Starting salaries for designers??
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- _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...
- AndyRoss0
Witt in america taxes are as follows...
anything under $119,000.00 is to be taxed out at 28% - 33.3%
anything over that number is 40% taxes.
edd-e
(Oct 19 07, 13:47)Actually, the top US income tax rate is 35%.
- studderine0
let me retract that statement and say at least one job i applied for is fun. so yea. not all bad.
- Witt0
Yeah, taxes blow. How is it in Portugal? I always figured Europe had higher taxes...
ukit
(Oct 19 07, 13:58)we don't really figure a pay on a yearly basis. rule is to have 14 payments in a year:
12 full months + 2 months vacation+xmas bonus without lunch benefits.
My present tax is about 25%, but it varies accordingly to your household composition. So if your gross pay is, say, 1k you only have 750 to rule.
40% seems to much, given your housing fares are bigger. You must be paying too much military work ;)
honestly, I don't know. Countries have different realities.
e.g. housing+food+common expenses doesn't leave much for saving. I think groceries+fuel+books+etc are much cheaper in the US, so the ratio is positive.
- edd-e0
andy clearly you dont live in nyc. or pay nyc taxes.
i pay 40%.
- Witt0
i mean
12 full months + 1 month vac + 1 month xmas. not 2 month vacs wtf i wish.
naah. i wouldn't. i like to work, actually, if the job is ok.
- ukit0
40% is only for the super rich I think. So you get 2 months paid vacation/ year?! That would be nice...
- Witt0
andy clearly you dont live in nyc. or pay nyc taxes.
i pay 40%.
edd-e
(Oct 19 07, 16:26)yeah, i hear your house fares are way over the top. but otherwise you have everything for a less than fair price.
- ukit0
Super rich as in e-pill, haha
- 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.
- Witt0
So you get 2 months paid vacation/ year?! That would be nice...
ukit
(Oct 19 07, 16:28)yeah, we do (1 vac + 1 xmas bonus). but it's not so great as it looks: it's usually regarded as a bonus to pay for insurances+xmas+vacs. Housing is very expensive here relatively to your income, usually between 25%-40%.
It's not that great.
We spend a lot on gas/fuel since we import most of it.
- studderine0
yea design is fucking nuts.
- bcline0
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.
ukit
(Oct 19 07, 12:32)and good internships don't really count as any work experience do they? damn...
oh well