Hear straight from our graduates.
The most valuable thing we took away from the course was being able to communicate in a design capacity. Having a designer vocabulary has made working with clients so much easier.
Directors, Autumn
Paul McKie and Myles Sharpe
Where do you both work?
We’re Myles and Paul, and we’re both directors of The Autumn Co. Our business has been operating for five years. We specialise in print, design, web and sign. We’re Brisbane-based but love working with clients all over Australia. We’ve really tried to take a fresh approach to the conventional design studio, utilising our backgrounds to offer a full service experience for our clients.
No day is the same as the next. That’s partially what we love about our business and our roles in the studio. We work across the full spectrum of the business—from mopping the floors to working alongside multinational companies, travelling interstate and working on the computer with a new branding project. Every client and every project requires something different which keeps each day different and exciting.
Why did you decide to do the course?
We needed to expand our skill set to progress our business, and that meant going back to study. We really wanted to polish our skills and get some form of industry recognition before trying to mix it with the design community. We were already doing a lot of print and signage work for some amazing clients, so the natural extension of this was a greater design offering—that’s why we chose Shillington. Working full-time, the part-time course was really the only option available for us. The weeknight classes fitted perfectly into our schedule—we finished work on a Wednesday and Thursday and headed straight into the city for college. It made for a really nice mid-week event as we’d grab something to eat before class, often with the teachers or fellow students—we found the whole experience very social.
The classes are intense, in a good way—they condense so much information into a few contact hours each week. This way of studying meant you were learning theory and practical skills at the same time, which made the content really digestible.
What was the most valuable thing you took away from the course?
Three things: (1) We made some amazing new friends and contacts. (2) We took away the practical skills that we’d always wanted. Doing the course meant designing the “right way”, knowing what shortcuts to take and those to avoid. (3) Being able to communicate in a design capacity. Having a designer vocabulary has made working with clients so much easier.
Do you have any advice for those thinking about studying graphic design at Shillington?
Just do it. Getting into the industry is made so much easier by the introduction to the design world that Shillington offers. There’s no other course that delivers the full on practical skills that the course provides you with—and in such a compact and timely manner.
The Autumn Co. has evolved into Autumn. Studio.
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Megan Dweck
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Eleanor Robertson
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Jordan Demetriou
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Yarron Frauenfelder
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Anara Davletaliyeva
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Tiffany Yee
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Amy Sheehan
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Emma Ladlow
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Braden Floris
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Alexis Waller
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Halah El Kholy
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Alexander Rog
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Jessica Bakker
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Bianca Chu
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Tally Thompson
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Greg Bemis
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Arnold Omanyo
UX/UI Designer, Digital on Demand
Tahmena Lutfi
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Meredith Wallis
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Miranda Mayne
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Lindsay Koffler
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Bobby Hendry
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Anika George
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Mark Osmond
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Lily Moore
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Liana Modolo
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Victoire Scherer
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Mikel McCavana
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Kelly Hansen
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Alexander Wu-Kim
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Kirsten McColl
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Nicole Rogers
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Frankie Young
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Pooja Dharia
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Jackson Todd
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Dawn Moloney
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Caroline Keefe
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Sophie Lord
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Ocki Magill
Founder, Letter Bug Studios
Andy Vargas
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Moshe Bien
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Crystal Lin
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Stephen Grace
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Jing Ong
Designer, Autumn
Paul and Amoni Liddell
Graphic Designers, Westpac CX and Feel
Eleanor Rogers
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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
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Anna Mullin
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Theo Witrylak
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Stephanie Antill
Founder, St Clement Creative
Paul McKie and Myles Sharpe
Directors, Autumn
The most valuable thing we took away from the course was being able to communicate in a design capacity. Having a designer vocabulary has made working with clients so much easier.
Directors, Autumn
Paul McKie and Myles Sharpe
Where do you both work?
We’re Myles and Paul, and we’re both directors of The Autumn Co. Our business has been operating for five years. We specialise in print, design, web and sign. We’re Brisbane-based but love working with clients all over Australia. We’ve really tried to take a fresh approach to the conventional design studio, utilising our backgrounds to offer a full service experience for our clients.
No day is the same as the next. That’s partially what we love about our business and our roles in the studio. We work across the full spectrum of the business—from mopping the floors to working alongside multinational companies, travelling interstate and working on the computer with a new branding project. Every client and every project requires something different which keeps each day different and exciting.
Why did you decide to do the course?
We needed to expand our skill set to progress our business, and that meant going back to study. We really wanted to polish our skills and get some form of industry recognition before trying to mix it with the design community. We were already doing a lot of print and signage work for some amazing clients, so the natural extension of this was a greater design offering—that’s why we chose Shillington. Working full-time, the part-time course was really the only option available for us. The weeknight classes fitted perfectly into our schedule—we finished work on a Wednesday and Thursday and headed straight into the city for college. It made for a really nice mid-week event as we’d grab something to eat before class, often with the teachers or fellow students—we found the whole experience very social.
The classes are intense, in a good way—they condense so much information into a few contact hours each week. This way of studying meant you were learning theory and practical skills at the same time, which made the content really digestible.
What was the most valuable thing you took away from the course?
Three things: (1) We made some amazing new friends and contacts. (2) We took away the practical skills that we’d always wanted. Doing the course meant designing the “right way”, knowing what shortcuts to take and those to avoid. (3) Being able to communicate in a design capacity. Having a designer vocabulary has made working with clients so much easier.
Do you have any advice for those thinking about studying graphic design at Shillington?
Just do it. Getting into the industry is made so much easier by the introduction to the design world that Shillington offers. There’s no other course that delivers the full on practical skills that the course provides you with—and in such a compact and timely manner.
The Autumn Co. has evolved into Autumn. Studio.
Pete Conforto
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Nicol Reid
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David Scott
Designer, The Mix
James Birks
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Jane Durlacher
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Rachel Lee
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Freelance Graphic Designer
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Vanessa Burgess
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Molly Sitter
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Cari Sekendur
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Tim Jones
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Carla Scotto
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Meg Walker
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Christina Capetola
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Louise Hamer
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Ina Estrada
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Chrystal Christie
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Ulrika Johnson
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Sam Jacobs
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Sean Raynor
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Irina Manning
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Margherita Baldi
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Henriette van Baren
Graphic Designer, ABC Carpet & Home