Design Certifications and Certificates

If you’re looking for a way to demonstrate your skills in design, you might be overwhelmed by the different certifications and certificate programs available. You might also have many questions, such as how do I become certified? Will I need to become certified to help me get a job? What does the process of becoming certified look like? This article aims to answer these questions so you can efficiently choose the right path toward a design certification. Keep reading to find out more.

What is Design?

Design is an incredibly broad category of skills that refers to utilizing computers to assist in visual communication. This can range from simple graphic design work such as photo manipulation or print layout design to complex 3D animation projects or interactive digital interface design work. Visual and graphic design is vital to any product release, information campaign, rhetorically-effective communication strategy, or web design project. No matter what kind of work is being done, if it intends to communicate with a mass audience, specialized design skills will be needed to make that communication possible.

The tools utilized by Designers are varied, and each tends to have its own niche functionality that differs from project to project. For example, photographers will use photo manipulation tools like Photoshop and Lightroom, Layout Designers will use tools like InDesign and Figma, and Motion Graphic Designers will use After-Effects, Cinema 4D, and Premiere Pro. Rather than learning and mastering every design tool available, Designers will specialize in specific elements of the design process and learn those tools. This makes design a highly varied field to enter, and it offers students a great opportunity to both experiment with different programs and turns their passions into a creative career.

Read more about what design is and why you should learn it.

What Can You Do with Design?

As a creative form of visual expression, the things you can do with design are largely limited only by your imagination and the number of programs you are willing to learn. Users can design vibrant and evocative visual compositions ranging from simple logos, photo manipulations, and posters to complex 3D animations and digital web assets. Almost every professional field employs designers to ensure that their output looks the way they intend it to look and communicates the ideas they want. This is true of both the private and public sectors, given that design tools are just as important in persuasive and advocacy contexts as in commercial and advertising contexts.

Learning design skills is also a great way to build your profile and brand online. Online content creators need to set themselves apart from the crowd, and learning to make vibrant visual designs is a perfect way to do so. Whether this is about producing a logo for your website, designing recognizable branding for the products on your Etsy store, or editing and manipulating video content, learning design skills can improve your creative output. Design skills are also at the center of several different emerging online art and activism movements. Learning design skills can give creatives many mediums to produce rhetorical compelling advocacy content like infographics, digital documentaries, and docu-games.

Certifications vs. Certificates: What’s the Difference?

Some students may be surprised to learn there are multiple ways to become certified and that certifications and certificates differ. It is equally important to know that design isn’t really a skill that a person becomes certified in. Rather, students will become certified in either a single program/application or in a cluster of related programs and applications.

Certification is awarded to students who pass a proctored skills exam offered by a first-party provider like Adobe or a third-party testing organization. These exams test a student’s knowledge and technical skills, demonstrating proficiency in a program. These exams rarely come with formal training courses and often expire, requiring students to retake the exams to keep their certification up-to-date.

Certificates are akin to diplomas and are awarded to students who complete industry-recognized design training courses. These courses teach students either a single design application, like Photoshop, or more commonly, a collection of related design skills like those used by Graphic Designers (Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign). These certificates rarely expire.

Top Certifications & Certificates for Design

Most students looking to become design certified will want to enroll in a career-focused design certificate course, such as those offered through Noble Desktop. These courses provide students with in-depth, hands-on training in related design skills intended to prepare students for future careers. These courses are perfect for those looking to become certified and still receive the immersive skills training needed to master design applications and techniques.

Students with significant on-the-job training or prior design experience will want to consider a first-party proctored exam. The most common of these is the Adobe Certified Professional exams. These exams will test single application skills, meaning professionals may want to become certified in multiple programs.

Students looking to brush up on their skills before a certification exam should consider enrolling in a design bootcamp. Most certification exams include no training or preparation, so these courses can help pull double duty for students looking to become certified.

Should I Get Certified in Design?

For most design jobs, becoming certified isn’t a hard requirement, but it is a great way to increase the attractiveness of your resume. The most critical element of landing a design job will be having a solid portfolio of sample designs that will compel prospective employers to hire you. However, becoming certified in a handful of design skills will let employers know you have sufficient experience and training to fill necessary positions and roles on their teams, giving you a leg up over the potential competition.

How to Get Certified in Design

The best way to become certified depends on your experience with a program or application. Students who have significant experience or on-the-job training in a design tool will want to attempt to pass a certification exam. Students who feel they need additional training or are new to the program will want to enroll in a certificate-granting skills program.

Learn Design with Hands-on Training at Noble Desktop

Students looking to master design skills can find the path to success through the expert instruction offered at Noble Desktop. Noble offers a wide array of design courses, from introductory bootcamps that will teach students the basics of an individual program like Photoshop or After Effects to career-centered design certificate programs that will give students all the tools they need to enter the professional world as designers. Noble’s classes are available in person at their Manhattan campus or through live online instruction. Regardless, all of Noble’s classes are taught by expert instructors who are present to help guide students through the process of learning design skills. Each course ensures small class sizes so students won’t fight for their instructor's attention, and all of Noble's classes come with a free retake option, allowing students to enroll in the course again, for free, within one year. This means that students will have even more time and opportunity to get hands-on experience and instruction in design skills.

Students looking to become Graphic Designers may consider enrolling in Noble’s Graphic Design Certificate program. In this class, students will receive introductory and advanced training in tools like Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign. These are the industry-standard tools in almost every field of print and physical design. Students enrolled in this program will receive hands-on experience working on real-world projects, such as designing signage, infographics, product packaging, logos, and branded merchandise. In addition, since this is a career-focused program, students will receive professionalization training, including one-on-one career mentorship and portfolio-building seminars designed to prepare students for entry into the job market.

Students looking to work in a more digital environment may wish to enroll in Noble’s Digital Design Certificate program. This course teaches students how to use programs like Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop and applies those skills to digital spaces, such as webpage layout design or user interface design. Students will learn digital design theories and philosophies and master necessary web design tools like Figma. This course also offers students the opportunity to receive one-on-one career mentorship. Students will build specialized design portfolios to position themselves as career-ready Web Designers and UI Designers. This course has no requirement for coding, meaning students can focus on the visually creative elements of web and digital design.

Noble also offers a wide array of certificate programs and bootcamps across all disciplines of design, including graphic design, web design, UX/UI design, motion graphics design, and video editing. No matter what direction you choose for your design education, Noble Desktop has a course built to suit your needs.

Key Insights

• Design skills are the skills that go into creating vibrant and evocative visual iconography for mass communication. This will range from basic designs like company logos up to complex 3D animated models for webpages and films.
• It is rare to become certified in design. Rather students will become certified in specific design tools, sometimes more than one if they are relevant to that student’s profession.
• Certification exams are protected skills tests ideally suited for students with prior design experience or on-the-job training.
• Certificates are awarded to students who complete industry-recognized skills training programs and are best suited for students who need additional training and support.
• Whether you are looking to enroll in an industry-recognized certificate program or prepare for a certification exam, Noble Desktop offers comprehensive design training courses to fit your needs. They are available both in-person and through live online training.