Graphic Designer
What the work is
Plans, designs, develops and prepares visual content for publication using text, symbols, pictures, colours and layout to achieve commercial and communication needs using traditional and digital tools, with particular emphasis on tailoring the message for the intended audience.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Consults with clients to determine their graphic design requirements
- Develops and collaborates on design concepts, and presents them to clients for approval
- Selects appropriate colours, images and fonts to enhance the visual appeal of designs
- Creates and manipulates designs for visual elements, such as logos, illustrations and graphics, using traditional and digital tools
- Collaborates with other team members, such as Copywriters and Web Developers, to ensure cohesive design solutions
- Prepares final designs for print or digital publication, reproduction and release
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a graphic design studio making logos, posters, packaging and animation for clients. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A client sees your first concept and says that is exactly it
- You solve a crowded layout by taking things away until it breathes
- A poster you designed goes up in a shop window and you spot it walking past
Hard days
- A client's cousin has made a version in a free app and wants you to use it
- A file leaves for the printer and you notice a mistake a minute later
- Round after round of small changes that quietly undo the idea
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 242332, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.