Category: Internship Fall 2022

My journey at Student Life & Development has come to an end and it was filled with growth. My goal was to develop my skills in graphic design and I had the chance to do that and much more. Even though it was a graphic design role, I was able to input motion graphics into some Instagram assets.

I also had the chance to experience my way into taking initiative and using my organizational skills to stay proactive and meet deadlines. Being able to input my opinions during meetings was encouraging, as well as working alongside the team. Aside from technical skills and design, one valuable experience I take with me is being able to respect my personal time. Working too hard shouldn’t interfere beyond the time given for work.

Attached is a copy of my presentation featuring my experience and journey interning at Student Life & Development.

Student Life & Development Internship Presentation

Growth. That is the one word that sticks with me for the overall course of my internship. I have learned a lot and sharpened skills that I thought I did not have. I am very excited about what I got to accomplish and experience, as a team and individually, to meet deadlines and client goals. I feel that when I initially started I was a bit rough and had to refresh myself with the techniques taught in Communication Design, such as hierarchy, color theory, and visual design.

My workflow has improved and gotten faster. I am able to move around Adobe Illustrator much more than I did before. Because we kept using the same formats for every project, a template file was created containing guides and margins for each asset. This was helpful and is an example of something efficient and that saves time. When working with teams, I was able to share via an active dynamic link so all parties have access to the files. I was also able to communicate through a platform I have never used before, Microsoft Teams.

From the beginning to the end of the last project I worked on, I can see the changes that came from it. I was able to receive feedback and make adjustments where needed, even if it isn’t something that I think worked. Most of the time, clients win. Other things I have learned to appreciate are my personal time. I learned to break my habit and respect my time. Sometimes my personal time and “work” time will cross and overlap, which can get bad real quick. I learned to tell myself that it was okay if I did not finish a project within a set amount of hours, I still had time til the turnover.

Lastly, a favorite project I worked on was my last one. I got to be involved in creating an asset for an Art Contest/Submission. I suggested it being named “Call for Art” because they were leaning more towards having submissions instead of competing. My input on this project was the color palette. Because art comes in different mediums

If you have not heard about it, there has been controversy surrounding the partnership between Adidas and Kanye West. Their partnership involved collaboration for a shoe called Yeezy. The Adidas Yeezy collection helped bring a boost to Adidas, bringing them back into the market. But after controversy dealing with discriminatory and anti-semitic remarks, that partnership became strained and eventually ended.

This brings about different opinions on issues of should a brand/company be involved or outspoken about their views. Or should they be neutral and refrain from being in favor of any parties? If a brand/company stands by a belief, should it take action for it? It is quite a handful to consider because let’s say you do have a brand that stands as its own, yet you as the individual have your own beliefs and values that you translate through your brand. At this point, if something happens in a society that goes against your belief or attacks it, will you get involved and protect it?

As for the partnership between Adidas and Kanye West, Adidas had to sever the partnership to avoid penalties regardless of its loss in revenue. Due to their historical association with Germany’s Nazi party, they had no other choice. They had to protect and choose what was best for the company, no matter the cost. Would you be able to do or justify that if it were your company?

Very Peri, a periwinkle blue with violet-red undertones was named the color of the year for 2022. So, it is very fitting to have seen the “blue.” exhibition as our virtual field trip. The color blue has different meanings and it can represent things, it’s also a commonly chosen favorite color.

The virtual field trip, although kind of fast, was enjoyable. It would be great to be able to see an exhibition dealing with color in the future. I got to learn about the chronology of blue so that was a plus! Some artists/pieces that I enjoyed were Antonio Santin, Cao Jun, and Yves Klein. They incorporated different techniques that mesmerized me. For example, Antonio Santin’s ‘Toast to Ashes’ is an oil on canvas, but it looks like a 3D illusion. It looks like an actual rugged carpet which surprised me because I thought it was actual material and not a painting. The shading and contrast make the ruggedness stand out as a texture.

Cao Jun is a Chinese artist from New York and his piece “Poetic Water” stood out to me as well because it felt like I was watching ocean waves clashing against each other from an aerial view. The different shades of blue from light to dark add movement to the harshness of each layer. From a different perspective, it also looks like a splash of watercolors, too. Finally, Yves Klein’s Venus Bleue was very bright and it stood out because it was set in a room filled with white and open space. The blue is very dark and the sculpture looks like a mannequin; commercialized.

Do you want to learn more about or enhance your skills in after effects? Well, Motion Design School is a great option to check out. They offer individual courses and a masterclass that one can apply for and enroll in. But, if you aren’t able to you might enjoy their free webinars usually hosted on Youtube. Jaroslav Koronov, is the founder of the Motion Design School, and he hosted a webinar on the new tool, Motion Beast 2.

This webinar ran through information about the updated and new website for the Motion Design School. He offered an explanation of how to use it and how the process works if you were to decide to apply and enroll. As for the software, this webinar felt like a preview of what the course would entail if you are interested in learning more about the Motion Beast 2 tool. These tools can be found as extension tools in your ‘Window’ tab.

It was a little hard to follow so I definitely had to take down notes and went back to rewatch the video. The cool thing I realized about these extension tools is that it makes the workflow faster because if you want to do something like separate layers from each other or ungroup certain elements within layers, these extensions such as motion beast 2 can do the work for you, instead of doing it manually and individually yourself. Lastly, a helpful tip, if you have an illustration from illustrator, you are able to import that Ai file into after effects and manipulate the motion from there. Beware, the any parts of an illustration that you wish to animate has to be on its own layer in illustrator.

There is a digital planner app that I decided to download and try out. There are a variety of apps to choose from and some of the tools I use come in the form of browser extensions. In this case, I wanted to experiment and use a new app to change my routine. The app I decided to try out is Good Notes.

I heard a lot about the Good Notes app and this exercise provided me the excuse to try it out. By using Good Notes, I was able to create and keep a digital planner. I usually carry a physical monthly planner, but I also try to keep a digital one. Google Calendar and the default phone calendar can get overwhelming so I try to avoid those. In Good Notes, I can customize to my liking such as the type of paper to use or the format. I can create any type of notebook form, providing customizations for multiple pages.

Something that was helpful from this app is the ability to sync from multiple devices or accounts. Usually, it is much easier to use the digital planner on an iPad/tablet due to the pencil/touch pen. One other amazing feature is that as you are handwriting on the pages, you can later search up keywords if you’re looking for something, and it will search your notebook for you.

Interning at Student Life & Development provided me with the experience to communicate with people I wouldn’t necessarily meet. For example, I had the chance to see the President or Vice President check in at certain student events. I also got to interact with the people involved in providing equipment for events or those involved with sharing announcements on the hallway TVs. It is a great network experience because I get to learn about what other departments do on campus.

In regards to a mentor, I would consider my supervisor, Giovanna, a great mentor to have. She is the social media coordinator and graphic designer for SLD. She is actually a Communication Design alumni. I have learned a lot from her. She really pushed me forward and provided critical feedback on projects I worked on. I was able to get the experience I wanted and needed to solidify my work in graphic design. Whether it be teaching me shortcuts for a better workflow or letting me take initiative on a design, I was able to grow rapidly and put into practice what I had learned in classes.

One important takeaway I valued is the feedback she would give me. I looked forward to and was open to critique because I wanted to grow. Sometimes in design, I could get carried away with colors or illustrations and keep going without structure. I would forget the importance of design and find myself questioning the purpose of the colors. What is the intended purpose?

Logos represent and can define an entity. Similarly to various mediums of artwork, to get there one will go through different stages. In most cases, the first step would be to research, research, research. This is something I have been ingrained with to do in all of my courses at City Tech. So, guess what? You’re right! I researched. What is City Tech’s mascot? Do we have a logo for our mascot? What is a Yellow Jacket? What is the difference between a Yellow Jacket and a Bee? These were some of the questions I researched to get started on creating a logo that The Nutrition for Education & Student Achievement‘s (The N.E.S.T) resource center can use.

City Tech’s mascot is a Yellow Jacket. Did you know a yellow jacket is not a bee? They are wasps. Bees are fuzzy whereas a yellow jacket is smooth and shiny on their skin, and although they share similar black and yellow pattern, the yellow jacket tends to be a brighter yellow. This information helped in choosing its color, but the color came later in the process. One thing I learned and worked with was to start with black and white before going into color.

After researching yellow jackets, the sketches started. There wasn’t a clear direction of what kind of illustration style was wanted. So, I tried sketching a couple of styles in between serious and fun. Some factors that we considered for the yellow jacket were if we wanted it to be straightforward or sideways if it served as one logo or will it be customizable for future projects such as wearing a shirt, and how much detail do we want on it, etc.

The process of creating a logo was challenging but I very much enjoyed it. When I got to see the printed results, I felt happy that I got to be part of it. I was proud of the work we did. We made the deadline and got it on The N.E.S.T’s food pantry social assets!

If you were an intern at a large company/office, you may find yourself working alongside a large team. In some cases, there may be different teams for each design field. Collaborative projects could involve different people from different teams. The same can’t be said if you experience being an intern at a smaller company/office. Interning at the Student Life & Development office here at City Tech provided me with that experience. There are two main designers and me as an intern am the third, so our collaborative projects would be among us.

It was a unique experience because even though we worked on the designs for posters, social media, and websites, there were times when we got to interact with our colleagues during student events. One unique event I got to be a part of is the Food Pantry, which now has its own location on the 4th floor! This was an amazing experience because I was able to take part in creating the logo representing our City Tech mascot, the yellowjacket.

During this project, the main communication used in the office would be through Microsoft Teams. For the food pantry’s grand reopening project, there was a collaboration between the person in charge of managing it and us to gather information on dates and times. Because the pantry was relocated and going through renovation, design frames and/or posters were needed. Small details such as frame sizes and print sizes were key things to get used to because I had to do a lot of printing and cutting. As a small group, we also had meetings among ourselves before meeting up with the big boss for approval on designs and the final logo.

Have you ever found yourself having to make decisions on your own? Maybe your supervisor has gone away on vacation leaving you in between remaining projects and upcoming events. It’s what happened to me! Though I must say, it wasn’t such a bad thing. Even though my direct supervisor was away, she had left me with access to the tools & materials needed and a document with tasks to accomplish. I was very grateful for that! But what if she had not done that?

I have come across the word ‘initiative’ many times in the working environment, whether it’s during the interview process or during the job itself. What does initiative mean? Well, according to Google and the Oxford dictionary, initiative means having the ability to assess and initiate things independently. So, if my supervisor had decided to not leave anything behind and instead we had a brief meeting, I believe it would be a great initiative to create a document myself for the upcoming projects. This would help me keep organized, keep track of tasks that must be done before a deadline, and have reminders for scheduled posts.

One important task I was in charge of was to post updates every day on social media for upcoming events and campus activities. It was important to keep a calendar (we used Google Excel!) and reminder alerts to be able to post on time. On my way to campus (1.5hr commute), I would check the calendar for what is next. Posts are usually posted a week or so before the date, so the daily posts I would share were as stories on Instagram and Facebook.

Now, to keep myself organized, I also used a notebook that I carry around with me to notate to-do lists, reminders, random thoughts, and changes/updates to consider. It is a small notebook with a strap on it so I would leave my pen hanging there. It comes in handy especially during meetings when I would have to share drafts and can’t use the Notes app.