How to Become a Digital Designer At Home

Working from home is an accessible way to earn a living while maintaining your current lifestyle, but you can prepare for your career without leaving home too. Because digital design sits at the intersection of art and technology, these skills are easy to learn in a digital format. Many vocational courses are offering live online training that can help you reach your goals in real-time. Some classes can even provide professional experience and help you build a portfolio. Continue reading to learn more about available training options and tips for remote career building. 

What Digital Designer Training Method is Right for Me?

Because there are many different ways to learn digital design at home, you can customize your needs. However, finding the right training modality isn’t as simple as picking the option that seems most convenient at the outset. Each training modality has unique features that work well for different circumstances, and you want your chosen method to match your needs. As you compare training styles, consider how they align with your learning style, accessibility needs, and goals. 

Certificate-Granting Bootcamps

Live design bootcamps are well suited to career preparation and will likely fit you well if:

• You need a comprehensive education that includes professional development training (such as interview preparation). 
• You need professional experience. 
• You need to interact with instructors and classmates in real-time while learning.
• You need a high-quality design portfolio to earn jobs. 
• You want access to career perks such as one-on-one mentorship and resume workshopping. 
• You’re preparing to take a certification exam. 

Short Live Online Classes

Short courses are great options for beginners and casual learners who aren’t planning to become professional designers. Other characteristics that may make you a good match include:

• You want real-time interactions with instructors and classmates. 
• You’re a kinesthetic or visual learner who prefers activity-based learning.
• You want an instructor who can both answer questions and motivate you. 

On-Demand Classes

On-demand courses don’t include live instruction and are more likely to work well for you if:

• You’re a casual learner who doesn’t need thorough career training.
• You’re looking for supplementary materials to support your live training regimen or you want more information on a topic you touched on briefly in a class.
• You’re working on a specific project and need a little extra help problem-solving. 
• You like to learn from demonstrations but don’t want to interact with others while learning.
• You’re a self-motivated go-getter who rarely procrastinates.

Free Online Tutorials

While free design tutorials don’t usually provide in-depth training, they’re ideal if:

• You’re learning the basics of a particular design skill.
• You don’t need external motivation and aren’t likely to procrastinate. 
• You’re looking for answers to a specific question and don’t have immediate access to an instructor. 
• You have plenty of experience evaluating the credibility of learning materials (such as college research experience). 
• You don’t care for instructor feedback or social interaction with classmates. 

Self-Guided Learning

Learning without any class or instructor to help you can be a bumpy road and isn’t for the faint of heart. This learning method is more likely to suit you if:

• You’re learning for hobby purposes and don’t have any looming deadlines. 
• You 

• You’re very comfortable assessing the quality of learning resources even when you’re in unfamiliar territory. 
• You’re highly self-driven and don’t usually procrastinate.
• Instructor feedback and social learning don’t matter particularly to you. 

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. 

Can I Learn to be a Digital Designer from Home?

Whether you’re doing it from your couch or a home office, becoming a Digital Designer at home is certainly possible. Many resources now make it more accessible to develop advanced professional skills at home, while others increase your likelihood of career success. When learning at home, you’ll access benefits you wouldn’t get in a traditional course, but you may also encounter challenges. 

What are the Advantages of Learning from Home?

Learning from home comes with dozens of benefits, the most obvious being the extra money left over in your wallet. Whether you’re learning from books or through online classes, at-home learning is nearly always cheaper than attending a class in-person. Because online courses don’t need to rent a classroom space, tuition is generally lower. You won’t need to worry about the costs associated with travel and childcare either (and that includes your time).

In fact, learning from home can save you time in general. In addition to cutting down on commute time, taking an online class can speed up your learning process simply because many online programs are accelerated by design. As a result, you may be able to start your design career sooner than if you chose to train in-person. 

When you choose to learn digital design online, you may have an easier time finding the right class. While some locations have many in-person design classes, others (such as rural areas) are incredibly limited. Opening yourself up to online learning ultimately makes it possible to access a wider range of classes. 

What are the Disadvantages of Learning from Home?

Distraction is the enemy of at-home learning. If you’re not already familiar with attempts to be productive at home, just think how easy it might be to procrastinate when surrounded by all your favorite temptations: streamable TV, doom scrolling on social media, cuddling in bed with someone you love. While we all want to believe we’re highly disciplined productivity gremlins, it can be harder for us to focus in a comfortable space than anywhere else. 

Learning digital design from home can also be less effective if you choose the wrong design training format. However, this is easily overcome by ensuring you match your training format and curriculum to your individual goals and learning style. 

What Resources Are Available to Help Me Become a Digital Designer at Home?

Online spaces are full of resources that can help you learn digital design. These resources exist at various price points, with live online classes offering the most effective career training and free design resources providing a cheap way to learn basic technical skills. You can choose your favorite resource according to how well it fits your circumstances. 

Free Resources

Digital design learning resources are available for free in a variety of formats. They include:

• Articles found on blogs like Noble Desktop’s Learn Design blog can walk you through the steps of technical tasks. These resources often include pictures to help you understand concepts more clearly. 
• Video tutorials are one of the easiest ways to explore a new skill and can be found on platforms like YouTube. Unlike blog posts, design video tutorials can include active demonstrations of digital design skills.
• Free design seminars are available through vocational schools such as Noble Desktop. These short classes are usually taught by an expert. 

Free tools are incredibly convenient for mastering early-stage technical skills such as beginner Figma or Photoshop. However, because they tend to be relatively cursory, they won’t likely carry you beyond beginner knowledge. While taking paid classes, free tools can also help you answer questions that come up as you learn digital design. 

On-Demand Classes

For at-home learning, on-demand design courses are incredibly convenient, as they make it possible to learn without the constraints of a traditional class structure. Rather than participating in a live class, you’ll receive a package of pre-prepared self-training materials that you can explore at your own speed. You can access on-demand digital design courses through providers like Udemy and Skillshare. 

Although these courses have many benefits, they aren’t the right fit for serious learners preparing for careers.

Live Online Classes and Bootcamps

Live online training is one of the most effective tools available for learning digital design at home because it offers far more support than other options. In addition to learning from a time-tested curriculum, you’ll have ready access to an expert who can offer advice and answer questions in real-time. In general, live online digital design bootcamps teach the most up-to-date information and are the most comprehensive option for career preparation. 

Instead of simply providing tutorials and theoretical guidance, live online courses provide practical training via hands-on design tasks. In a bootcamp, this may include studio-style group projects that qualify as legitimate professional experience and can be included in your design portfolio. 

While their online format makes these courses incredibly flexible, live online courses require a scheduled time commitment that may not be ideal for all situations. That said, this is a relatively small downside when considered in light of the numerous benefits these courses offer. 

How to Find Digital Designer Work at Home

Working from home comes with the same pros and cons as at-home learning—from distractions to commute-free days and living in your comfy clothes. Conveniently, remote work has become more readily available in recent years. With digital design training, you can find remote work through design agencies and digital marketing agencies as well as individual companies. 

To find a remote job, you’ll need professional experience, a star-studded LinkedIn profile, and a design portfolio that’s accessible online. From there, you can start applying for jobs through online job sites. 

Freelance Opportunities

Freelancing opportunities are more readily available than they ever have been, and online freelancing platforms now make it easier to filter for remote design work. Many of these sites also enable you to set up a freelancer profile so that potential clients can connect with you more easily. Freelance jobs for Digital Designers are regularly posted on platforms like:

• Dribbble
• Fiverr
• Freelancer
• LinkedIn
• TopTal
• Upwork

All that said, making freelancing work for you isn’t as straightforward as simply creating a profile and waiting for bites. Ideally, you should tailor your online presence to emphasize your digital design skills and experience. Most essentially, however, you need an easily accessible online portfolio that will impress potential clients. In it, include examples of your work that demonstrate your range of digital design skills. 

After setting up your online presence, you can begin building connections with potential clients. While some clients will contact you first, you may need to get the ball rolling in your favor by reaching out to potential clients via email or messaging them online. When you find a client who wants to employ your services, they (or you) will create a contract that you’ll both sign. If you need to, you can negotiate portions of your contract that you’d like to change (such as payment). 

Finding Remote Jobs as a Digital Designer

Hiring managers in many industries are on the lookout for Digital Designers who can work remotely. In addition to working for creative agencies and design companies, you can find remote digital design work in fields like marketing, technology, software development, media, and publishing. 

The industry you land in will likely determine what types of projects you complete regularly. For instance, a job in publishing will likely involve work on ebooks and layouts, while a job in technology may include app design or web design. 

To start your job search, check out remote roles on sites such as:

• AIGA
• Arc
• Art Jobs
• Authentic Jobs
• Behance
• Coroflot
• Design Remotely
• Dribbble
• Fiverr
• Freelancer
• Glassdoor
• Indeed
• Krop
• LinkedIn
• No Desk
• Remote Rocketship
• TopTal
• Upwork
• Zippia
• ZipRecruiter

How Will Remote Work as a Digital Designer Differ from On-site Work?

Working remotely is an incredibly convenient innovation that (given the right circumstances and temperament) allows for maximum flexibility with all the productivity of a regular nine-to-five. At the same time, remote work can present difficulties that aren't associated with traditional in-person jobs, and these are worth considering if you’re thinking about becoming a remote Digital Designer.

#1 You create your own work environment.

Whether you choose to work at home, in a local library, or in a coffee shop, you won’t have a dedicated office space that’s provided for you by an employer. Creating your own workspace comes with plenty of benefits, including the freedom to get fully comfortable in your lounge clothes and makeup-less face. However, it can also present problems. If you work in a space where other people (or pets) make noise, you may find it difficult to focus, even with earplugs.

Working in a comfortable space is in itself a challenge. Furnished with everything you find most tempting (from hobby supplies to people you love), your home is a distraction trap, and a bookstore located in a shopping mall is hardly better. You may also discover that while your bed and couch are comfortable for sleeping, they’re not very ergonomic for work purposes. 

#2 You won’t have extrinsic structures keeping you in check. 

Flexibility is wonderful, but it can be like a kryptonite if you aren’t naturally disciplined. You may connect with a team while working remotely, but you’re far less likely to have a boss checking in on your progress to ensure you stick to a schedule. Because many remote roles enable you to set your own work hours, it can be all too tempting to procrastinate until before you know it, a month has passed and you haven’t earned a dime. Consequently, you’re more likely to succeed as a freelancer if you’re self-motivated and dedicated. 

#3 You won’t get a strong social dimension. 

This surely comes as a shock, but only in rare instances does remote work provide a sense of professional community. Unless your job includes live video calls, you’re unlikely to develop office banter, but you’re also just as unlikely to encounter office drama. If you’d prefer to talk to fewer people in a day, missing social opportunities might not be such a big deal. However, even introverts are at risk for loneliness these days. 

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.