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.
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Amy Sheehan
Art Director, Insider Inc.
Emma Ladlow
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Braden Floris
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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.
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