From Studio to Suburb: What I Learned in my First Year of Design School

As I sit in my hometown bedroom, surrounded by bags of unpacked clothes, I’m reminiscing about my first year at college. Plenty of new friends, lots of memories made, and a number of new things learned (don’t worry mom and dad, I did learn things ;) ). Being part of a reputable design program has been both a blessing and a challenge. Getting to work with design alongside other driven design students already in my first year has been amazing, but has definitely also taught me some lessons. Of course I learned the basics, the elements of design, how the principles bring them together, sighting and measuring angles, etc., but I learned some more broad lessons as well that I think have truly changed the way I think and function, both as a designer and a person.

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1. This first lesson I didn’t recognize until only about two weeks ago when I was working hard to get my final drawing project finished: BALANCE. It’s a principle of design, and should also be a principle of our lives, especially as designers. I take a lot of pride in my work; I want what I submit to be well developed and articulated (and my perfectionist brain wants every little detail to be perfect), but that doesn’t get rid of the fact that it’s good to take breaks too. Staying up until 3 or 4 in the morning multiple nights in a row and relying on energy drinks probably isn’t healthy (talking to myself here). Put time and effort into your work and be proud of what you produce, but also get some sleep, take a walk, spend time with friends. It’ll make you much happier, and more productive.

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2. Singular right answers don’t exist in design. I love being a creative; I’ve been involved with creative things my entire life, and now I’ve obviously chosen a creative career, but there’s still a more logically driven side of my brain that’s constantly looking for “the right answer”. It’s easy to want the finished product to be a quick and easy set-in-stone answer, but that doesn’t really happen in design. I’ve seen 20 different versions of the same project description come to life in each of my studios, and they’re all thoughtful, innovative, and right. That’s the beauty of design- each invention and each student is creative and correct in their own way, and I get to be surrounded by it all the time.

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3. That leads me to my next point, which is that collaboration is good, even necessary as a designer. I’ve already talked about being somewhat of a perfectionist control freak, but that’s also led me to instinctively want to work in a vacuum: shut everyone else out and do my own thing, design my project the way I want to and not let anyone comment on it. News flash, that’s not possible in design school. Working lively in a studio, students are encouraged to walk around and talk with one another, professors give opinions and suggestions, group projects are assigned where everyone has to contribute their ideas and time. It may be difficult to take in at first, I know it was for me, but the feedback you receive from others with their own creative ideas is what’s going to help you grow the most as a developing designer.

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4. Being a design student changes your perspective on the world around you. I’ve noticed recently that I’ve been subconsciously evaluating the things and spaces around me. I walk into a room and scan everything, wondering why they might’ve chosen those colors, the placement of the furniture, the meaning of the decor. I walk past buildings or zone out on walls and notice the angles in my head, whether they’re above or below my eye level, how I might draw it if I had a sketchbook. I’ve seen myself become much more observant, sources of inspiration and my own new ideas constantly present in the back of my mind.

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5. The final large lesson I figured out is that process matters. Between lectures and studios, I think “iteration” is the word I heard the most in my first year, but for good reason. Design isn’t a one and done, start with one idea and finish it linearly. You have to develop your designs in stages, whether it’s a simple drawing that actually needs multiple layers of work to be accurate, or an invented project that requires you to brainstorm, work, and then rework your ideas before you come close to the final result. As someone who taught myself how to draw just because I thought it was fun growing up, I needed to basically relearn how to draw using more technical skills and techniques that I had never explored before. Even though it’s one of the most challenging things to do, sometimes you may need to step back and reteach yourself something, go through the process again to get more accurate, rewarding results.

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Don’t be fooled, I haven’t mastered any of these yet. I recognize that I’ve learned them and have started to use them, but I am absolutely still developing these lessons into skills. I am so grateful to have been immersed in such a wonderful program this year, and I can’t wait to go back and continue my design journey in just a few short months.