Hello FC Family! We are halfway through another semester which means: Reflection Time! Take a moment to answer the following questions and reflect on the work you’ve done so far this semester.
Any new skills or techniques you have learned in the first half of this semester?
How well have you been able to juggle your work here at FC and classes? Is there more you feel that you can do?
What are your goals that you would like to accomplish by the end of the semester?
Now that your (semester/college career) is over what are some goals that you plan to work toward this summer?
To keep myself busy and always have a project/goal to work towards. Prof. Eli mentioned that I should work more on my time management and that is what I plan to do, starting yesterday đ I’d also like to stop being so self critical and post more art on instagram/twitter.
Looking back at (this past semester/your time) at FC:
What is one of the best experiences you had working here?
Probably the longest project I worked was that of Amplify Works alongside Prof. Berger. We had meetings on and off either here in FC or in her office as we hashed out just exactly how she wanted the poster. The original design went through a slew of changes before we FINALLY hit upon the final design. That whole journey up until the end result is one of my best experiences here.
What is one thing that could have been done to improve your experience working here?
Do more outside study based on graphic design. I spend all my free time aiding myself in my illustration career but I also need to remember that I also do love graphic design and would like to improve much more in that department.
What is one of the best experiences you had working here?
I don’t know if I could choose 1, so I’ll choose 2. The first being when Professor Jordan, Mandy, and Arianna pushed me to go speak with the coordinator of BTTIP to see if there were any positions I could apply to after not making it through the first round of applicants. If it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t have ended up working at my other internship and gaining so much invaluable experience. The second would be being able to initiate animated pieces and challenging myself to learn a new program. Something that I will continue to improve on.
What is one thing that could have been done to improve your experience working here?
One thing I believe could be done that would improve the experience working at FC would be to do more activities/workshops similar to the Strand Meet & Greet and Winter Workshop day. I believe these will benefit the designers greatly and in turn benefit the work they put out for their clients.
Hi Team,
Below are the questions we would like you to reflect on and answer. Also when publishing your post please remember to add the following categories to your post, End of the Semester Reflections, Spring 2018 and your name.
or a project with FC? How did you accomplish the project?
This semester there have been multiple projects I had come across as âchallengingâ here are a few. In my Social Behavioral Science class, we were introduced to statistical analysis and how to determine the mean, variation, and standard deviation on excel after analyzing specific inflation in a three-month treasury bill. The beginning steps of this assignment were not as tedious as the remaining task, my class only meets once a week, so I had to improvise and use YouTube to understand the task better. Secondly, my SBS Professor does not give in class exams or quizzes but instead has the class read an assignment and present the topic to the class. During our presentations we are to act as an advocate, teacher, or representative of that subject without including our biased opinion. The challenging part was remaining objective instead of being subjective. In my independent study class, which meets for 45 min per week, I am working on a proposal or grant that I would like to receive funding for if successful. I came across many roadblocks with what I wanted to convey to my audience exactly regarding my mission statement. I realized I was being too intimidated by the overall project that I wasnât really focusing on what I wanted to discuss and implement in my proposal grant, after taking a step back and meeting with my mentors in my program, I was able to focus my ideas more concisely.
⢠What project(s) did you enjoy working on thus far during this semester?
This semester I enjoyed working on my proposal grant for my independent study class, and usability testing for project wayfinding with Faculty Commons. I enjoyed these projects the most because Iâm the one who is writing the dialogue for most of the projects with the help of my professors. My proposal grant allows me to write and ask for something that I believe is a topic that is close to my heart and will make a difference in a college setting. It implements the idea of providing mental health awareness for women in an urban college setting. I enjoyed working on usability testing for project wayfinding because this is an area that interest me, specifically how respondents and participant view a product or resource. This helps the formative evaluation process to continue because there will always be a flaw that need to be improved or even changed.
How have the projects you have worked on in FC aligned with your professional career goals?
The projects that I have worked on with Faculty Commons has allowed me to learn the necessary skills in the workplace that implements usability testing, content writing and the development of interpersonal skills in various professional settings. Iâve learned that deadlines will be shortened or adjusted to unforeseen events, so with, one should always be prepared in case the scenario is either or.
What is one technique or skill you learned today that you can apply to the thought process or execution of your design work?
Being that I mostly use illustrator and InDesign I found myself learning a ton of new techniques that could be helpful for when taking on photo editing and retouching projects. The technique I was really impressed by was learning how to use the patch tool.
What source(s) are you receiving inspiration from for your design work? (Websites, People, Blogs, Podcasts, etc.)
Most of the inspiration I get comes from pinterest, following artists, creative groups, and agencies on Instagram (@bosslogic, @dirtyrobot, @gfx.mob to name a few), and a specialized music playlist I listen to when designing.
What is one thing you want to do to challenge your capabilities in design or communication this semester?
I’d like to become more familiar with animation and motion graphics beyond Photoshop. I believe it has potential for multiple applications and can serve as a useful creative outlet.
1. What is the one technique or skill you learned today that you can apply to the thought process of execution of your design work?
I learned many useful things today, but by far the use would have to be cutting figures out of the background. ItÂs a skill that’s an absolute necessity for working in Photoshop.
2. What source(s) are you receiving inspiration from for your work? (Websites, people, blogs, podcasts, etc)
My main sources for inspiration at moment are Pinterest and Instagram. I like the variety of design and the uniqueness they provide.
3. What is one thing you want to do to challenge your capabilities in design or communication this semester?
This semester I want to spend more time outside of my comfort zone. I want to try new styles and techniques and see how I can adapt them to my designs.
I havenât come across any challenging project this semester. The projects are as challenging as they always are, the big issue so far has been time management. This semester, by far, has been my busiest; and it has not been easy keeping up with all the work I have to do, but I am managing.
I really enjoyed working on the Black Solidarity Day poster. It was a great experience from start to finish, and I am grateful to have created a poster for an event like that.
I would like to improve my photoshop skills. I feel like as a Graphic Designer you need to know Adobe Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop. I already have a pretty good hand on Illustrator and InDesign, so I would like to increase my Photoshop knowledge.
By the end of the semester I would like to have finished all my projects on time, be in good shape to take on Nucleus, and figure out what Iâm doing for senior project.
I think the biggest challenging for me is how to make sure finished my class project and FC project on time. I’m not good at time management. Especially when midterm is coming, everything goes together, I was making some mistakes on FC project and my class project. It makes me feel a little frustrated. I hope I can catch up in the remaining weeks.
So far, the WAC project brings me a lot of fun, it’s the first time I tried to finished poster, bookmark and web banner by myself. I’m so pleased to work with them. I learned a lot when I did this project, how to communicate with clients and how to bring my inspiration into the design to get them support. It’s a good experience that I can remember for a long time. Also, if I have more time, I hope I can learn more illustrator skills, so I can design my own icon instead of using others.
The goal that I want to accomplish is I hope I can finish two to three great portfolio pieces on this semester. So, still need to work hard, and learn more.
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