Nikki Kozlowski: Just Graduated

Earlier this May, Nikki Kozlowski graduated from Shillington’s full-time 3 month graphic design course. With a background full of curiosity and creativity, Nikki took the leap to immerse herself in the world of design and hasn’t looked back since.

In this interview, Nikki walks us through her Shillington experience, from day one nerves to portfolio pride. She shares what inspired her to enrol, how the course helped shape her design thinking, and what she’s most excited about as she steps into the next chapter of her creative career.

Whether you’re considering a career change, looking to enrol into a graphic design course or simply love hearing about fresh talent and creative journeys, Nikki’s story is sure to inspire.

Nikki is based in San Francisco, USA.

Welcome back to Shillington, Nikki!

What was your life like before Shillington? What were you doing, dreaming about, or even struggling with creatively?

Before Shillington, I had just decided to essentially shut down the company I started 8 years ago with a friend. I say ‘essentially’ because there’s one product we’re keeping alive but this is no longer my full-time job or part time for that matter. I was occasionally bartending events which was really draining and also doing some freelance design work. I could get by based on what I had taught myself from running a bootstrapped company but I didn’t know what design principles were, I didn’t have a personal website or any know-how for how to market myself as a graphic designer. I was nervous because I had some skills but no solid foundational understanding of design.

Did you always want to be a designer, or did something spark that shift?

I didn’t! It was never on my radar. I used to think if my company didn’t pan out I would pursue an environmental and/or human rights law degree. What sparked the shift towards design for me was seeing how vital design is for storytelling for businesses and nonprofits. Vital doesn’t really cover it, design IS storytelling. It’s like when your mom says “it’s not what you say, it’s how you say it”. Good design is the difference between your message getting across or not; and with owning a business or running a non-profit, your message is everything.

Design is a language that builds community. It creates a visual world that people see, engage with, and identify with. I feel really passionately about helping businesses and organisations use visual language to connect with people and offer their solutions to the world.

Dancing Goat Coffee, Shillington Project

What made you take the leap into Shillington's full-time course, and why now?

Well.. to my last point about how the right design reaches people and builds community, it was Shillington’s Instagram ads that hooked me! I see tons and tons of ads for various online courses. What’s funny is there are so many online design schools out there that don’t use tasteful design to market their courses. That’s like the equivalent of a cooking school advertising classes with un-appetising food. Why would I want to take cooking classes with you?

I knew right away after seeing Shillington’s instagram ads and presence that this is where I HAD to be.

I wanted to start immediately because I felt the sooner I started, the closer I would be to having a career in design. I was so blown away by the graduate work that I was like “I want to be that so bad”.

Were there any fears or doubts you had before starting? How did you push through them?

I was a little nervous that I just wouldn’t be good enough and the other students’ work would be so much better. I would look at the graduate showcases and think “do I really think I’m going to make work that’s this good?” But I kept telling myself that no matter what, my work is going to be better than what it is now. It doesn’t need to be ‘incredible’ or ‘out-of-this-world amazing’. I had to quit psyching myself out and just get in there. It’s not that big of a deal, go make some designs!!

Let’s talk about those first few weeks, what surprised you most about the course?

What surprised me most was how much time is spent on concepts and mood boards. In the beginning I was rushing through it and I was thinking “yeah, yeah, yeah, let’s get to the design part”. I had no understanding of how important those stages are to the design process. You can’t go out into the wilderness without a map. With concepts and mood boards, you’re building that map and that process ultimately drives all your decisions and helps you navigate to your final design outcome.

How would you describe your teachers in 3 words? Any standout moments or lessons they gave you?

Oh man.. That’s hard because I have so much love for my Shillington teachers. I feel so fortunate to have had the teachers I did. If I had to choose only three words I would say: encouraging, engaged, and down-right smart. It’s so hard to pick ONE standout lesson they gave me (if I had to pick), they really helped me to have more confidence in my decision making which was something I really lacked to be honest. It’s a lesson that just comes with practice and repetition. There’s no magic bullet. You just have to do it and keep doing it. Your teachers are there to help you and guide you. It’s muscle building and your teachers are like your personal trainers.

Dig, Shillington Project

What role did your classmates play in your journey? Any lasting friendships or moments of solidarity?

OHHH! We had a reeeeaaallly special class. We were the West Coast stream and it was so awesome. We still keep in touch after class. We had a Zoom call just the other week. I have to say, making friends with the other students was my favourite part of the course. We were all so encouraging with each other and would constantly help each other out. We all loved the mornings where we could go over each others’ work and see what everyone made. I actually wish they could be here with me now for this interview because we are bandmates. We’ll be friends forever - we made a pact and there’s no getting out of that.

Shillington is known for its fast-paced, real-world approach. How did that challenge or excite you?

I would say, it was both challenging and exciting. It’s exciting because you’re working on new stuff and you’re getting new briefs every couple of days (for the full time course) and you’re exposing yourself to tons and tons of really inspirational examples and you’re just 100%, completely immersed in the world of design. It’s also challenging because you’re making fast decisions. I took the full time course and sometimes you’ve got a couple or a few days to finish an assignment so, there’s not a lot of time to ‘hem and haw’ over something. (Which is something I’m guilty of). Let your mood boards, visual keywords and concepts be your guide, make the decision and keep it moving!

What was your proudest moment during the course?

I overcame something I was DEEPLY struggling with. The offscreen project was by far the hardest for me. I just could not wrap my head around an offscreen method that would make sense. And for whatever reason, I decided to bring it into my portfolio. I was under the gun and I just could not make it work. I messaged my teacher and said “I have to switch this project out, it’s not working, I tried my best, I can’t have this dumpster fire in my portfolio” I’m so happy and grateful to my teacher who did not let me switch out one of my portfolio projects last minute. She encouraged me and guided me towards a workable solution. I ended up seeking counsel from employees at an art supply store and got some great advice for the materials I wanted to work with. It’s now my favourite project. I could not have pulled that off without the guidance and support from my Shillington teachers.

If you could go back and give your past self advice before starting the course, what would you say?

Clear your schedule. Especially for the last month of the full-time course. Set the expectation with friends and loved ones that you’ll catch up with them after the course. Try not to make any work commitments if you can. Just dive in and immerse yourself completely in the world of design and in this course. Be kind and gentle with yourself, drink water, get sleep and clear your schedule.

The Great Globe, Shillington Project

How has your perspective on design changed since graduating?

I understand design now in a way that I didn’t before. Before, I might’ve seen a piece of design or brand that I thought was cool but now I have an understanding of what makes it cool and why that designer might've made the decisions they did. I can see what the design might be referencing, what design principles are being utilized. There’s a whole conversation of design happening around us all of the time that I feel like I can now actively participate in.

What areas of design are you hungry to explore more? (Branding, UX/UI, Motion, Type, etc.)

I love branding because it goes back to what we were talking about earlier about storytelling and community building. To me, branding is this epicenter that so many design use cases stem from. A visual language is built for a brand and that visual language is spoken through all the brand touchpoints - ads, social media, print, web, newsletters, products, packaging. It’s really kind of amazing how important design is for all businesses and orgs.

Also at Shillington I discovered that I have an intense love for Type. I can totally see myself getting into Type as a hobby!

Any dream clients or projects you’d love to work on next?

I’ve always wanted to work with orgs like The Slow Factory, A More Perfect Union, Intersectional Environmentalist, or CounterStream Media. Also, there are smaller agencies that work with freelancers. Working with freelancers allows smaller agencies to be more nimble and not have as much overhead. I know Toil is a great agency that works with freelancers. So, I’d love to connect with groups like that to work on project-based work.

How are you approaching your next step – job hunt, freelancing, passion projects?

I love freelancing. After spending so many years hyper focused on building one brand, the ability to work on several projects and several different brands excites me. I’m approaching it slowly right now because I’m catching up on some projects that I had to put on hold during the course. However, I left Shillington with a road map. I have a website, a portfolio, friends from class and we keep each other accountable. Soon, I will put myself out there and start pitching clients and agencies with confidence.

What does "designing your future" mean to you now?

This was the call to action in the Shillington ad that got me to sign up for the graphic design course so, I feel like I’ve come full circle here. To me, it means having the tools to choose where you want to go with your design career. There are SO many avenues one can take with design. Part of the Shillington education is understanding all of those different avenues and another part is understanding how to get there. After Shillington, now I have this toolkit and I can decide what I want to pursue and have a plan for how to pursue it.

Industry Standard, Shillington Project

What does being part of the Shillington community mean to you?

The community is really the most important part to me. It’s really special. It’s so easy to make connections / friendships with students at Shillington. Any time I see student work on Instagram that I feel moved by, I always follow, leave a comment and start a conversation. It usually turns into back and forth complimenting and now you’re connected with this cool person and who knows what opportunities that connection could lead to. Seeing other student work is a major source of inspiration for me. I always see student work that makes me think “awe man, I want to make something cool like that” or “I should do a brief like that!” The way all of the students interact with each other and encourage each other is so positive and energising.

How has this experience changed you, creatively or personally?

Creatively and personally it’s pushed me out of my comfort zone. You have to put yourself out there to the other students, to the teachers and to the greater Shillington community. That’s kind of scary at first but then you do it and you realise, there’s nothing scary about it, it’s awesome. Shillington has helped me break out of a shell that I created for myself out of nervousness by creating this really positive, encouraging environment to learn and grow.

Any advice for someone thinking about taking the course, but feeling unsure?

It will change your life. If you’re thinking about design, just do it. I’m biased but I don’t think there’s a better group to learn from and learn with. It’s so encouraging, you’re going to feel good about what you accomplish, you’ll make lifelong friendships and connections, you’re going to learn a metric ton, it goes by quickly, you’ll be sad when it’s over, but you’ll be a graphic designer on the other side of it.

What's one thing you'd tell the design industry about non-traditional routes like Shillington?

It’s funny because to me, Shillington felt like more of a traditional route than what I was on which was YouTube University and ‘fake it til you make it’. There’s a reason Shillington has a reputation and has been around for a long time and the graduate work speaks for itself. It doesn’t matter if you take a car, a bus, or a light rail system, what matters is you got there. Shillington is your rapid transit, you won’t miss any stops and by god, you’re going to get there fast.

Who do you think Shillington is for?

Shillington is really for anyone thinking about studying design. Truly, anyone, any adult age, any skill level. The course is structured in such a way that you will learn how to both use the tools and understand the principles.

Trust the teachers, they won’t let you fail.

Check out Nikki's portfolio here, and connect with her on Linkedin here!