Starting salaries for designers??
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- bcline
any help would be much appreciated! before I start negotiating, i want to get an idea of what I should expect. I've got two solid internships under my belt, a soon to be BFA from an accredited University, and a couple of small industry awards to boot.
like i said any help would much appreciated! place of living would be anywhere in the U.S. and Canada. after working in NYC, obviously not all salaries are created equal as the cost of living is crazy there.
- ukit0
This is a good reference point.
- edd-e0
anywhere in the US??
well i am biased being a new yorker, but you could freelance from anywhere, couldnt you or are you looking for permanent work?
your question is vague to say the least.
have you checked AIGA Design Salaries??
http://www.designersalaries.com/…
eh?
:)
- edd-e0
ah ukit beat me to it!!
;)
- Mimio0
$222,221.45
- bcline0
anywhere in the US??
well i am biased being a new yorker, but you could freelance from anywhere, couldnt you or are you looking for permanent work?
your question is vague to say the least.
have you checked AIGA Design Salaries??
eh?
:)
edd-e
(Oct 19 07, 11:59)I am interested in freelancing, but for a couple of years I'd like to do full time so I don't have to worry about benies and the like. Also, I need to couple of years to build up a body of work where the majority of my portfolio isn't student work.
- bcline0
$222,221.45
Mimio
(Oct 19 07, 12:02)hah, maybe in my next life
- _eh_0
What do you do ?
- bcline0
man... i checked the entry level designer thing on that salary calculater. 30 k national avg. that just seems low. maybe i should just go to grad school and then be a prof. or maybe i should just freelance
- bcline0
What do you do ?
_eh_
(Oct 19 07, 12:08)design, flash development, After Effects motion
i like work in all of it and am self taught in all, even though i will have a degree, i didn't learn sh*t from school
- studderine0
fact: entry-level designers do not make a lot of money. in fact, i dont think they ever have. in general, designers aren't the highest paid white collar workers.
- _eh_0
30k.
- studderine0
you didnt learn anything in school? then why did you go. l learned a lot.
- bcline0
you didnt learn anything in school? then why did you go. l learned a lot.
studderine
(Oct 19 07, 12:14)cause i was on an athletic scholarship for skiing, and wanted to try and go the olympics
- bcline0
but the best i ever did at the U.S. championships was 10th when i was 18
- studderine0
well that sucks my friend. one thing i learned from a few graduates is that school doesn't determine what you are going to do. its like you said to me, if i want to design, fuck it...just design. you've worked on major brands so you should have no problem finding a job. if it pays shitty...oh well..at least you will like it. the jobs i am applying for are high pay, but no fun. i just plan on doing it for a while then going back to design school...
- studderine0
let me retract that statement and say at least one job i applied for is fun. so yea. not all bad.
- bcline0
let me retract that statement and say at least one job i applied for is fun. so yea. not all bad.
studderine
(Oct 19 07, 12:21)fun and decent money?
- studderine0
yes sir!
- Jaline0
I'll be honest...one of the reasons I didn't pursue design in school is b/c I had a feeling there wouldn't be anything really great for me living here. Seems like a dumb reason, but I'm an example of someone who likes design but studied something else (that I also really enjoy).
Maybe I'm a giant cliché, but I want security and lots of money. As in, I want to make all of this for myself BEFORE settling down with someone else. Designing on the side is fine for me. I want something that will make me happy AND financially well-off.
Not saying you should do anything I said above, and obviously many people here at NT get more than enough money from design. But it depends on your portfolio, whether or not you are motivated, and if you have confidence in what you do. The money should follow, depending on other factors as well, including where you live.
I would go for a larger city, a place that needs a designer so much that they would pay a lot for you, etc. If salary is important to you, start with a smaller salary (which most people starting out will undoubtedly receive), and then move to a place that pays higher. If that place doesn't make you 100% happy but pays really well, then maybe you'd like that? (I'm just guessing).
Everyone's different.
- ukit0
I would personally not take a job at $30K out of school - what is that, around $10/ hour? You may as well be the in house designer at Kinko's at that salary:)
Look for stuff around $40-50K that allows you to work on good projects and if you are not complacent you will be making $60-80K within a few years. I would say though that work experience is very important in this business. Without any job experience you are at a natural disadvantage, once you have at least a few years of work experience and a good portfolio you'll be able to charge more.