Hear straight from our graduates.
I attended my Shillington graduation, and the very next day I got my first full time design job.
Art Director, Insider Inc.
Amy Sheehan
What were you up to before Shillington?
I studied acting in college and in turn, spent many years working in the service industry and temping. I was working as a bartender in the city at the time, and knew that I needed to find another career path for financial support. I was interested in something I could potentially freelance with in order to give me the flexibility to pursue my other passions.
Why did you decide to study design? Why Shillington?
I had always been interested in design and had started taking continuing education courses at Parson’s and spent some time working admin in several branding agencies to get a feel for the environment. After looking through several candidate portfolios at a boutique firm I was office managing, I realized that the work in your portfolio is everything, even despite where your degree is from. I looked through portfolios from candidates who attended the top design schools and was surprised that sometimes the work did not live up to their degree. After digging into the Shillington program and looking at the student work I was surprised at how tight their portfolios were. I was drawn to the fact that Shillington prepares you for the real world very quickly. It gives you the tools you need to actually work.
Can you list the design jobs you’ve had since graduating from Shillington?
I attended my Shillington graduation, and the very next day I got my first full time design job. Another student alum was working at a startup company and reached out to the school for potential candidates for a temp to perm position. I immediately went in for an interview and booked the job. That was a box sampling company called PINCHme. I produced all social material, email design, marketing collateral, deck presentations, infographics and reporting, working with some of the largest CPG brands like Unilever, Johnson & Johnson, P&G, Revlon and many more. My next position was my first agency experience, working at 360i. There I worked on brands like Absolut, Oreo and several other consumer brands, as well as site redesigns and marketing collateral. From there I moved to Business Insider working on their branded content team, Insider Studios. It’s very interesting working on advertising from the publishers side. I’ve gotten to work with high-end clients like Cartier, Dell, Blackrock, and Chase to name a few.
What’s your typical day like now as Associate Art Director at Insider Inc.?
A typical day can involve working with our writers and content producers to come up with ideas for interactive pages, working with our video team to storyboard animated videos, designing collateral for our marketing events, while working on designing campaigns. I love design because it brings structure to chaos and information in a creative way. Design is not just making something look pretty, it creates solutions and aids in communicating those solutions to people through impactful visuals.
What would you say to someone who’s thinking about studying at Shillington?
If you want a career in design I would highly recommend enrolling at Shillington. It is the most practical solution that will get you working as soon as possible. It gives you the tools you need to create a solid portfolio that can get you working right away. It was the best career move I made and still allows me to do all of the things I love and has become a passion in and of itself.
I’ve met some great friends through Shillington and feel lucky to have met a strong network of inspiring designers from it.
Visit Amy’s Behance profile.
Arwa Al-Salam
Designer, Human Appeal
Babeth Olde Hanter
Junior Art Director, SOV
Jamie Krups
Creative at Stab Magazine
Megan Dweck
Visual Designer, McKinsey & Company
Emily Campos
UX Designer, Wix
Sinead Murphy
Freelance Graphic Designer
Caitlin Clancy
Designer, The New York Times
Miwako Suzuki
Integrated Creative Director
Rachel Urquhart
Founder, Pony Gold Studio
Ellie Pinney
Freelance Designer
Lauren Koste
Freelance Designer and Craft Beer Specialist
Eman Abdallah
Designer, Humachina
Lori Beth Kaye
Senior Product Designer, The Iconic
Anastasiia Vinnichenko
Designer, Tile Creative
Ray Wong
Designer, Oink Creative
Araki Koman
Freelance Illustrator and Designer
Keiran McCann
Graphic Designer, Victoria’s Secret
Jaira Adlawan
Senior Visual Designer, Sephora
Ani Monteleone
Designer, The Wall Street Journal
Hamish Snow
Designer, Josephmark
Eleanor Robertson
Designer, Paul Belford Ltd
Gerald Torto
Strategist, Re Agency
Linda Gao
Designer, HBO
Ella Donald & Charlotte Carnegie Brown
Co-Founders, Studio Duzi
Will Batrouney
Graphic Designer, Ignite Online
Bianca Oggiano
Designer, Design Haus Liberty
Christopher J Porter
Designer, I See Sea
Dominika Stanczyk
Designer, Open Water
Katie Lodge
Business Development Manager, Frost* collective
Vanessa Bertagnole
Graphic Multimedia Designer, Surf Life Saving Queensland
Amee Wilson
Art Director, Clemenger BBDO
Shannon Gordon
Designer, R/GA
Jordan Demetriou
Junior Designer, Principals
Ashley Ronning
Illustrator and Founder of Helio Press
Emily Somers
Founder, Bravery Co.
Yarron Frauenfelder
Design Director
Anara Davletaliyeva
UX Designer and Developer, Appliances Online
Erin Gale
Designer, Target
Tiffany Yee
Designer, Forever 21
Amy Sheehan
Art Director, Insider Inc.
I attended my Shillington graduation, and the very next day I got my first full time design job.
Art Director, Insider Inc.
Amy Sheehan
What were you up to before Shillington?
I studied acting in college and in turn, spent many years working in the service industry and temping. I was working as a bartender in the city at the time, and knew that I needed to find another career path for financial support. I was interested in something I could potentially freelance with in order to give me the flexibility to pursue my other passions.
Why did you decide to study design? Why Shillington?
I had always been interested in design and had started taking continuing education courses at Parson’s and spent some time working admin in several branding agencies to get a feel for the environment. After looking through several candidate portfolios at a boutique firm I was office managing, I realized that the work in your portfolio is everything, even despite where your degree is from. I looked through portfolios from candidates who attended the top design schools and was surprised that sometimes the work did not live up to their degree. After digging into the Shillington program and looking at the student work I was surprised at how tight their portfolios were. I was drawn to the fact that Shillington prepares you for the real world very quickly. It gives you the tools you need to actually work.
Can you list the design jobs you’ve had since graduating from Shillington?
I attended my Shillington graduation, and the very next day I got my first full time design job. Another student alum was working at a startup company and reached out to the school for potential candidates for a temp to perm position. I immediately went in for an interview and booked the job. That was a box sampling company called PINCHme. I produced all social material, email design, marketing collateral, deck presentations, infographics and reporting, working with some of the largest CPG brands like Unilever, Johnson & Johnson, P&G, Revlon and many more. My next position was my first agency experience, working at 360i. There I worked on brands like Absolut, Oreo and several other consumer brands, as well as site redesigns and marketing collateral. From there I moved to Business Insider working on their branded content team, Insider Studios. It’s very interesting working on advertising from the publishers side. I’ve gotten to work with high-end clients like Cartier, Dell, Blackrock, and Chase to name a few.
What’s your typical day like now as Associate Art Director at Insider Inc.?
A typical day can involve working with our writers and content producers to come up with ideas for interactive pages, working with our video team to storyboard animated videos, designing collateral for our marketing events, while working on designing campaigns. I love design because it brings structure to chaos and information in a creative way. Design is not just making something look pretty, it creates solutions and aids in communicating those solutions to people through impactful visuals.
What would you say to someone who’s thinking about studying at Shillington?
If you want a career in design I would highly recommend enrolling at Shillington. It is the most practical solution that will get you working as soon as possible. It gives you the tools you need to create a solid portfolio that can get you working right away. It was the best career move I made and still allows me to do all of the things I love and has become a passion in and of itself.
I’ve met some great friends through Shillington and feel lucky to have met a strong network of inspiring designers from it.
Visit Amy’s Behance profile.
Emma Ladlow
Designer, University of Nottingham Students' Union
Braden Floris
Designer, GoFundMe
Alexis Waller
Design Director, R/GA
Halah El Kholy
In-House Designer, Brew Tea Co
Alexander Rog
Junior Designer, oOh!
Jessica Bakker
Junior Graphic Designer, Beyond Communications
Bianca Chu
Senior Designer, eBay
Tally Thompson
Graphic Designer, Awesome Creative
Greg Bemis
Creative, Nike
Arnold Omanyo
UX/UI Designer, Digital on Demand
Tahmena Lutfi
Digital Designer, Qantas and Jetstar Hotels
Meredith Wallis
Designer, King & Partners
Miranda Mayne
Freelance Graphic Designer
Lindsay Koffler
Graphic Designer, Refinery29
Bobby Hendry
Designer, Brilliant Logic
Anika George
Designer, AKQA
Mark Osmond
Designer, Thumbs Up!
Lily Moore
Designer at Sotheby’s
Liana Modolo
UX Designer, Rex Software
Victoire Scherer
Junior Graphic Designer, Neoscape
Mikel McCavana
Designer, Moment
Kelly Hansen
Graphic Designer, Amazon Books
Alexander Wu-Kim
Concept Creative, ANDPEOPLE Australia
Kirsten McColl
Designer, WH-O
Nicole Rogers
Designer, Birchbox
Frankie Young
Founder, Studio Neubau
Pooja Dharia
Branding Designer, FCB Health
Jackson Todd
Art Director, Van Der Zwaag
Dawn Moloney
Founder, A Making Life
Caroline Keefe
Freelance, Nickelodeon
Sophie Lord
Creative Director, Hello May
Ocki Magill
Founder, Letter Bug Studios
Andy Vargas
Designer, Bitâcora
Moshe Bien
Designer, Nucleus
Crystal Lin
Designer, DNA Design
Stephen Grace
Designer, Christopher Doyle & Co.
Jing Ong
Designer, Autumn
Paul and Amoni Liddell
Graphic Designers, Westpac CX and Feel
Eleanor Rogers
Letterpress Printer, Chapel Press
Andy Tharagonnet
Designer, ThumbsUp
Erin Donati
Founder, Harley Quinn & Co.
Ben Peters
Freelance Graphic Designer
Brad Holten
Designer, Big Idea
Natalia Baker
Freelance Graphic Designer
Guy Pittard
Freelance Graphic Designer
Bea Sambalido
Freelance Graphic Designer
Oceane Combeau
Designer, Fernand et Firmin
Charly Tudor
Graphic Designer, Holdens
Anna Mullin
Illustrator, Sneaky Racoon
Theo Witrylak
Visual Designer, EPAM
Stephanie Antill
Founder, St Clement Creative
Paul McKie and Myles Sharpe
Directors, Autumn
Pete Conforto
Designer, For The People
Nicol Reid
Founder, Little Creative
David Scott
Designer, The Mix
James Birks
Freelance Illustrator and Designer
Jane Durlacher
Graphic Designer, Paper Stone Scissors
Rachel Lee
Freelance Graphic Designer
Romayne Gadelrab
Freelance Graphic Designer
Janno Saft
Founder, frank wo
Roo Cassels
Designer, Big Fish
Vanessa Burgess
Graphic Designer, Tritium
Olivier Adam
Freelance Graphic Designer
Molly Sitter
Studio Designer, Spring St. Social Society
Cari Sekendur
Art Director, LMNOP Creative
Alexandra Menzies
Freelance Graphic Designer
Tim Jones
Brand Experience Director, venturethree
Carla Scotto
Freelance Graphic Designer
Meg Walker
Designer, Milkshake
Christina Capetola
Designer at Wayfair
Louise Hamer
Design Lead, We Are Empire
Ina Estrada
Founder, Par Vous Designs
Chrystal Christie
Photographer/Graphic Designer, One Round Entertainment
Ulrika Johnson
Designer, Fantasia Accessories
Sam Jacobs
Senior Designer, Time Inc.
Sean Raynor
Designer, Watermark Studio
Irina Manning
UX Designer, Manning Labs
Margherita Baldi
Freelance Visual Designer
Henriette van Baren
Graphic Designer, ABC Carpet & Home