How to get a job at a design studio
Subjective advice from a guy who hasn’t applied for a job in years
This is adapted from a post that I wrote after a “hiring” panel at MassArt a few years ago. I was on a panel with some other design firm people, people who hire students and others on the regular. I figured it would be worth writing down a few of what I consider to be the basics. We hire anywhere from 3–5 people per year at Upstatement, which also means we see a ton of applicants. Without further ado, some of my advice for standing out and fitting in when you’re trying to get an internship, apprenticeship or job in our industry:
Try to talk to a person, not the whole company
This seems like the easy part, but I think people struggle with this step. For one, a personal connection — no matter how distant — goes a long way. If you know a friend of a friend at the place where you’d like to work, ask them to tell the person in charge of hiring that you applied. They don’t need to endorse you, they may not even know you, but it really helps to separate yourself from the (probably deep) pile of cold-emails people have received.
When actually sending in your resumé and portfolio, try to get somebody’s name at the studio. Not in a creepy stalking kind of way, but try to get a human to send your info to. Don’t write “Dear Hiring Manager”. There is nobody here named Hiring Manager, so that email is essentially to nobody. Even something like “Dear Upstatement!” is going to be better received because it’s addressed to all of us. For jobs with a high volume of applicants, they may have put in place a form (like our apprenticeship application). Don’t be annoying and try to circumvent it. But there’s nothing to keep you from putting a personal touch into your response, or telling us why you’re applying at our studio.
One more tip for the cover letter (which is basically the email, and yes it’s super important): focus on what you can bring to the team. Too many emails basically state how awesome this job would be for the applicant, how it would help them in their career, etc. That’s all great, but the person reviewing these letters wants to know what you can bring to their team. Why should we choose you? How could you help us? What do you bring to the studio that’s unique or valuable?
What should I wear?
This is an interesting question, and one that a lot of people spend a lot of time thinking about. In brief: be comfortable. Look nice and presentable. I think the old adage that “you can never be too dressed up” applies, but if you’re interviewing at Alphabet Arm, you probably don’t need to wear a three-piece suit. Many of the questions people were agonizing over could be solved by simply asking. In this case, you may want to ask the person who invited you to the interview about the company culture. Instead of asking, “What’s the dress code?” which can seem like a policy question, ask if the studio/office is a casual or more formal place. Often, you can frame these things as a casual discussion and get all the info you need to make a good impression.
Is networking important?
Okay, let’s define “networking.” So called “Young Professionals” groups make networking look like strained conversation over cheap wine and plasticky cheese. But networking can be any situation where you are meeting new people, talking about life, work, or anything really. It can happen out at a bar in an unstructured way, or on Instagram, Twitter, GitHub and so on. Look for places and people that you vibe with, or that do the kind of work you want to be doing. Follow studios whose work you admire, or seek out the design handle of a company where you want to work (some in-house design departments keep their own social media channels). Some of the best connections I’ve made for myself or for Upstatement have happened in totally organic ways. If you let yourself be available to meet people and talk about stuff you’re interested in, it’s a lot less like “networking” and a lot more like fun.
One of the other pieces of advice I’d give is to look for places where you can meet people who AREN’T just designers. AIGA or UX meetups are great because you can chat with people doing the same things as you. But attending an entrepreneurship event or a more tech-focused meetup can expand your knowledge of the industry. If you’re the only designer at a dev meetup or the only dev at a design meetup, you’re bringing an interesting and complementary skill-set to the table.
Jessica Hische has an excellent series of posts on non-creepy networking. H/T Emily Theis for the link.
Should I take an internship or just apply for permanent jobs?
Internships are awesome. They give you a chance to try before you buy. You get to evaluate an industry or particular studio before committing to it for the long haul. It can be kind of freeing. And if you’re a sophomore or junior, internships will be a huge differentiating factor. By the time you’re graduating, places will be competing to hire you.
We actually transformed our internship program into an apprenticeship program to better define the role. We have all kinds of applicants — some are students, some are people mid-career who are trying to change their industry or skill set. An internship or apprenticeship can be a valuable experience no matter where you are in your career.
How many pieces should I bring in my portfolio?
Another one of those questions that seems like there’s a “right” answer but is totally arbitrary. I say you could come in and show just one good project, as long as there’s a good story and it demonstrates your skills (and a fit for the position you’re applying for). Some places want to see a lot of range, which is definitely important. Most of our interviews go really deep into one or two projects and we ask a lot of follow up questions. Some of the least memorable interviews were where someone steamed through 8 projects barely pausing to talk about the process. We’re mostly interested in things like how you worked with a team, what you learned, even what didn’t work and why. For us, it’s mostly about evaluating how you would work on our team, not just looking for tons of visual candy or trendy tech tools.
This gets at a very important part of showing your work. You have to learn to talk about your work as a designer and lead someone through the process of solving the problem. The work doesn’t always speak for itself, no matter how good it is. Think of the narrative your body of work tells. How does your work demonstrate a particularly strong skill of yours?
It also helps greatly to specialize and be focused. Having a breadth of skills can be great, but it’s better to tease your associated abilities than lead with “I can do EVERYTHING!”. Maybe you’re showing a site you designed, and casually reference that you also took the photos. If the person you’re talking with asks more, you can then go deeper into that part of your skill set.
What should I do/ask during an interview?
First: get there early. Not too early, but I would say 15 minutes. My wife’s band leader used to say “If you’re early you’re on time, if you’re on time you’re late, and if you’re late, you’re out.” I try to live my life this way (ask my partners) but it’s also nice to not be stressed, and to have more time to explore the studio or casually meet people.
When you schedule the interview, ask the person you’re interviewing with what the agenda will be and who you’ll be meeting. This not only helps you prepare for what you’ll talk about and show, but also demonstrates that you’re a prepared person.
During the actual interview, be sure to ask the people you’re interviewing with lots of questions. If you can connect some of the work you’re doing to the studio’s work, maybe you can ask how they might have approached the same problem. If you get the interviewers talking, you’ll likely have a more natural discussion and they’ll remember you. It takes you out of the hot-seat and gives you a chance to interact with them as a peer and not just as someone trying to get a job. Remember, interviews go both ways — you want to be sure you actually want to spend a sizable chunk of your lives with these people.
Before and after the interview, you’ll probably chat with people. Maybe a designer, dev or project manager. Remember the people you talked with and be sure to thank them if you had a pleasant conversation. You never know who will be your champion during an interview process. These things are group decisions and someone you chatted informally with might say “Oh yeah, I remember her, she was really nice.” Boom: you just made the shortlist.
Remember to send a follow-up thank you note. You’d be surprised at the number of people who don’t do this. It shows that you’re thoughtful and nice, and those are the people we want to hire. Lastly, don’t forget to ask the person you’re interviewing with where they are in the process. Again, this shows you’re prepared, and gives you a timeframe within which to expect a response. A place that’s on the ball should be able to tell you this.
Bonus advice from others!
I cast around the studio for some more advice (since I wrote this over a year ago). Here’s what people came up with:
Do your research. Read all you can about the studio or company and use that information to ask good questions and think about how you can help or fit in.
Don’t be a jerk. Project positivity and showcase your personality. Surprising we have to mention this, but we’ve interviewed people who spent the entire interview badmouthing their last job. It may have sucked, but it can reflect poorly on you as much as your last employer. You’ll eventually be hired on the strength of your work and qualifications, but people will look forward to interacting with your personality.
Be around, and be engaged. If the studio has parties or events, show up and try to get some of the flavor. You may meet some people that work there who you can get to know. We’ve gotten to know people we later worked with at our quasi-annual Drinks events. This is a fine line though, be careful! Don’t want to be around TOO much.
