to be running a compatible operating system on your computer. 

Figma

Although Figma isn’t the only UI design tool used for prototyping, it’s one of the most popular resources for Digital Designers to test whether their apps and websites are working for users. Through interactive prototyping, Figma enables designers to receive feedback from users in real-time, leaving them with more time to improve their designs. As an online tool, Figma is available for free to anyone with an Internet connection. 

Adobe Photoshop

In contrast, Photoshop and other Adobe Creative Cloud tools are available as part of a paid subscription. The world’s preeminent tool for image editing, Photoshop is commonly used to remove features from images (such as a stranger cameo in your family photo). The tool may also be used to add new features or change existing ones (e.g. growing a mustache and whitening your teeth). In addition to making obvious changes, Photoshop can also make slight adjustments to characteristics such as color, contrast, sharpness, and brightness. 

Adobe Illustrator

If you need to edit an image, Photoshop is your pal, but Illustrator is the best in class for creating brand-new graphics and illustrations. Unlike Photoshop files, an image created in Illustrator can be resized to any scale without loss of quality. That means the same image used to create a tiny app icon can be recycled to form an enormous business sign and still look great. In contrast to the image-editing toolbox provided by Photoshop, Illustrator includes a diverse array of tools for painting and sketching.

Adobe InDesign

InDesign is beloved in the print and publishing industries for its layout design capabilities. This tool allows designers to arrange images and text harmoniously on a page with minimal effort. Popular digital design projects created with InDesign include advertisements, ebooks, magazines, and infographics. Like all Adobe tools, InDesign accepts files from other Adobe Creative Cloud tools, making it easier to manage multimedia projects.

Other Software

Since work for Digital Designers varies so widely, so do their toolboxes. Depending on your desired specialty, you may also find it valuable to explore the tools in the following categories:

• Web design software such as WordPress and Git.
• Motion graphics tools such as Adobe After Effects and Cinema 4D.
• AutoCAD tools. 

Steps to Become a Digital Designer

Becoming a Digital Designer is a process with many stages, all equally valuable in shaping your future career. For a smooth career launch, give careful attention to each aspect of your preparation. 

Identify Your Career Goals

Since digital design offers many different paths, decide which specialty you’re most interested in pursuing. This decision will help you discover which design training program is best for you. 

Participate in Vocational Training 

There are numerous ways to learn digital design these days, but if you want to ensure you’re adequately prepared for a design career, be sure to select a course that’s intended for digital design vocational training. Generally, these come in two varieties: college design degrees and certificate-granting bootcamps. 

College design degrees are typically more on the pricey side but offer substantially more experience in exchange. In contrast, digital design certificate courses provide accelerated training at a lower price. Both training styles will provide you with hands-on skills training and professional experience opportunities. 

Regardless of which course type you choose, triple-check that it covers all the skills you’ll need for your chosen career path. If you want to focus on app design, don’t choose a program that only covers website design, for instance. 

Build Your Design Portfolio

To score a job in design, you need a portfolio full of banger designs that highlight your standout skills. Making your portfolio available online can increase your likelihood of receiving job offers even more. Although you can assemble a portfolio on your own, most vocational training programs offer help with portfolios. In addition to helping you generate great material to include in your portfolio, these programs offer feedback that can help you revise your portfolio to perfection. 

Network up A Storm

Although it would be nice to get jobs based solely on skills in a resume, that just isn’t how things work in the design world. Connecting with other professionals (including those in other industries) is vital to finding digital design jobs. Outside of building connections at networking events and on platforms like LinkedIn, vocational training programs and internships provide built-in networking opportunities. 

Gain Professional Experience

If you’re like other designers, you’ve likely been frustrated by how many entry-level jobs expect two years of experience. It may seem impossible to get the experience to get a job, but the truth is that professional experience is available through a variety of avenues. Internships provide legitimate job experience and can add a respectable design company to your resume. College programs and certificate-granting courses are also designed with experience-building opportunities included. If none of these options are financially accessible to you at the moment, you can also consider volunteering for community design projects. 

Earn A Certification

Certifications (different from certificates) are technical qualifications that prove your prowess at a specific skill, such as Photoshop or Illustrator. By adding a respected qualification to your resume, passing a proctored certification exam can increase your likelihood of scoring a job. Statistics also show that when salaries of digital designers are compared side by side, certified professionals earn more on average. 

Digital Designer Career Path

Like birds with different feathers, Digital Designers migrate in different paths throughout the seasons of their careers. Although every Digital Designer considers how people and design interact, the projects they focus on can differ drastically. Some Digital Designers emphasize websites and apps, while others create graphics and still others produce animated graphics. 

In addition to focusing on different aspects of design, Digital Designers can also differ in their places of work. Many designers enjoy working in traditional studio settings alongside other designers. However, because their field is digital, others take advantage of the flexibility that comes with working remotely (whether as self-employed freelancers or as remote employees). While remote employees are accountable to the company or design agency they work for, freelancers are only accountable to their clients. However, they’re also entirely responsible for sourcing and maintaining that customer base. 

Becoming a digital design freelancer generally requires the same educational background in-person jobs require. However, freelancers may need to utilize their portfolio and professional network more often to keep work flowing steadily. As self-employed workers, freelancers will also need to acquire additional finance skills or hire an accountant to help keep the books on track. 

Why Become A Digital Designer?

There are plenty of careers out there that can make you rich fast, and while digital design does pay a comfortable salary, it has something even more valuable to offer: joy. Digital Designers rank above most other careers when it comes to job satisfaction, and this isn’t surprising when you consider what mental health research has to say about design. Regardless of how talented you are, engaging in creative activities is beneficial for illnesses like depression and anxiety. Rather than chaining yourself to a life of dull office work, choosing a job that allows you to give expression to your artistic side can keep you in good spirits for the duration of your career.

Digital design careers are incredibly customizable. Within the field, there are many potential specializations and work formats. Rather than molding yourself to fit your career, you’ll have the opportunity to mold your career path to fit you. 

Compared to other artistic fields, digital design is both high-paying and growing rapidly. To put this into perspective, American Digital Designers earn an average income of $75,000 to $154,000 per year, while Graphic Designers earn only $49,000 to $82,000. As graphic design jobs see a yearly increase of roughly three percent between 2022 and 2032, digital design positions will grow by 16%.

Learn the Skills to Become a Digital Designer at Noble Desktop

Want to learn design in a supportive environment? Noble Desktop offers highly-rated design classes covering a range of digital design topics for students at all levels. In addition to shorter classes, you’ll find a variety of career certificates that provide comprehensive training, complete with one-on-one mentorship and professional experience opportunities. Start your journey now by signing up for training live online or participating in face-to-face classes at the school’s NYC campus. 

With the hands-on training you’ll get in the Digital Design Certificate, preparing for a digital design career isn’t hard. Even if you start with no experience, you can learn the UI design and graphic design skills you need to launch your career in a matter of weeks. Instead of sitting through dull lectures, this program will teach you practical skills through activities and projects. In addition to mastering tools like InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, and Figma, you’ll gain the expertise necessary to apply design principles for truly stunning results. 

Learn the skills to make websites and apps that are truly user-friendly in UX & UI Design Certificate. Working with a team, you’ll create your own interactive digital interfaces from start to finish, resulting in work you can proudly display in your portfolio. Rather than focusing only on aesthetics, you’ll learn how to research your target users and prototype to improve accessibility. This course also includes a job preparation segment designed to help you workshop your resume and create the perfect portfolio website. 

If websites are your jam, you can make it into a career by joining Noble Desktop’s Web Design Certificate program. Work toward an impressive portfolio with hands-on assignments that will help you learn a combination of design, coding, and software skills. Quicker than you know, you’ll acquire a versatile skill set that includes UI design theory, Figma, WordPress, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Before you’re through, you’ll also have the chance to build a high-quality portfolio website with help from your expert mentor.