A creative career as a Graphic Designer in South Africa

On the lookout for a creative career that will challenge you? Graphic Design jobs offer exciting opportunities in a creative field that keeps evolving along with new software and products. The Job Mail team takes a closer look at what a Graphic Designer is and what they do on a daily basis.

graphic designer opportunities

What is a Graphic Designer?

So, what is a Graphic Designer? A Graphic Designer is a creative whose work involves turning ideas, business and marketing concepts into visuals that communicate messages to consumers in an appealing way. These creative professionals are an important part of the marketing and communication process.

If you like communicating using visuals and are a creative individual with a penchant for design, this is the perfect career for you. This post will give you a better idea of what is a Graphic Designer.

available graphic designer jobs

As a professional, you can expect to do everything from photo editing to actual designing of visuals on Adobe Photoshop and other photo-editing programs. Graphic Designers work in a vast range of industries, including marketing, newspaper publishing and wholesale trade.

Graphic Designer job description

When looking at Graphic Designer job descriptions you will find that your potential job will be filled with creative adventures that will certainly excite you. Generally you will work in a studio or office space where you will have access to a computer.

Apple Mac, although very expensive, is the preference for design work. This is because Adobe, which is a software you will use a lot, has native scaling on Apple’s operating system. This means that you will be able to view your graphics better on a Mac.

graphic designer tools

If you look at Graphic Design jobs on Job Mail you will find Graphic Designer job descriptions setting out what you will be responsible for on a daily basis. This includes being responsible for creative Graphic Design content, generating and creating conceptual designs. As you get into a position of seniority you may also be required to help assess talent to fill other vacancies within the organisation.

Training and courses

There are numerous Graphic Designer courses that you can take to become a professional. UCT through GetSmarter, an online learning platform, offers a 10 week programme which you can do online. Through this course you will learn everything from visual communication to the business of Graphic Design. Although this is a relatively short course it will give you strong foundation to pursue your career in the graphic industry.

uct building

There are other Graphic Designer courses offered in institutions such as Red and Blue. One course you might be interested in is the Graphic Design and art direction diploma. The good thing about this diploma is that it will not only help you learn the necessary skills to be employed in the field, it will also help you potentially venture off into an art direction where you could potentially earn more money after you gain enough initial experience.

You can also find other short courses on Vega School ranging from Introduction to Web Design and Introduction to Desktop Publishing.

Skills and characteristics

As a Graphic Designer you will have certain characteristics which will help you fulfil your daily tasks and responsibilities. These characteristics include:

  • Having an artistic eye
  • Being a highly creative individual, capable of breaking the rule to create great content that is appealing to the consumer
  • You have to be able to manage your time right as you will have a lot of duties and jobs to complete
  • You will also have to be open to change
  • You must be a strategic thinker
  • You must be able to work with technology
  • You must have an active imagination and a can do attitude
  • And most importantly, you must be passionate about what you are doing.
Graphic Designer salary and work environment

The average Graphic Designer salary is R123 000 per year.

However as you gain experience and improve your reputation in the field your salary can go as high as R250 000 per year. You may also get extra money from bonuses and if you are lucky, profit share. The great thing about it is that the job allows you to work as a freelancer. This can push up your income significantly.

great opportunities for a graphic designer

The work environment depends on the company that you work for. This is a highly collaborative job where you will be expected to work with various people from different departments.

So, there you have it. What you need to know about being a Graphic Designer. If this career interests you, you can start looking for Graphic Designer courses to study.

Ready to apply for new opportunities? Find Graphic Design jobs on Job Mail and start applying for exciting vacancies in your area and field of expertise.

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A creative career as a Graphic Designer in South Africa
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A creative career as a Graphic Designer in South Africa
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Graphic Designers work in a vast range of industries, including marketing, newspaper publishing and wholesale trade, the list goes on.
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7 Responses

  1. Zainodeen says:

    I would really like to study graphic designing but don’t have the money to do so

  2. James Otieno says:

    I want to be your Graphic Designer

  3. Ashton DamianNaicker says:

    hi ,yes i am a cartoonist you can call it, i love drawing cartoon characters and i’m really good with details and shading- but i have not completed school only grade 10 due being in private school then moved out due to financial issues and could not get school elsewhere – so i taken a part time job- what can i do to be accepted somewhere either to continue studying or be advised what i can do with what i can do? regards

    • Hi there – You could perhaps look at doing an internship or in-service training, or a part-time job while you study towards becoming a Graphic Designer. Get a portfolio together of all the design-work that you’ve already done to show employers/trainers that you are serious about a creative career. The internet is also full of Graphic Design tutorials you can already use to train yourself and perhaps later pursue entrepreneurial opportunities. If you have not registered your CV on Job Mail yet, follow this link: http://goo.gl/EhnxH1. Once you’ve registered, look for Jobs that you need at http://goo.gl/CvYAUa and apply for them! Alternatively, set up a job alert to receive the latest jobs in your field via e-mail at http://goo.gl/eTcGJC. Good luck! 🙂

  4. Mithin says:

    Hi,
    I am a graphic designer. I would like to support any kind of graphic support if you wish.

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