In the beginning there was an aspiring engineer who just plain flopped physics. Those were some rough days. Luckily, I was saved by a wise art teacher who flat out demanded I pursue a creative career path. She told me about a sparkly new program that Kwantlen was debuting that very year. I attended an information session. I was saved.
The Application
The GDMA program required a written submission, two references, a portfolio review, and then finally an interview in front of five faculty members. I, having set myself up for a shot at an engineering degree at UBC, was not prepared for these obstacles. To prepare myself for the acceptance process, that would take a few hundred students and whittle them down to a mere twenty-five, I enrolled in a handful of Kwantlen art courses as well as all the elective courses the GDMA program would eventually require. Over the course of a year I prepared a suitable portfolio, as well as covering all my electives, often to a course level higher than required. I felt prepared.
We will not make designers out of you. You are already designers. We are only going to give you better tools to work with.
On the application date my portfolio was tossed onto the pile’s frosty heights. A few weeks later a letter came with my interview date. Terror, excitement, I was amped. The interview passed without a hitch. I don’t remember many details but they seemed impressed with my energy level and dedication. I did not know what to expect on the first day of classes. Though I had already attended a year of university, this was the first time in a program. Day one started with a student and faculty, meet and greet lunch. In attendance were the now second year students that were the first batch to run through year one of GDMA. The lunch was nice, hosted in the Richmond campus conference rooms. After, we were given a tour through the freshly renovated wing that houses the program. The wing is impressive, clean and well equipped, though not large. A quote sticks with me from that first day “We will not make designers out of you. You are already designers. We are only going to give you better tools to work with.”
The Experience
So you have made it into the program over the hurdles and into that sacred third floor wing in Richmond. Welcome to fourteen hour days, unhealthy amounts of red bull, tight deadlines, huge projects, splitting headaches, and some really good times. GDMA is administered by great professors that act more like friends and guides than ruler wielding encyclopedias bent on cramming facts in your head. I never had any trouble getting extra help, constructive criticism, morale support or the information I needed. Many professors still maintain ties to firms on the side where they continue to practice and all have had careers in the industry. The program is built from their recommendations as well as the skills demanded by other industry professionals. In many ways, the courses mimic the working environment.
GDMA starts out with the very basics of design laying solid foundations and covering the whys and hows of design as well as teaching some of the now dying techniques previously required by the trade. As the years progress, it advances exponentially, building on previous concepts, teaching new software and techniques, as well as the thought processes behind successful creations. Check out the syllabus online for a more specific list of courses.
Presentations will become a way of life. You will present and justify every project you create, you will be taught the language of design and be expected to use it. Words like serif, x-height, pantone and lithograph will become staples in your working vocabulary. If you start with a fear of public speaking it will either fade or you will learn to cope.
You can get as much or as little from the program as you like. If you want to squeak by with the minimum the professors will frown and, providing you make the minimum grade of a B-, send you on your way. Alternately if you want to really push yourself they will be there to teach you the little tricks that will take your work from good to great.
The price for all of this is fairly average for a university level education in BC. If you live at home, a summer job with good hours is enough to squeak by without too much debt. Be prepared to purchase a computer, the program provides them, but unless you are ready to live in the building you will need your own.
The class sizes are small, a few more than twenty students at most. You will remain with the same students in almost every course excepting electives. These students are your new friends, don’t fight it. You will see the same faces every day for four years, three if you opt out at the certificate level. The professors will learn your name, what you do on the weekends, and you will probably end up celebrating some milestones with them.
If you make it to the end, through the giant projects, past the tight deadlines, over the B-minus cut-offs, you will be pale, tired, wondering where all your pre-program friends have gone, why your bank account is empty and hoping you will be able to get a job in what is for me a bad economy. However, you will have a slick portfolio, a set of skills sharp and ready, new friends, contacts in the industry and probably a big stupid grin on your face.
It will teach you what you need to know to get a job in the field, providing there are jobs available.
Epilogue
I am not yet employed. As I said above, it is a bad time to be a junior designer as this is a very economy dependent profession. I have taken a job in an unrelated position for which I often tap into the analytical skills I developed in GDMA. If the economic slump continues and I am not employed in this field I will likely return to school for a teaching degree. I do not regret my decision or my time in the program. I will never fully abandon design even if I am unable to find work directly in the field. If this kind of work is your passion then I highly recommend Kwantlen’s GDMA program. It will teach you what you need to know to get a job in the field, providing there are jobs available, and if you are more enterprising they also teach you how to build your own start up firm.
One last caution, If you are only interested in art and design type courses because you think every day will be a party and it will somehow be an easy ride, Stop turn back. These courses are project based and though they have few or no exams you will constantly be working long days to keep up with the deadlines. These courses are for the passionate and dedicated.
If you have any further questions or would like to see my portfolio, please visit www.grommetdesign.com. “Design is about making connections, Grommet is about making connections stronger.”
(3 votes, average: 3.33 out of 5)
Loading ...
