Which major should I choose and what career would be most successful?

Question

I want to somehow combine Graphic Design/Advertising/Photography /perhaps Marketing/etc. into a successfull, well-paying career. What major(s)/minor should I take to be able to reach that career?

I also am very interested in Music Industry/Business.

siiigggh.

Answer 1

First of all, there are only three "sure" subjects in college. Engineering, Accounting, or Education. They lead to certain employment after college.

Studying history, art, literature... these are specialized educations, that won't make you a more valuable employee in the general labor market, simply by having those diplomas.

If you want to be a photographer or graphic designer, concentrate on acquiring the tools ( cameras, art supplies like brushes and pens) and *develop* *a* *portfolio*.

Practice being a photographer/graphic artist. Find your own style. Develop techniques, explore what you can do. Add to your portfolio. Junior colleges usually have art programs with classes in visual arts that will let you do this on the cheap.

Then interview at graphic design/advertising firms. Bring your portfolio, and showcase your best work. Make a trip to the nearest big city and talk to some professionals at recognized agencies about your work. Not the human resources people or the personnel department, but actual artists or even managers. Find their names on the internet or in trade journals, and ask for a 20 minute appointment. Tell them exactly why you want to talk to them. "I've seen some of your work, and I would like career advice about the industry." Show them your work, and keep your mind *open* *to* *criticism* and *actively* *seek* *feedback*.

Ask the pros about their education and background, and what their role is in their company. Ask them outright what the most useful skills are, and match those skills to your choice of major.

Then decide how you're going to blow $20K a year in tuition and fees before you run off and jump into a college/major that might not be what you want or useful.

Work a little before you go to college, land a part-time job at a company that does advertising/graphics and find out about the industry from inside. The money you earn will be helpful. And it will make the college application process easier because you will be able to define your educational goal to the admissions committee.

For the cost of a college education, you could probably start your own small graphic design business, so explore the industry before you go blow the family savings for a sheet of paper with a few Latin words on it.

If you find a college degree is necessary, go to a small junior college for an associate's degree, then transfer to a university. You will save a tremendous amount of money, and learn from instructors who have more real-world experience than university professors.

Remember, you are trying to acquire marketable skills: knowing how to use a computer to make graphics is a marketable skill, while art history is a luxury.

Only *after* you have secured stable entry-level employment can you actually *use* specialized knowledge like psychology and art history for your work.

So my advice is, be practical at this stage of your life, concentrate on getting your foot in the door doing *actual* *work*, and since you're interested in creative work, don't assume a college degree is absolutely necessary. Try some different jobs! If you can market *yourself* with a portfolio, then that may land you the job, rather than a diploma you didn't design. Explore an industry you like, and talk to people who are in it. Ask questions, and just say "I'm learning about the business... where should I go to get started."

Besides, most employers care about experience more than education.

So in a nutshell, explore the destination, the final employment, before locking yourself into a college pathway that leads there. Know where you're going before you go, because college costs serious money, and asking questions and looking around costs nothing.

Answer 2

Any combination of those that you mentioned. I would also develop a portfolio. I would look into your perspective college's Mass Communication and Journalism dept. and see which combination of majors would be right for you. Sometimes communication degrees offer specializations in visual or recording arts. You could also look in the computer science and business dept for options. I've known a lot of graphics design/ visual arts and journalism undergrads here at CU.

Answer 3

Ither Biology, Economics, Math, or Engineering. Trust me there is always a job in these fields, and the pay usually out of college is 60,000 and better.