Art and Design Careers

Animation

Animators create moving images for various types of media, including film, television, video games, commercials, and websites. Typically working in illustration or computer animation, they often work as freelancers or with animation studios.

Art History

Art history examines the cultural representations found in works of art throughout history. Students in art history programs learn how to analyze pieces of art to prepare for jobs in museums or other cultural institutions.

Fashion

Fashion professionals design and produce various types of clothing, typically working for design companies and clothing brands. They usually need a bachelor's or associate degree.

Film

Film students gain the skills needed to critically analyze films and create their own works. Film professionals typically need at least a bachelor's degree and may work in directing, editing, and/or production.

Game Design

Game designers work as part of a team to create video games and other playable content. Some game designers focus on coding, while others work on graphic design. These professionals typically need a bachelor's degree.

Graphic Design

Graphic designers communicate their ideas visually by using images, symbols, and text. They may design any object in which visual information is communicated, such as magazine covers, product packaging, signs, websites, advertising, and corporate logos.

Illustration

Illustrators draw and paint images that communicate concepts for use in media, such as books, magazines, posters, video games, and advertisements. A bachelor's degree helps students develop the technical illustration skills -- like scale, human anatomy, and use of color -- necessary to excel in this career.

Interior Design

Interior designers create or revise interior spaces to maximize aesthetic harmony and functionality. Working with commercial and residential spaces, they also oversee construction and implementation.

Photography

Photographers capture snapshots of the world around them. These professionals can work for established publications or freelance. Photographers typically only need a high school diploma, but they may also pursue a postsecondary degree to develop advanced skills.

Associate Degrees

As an entry-level degree, an associate prepares you for entry-level art and design positions. While this degree does not lead to advanced positions, it can expand employment opportunities in fields like fashion, photography, and graphic design. This degree also provides a basic overview of major skills and concepts in the field, which can build a foundation for further study.

The main advantage of an associate degree is its low cost and quick completion time. With just two years of full-time study, you can earn an affordable degree that enables you to pursue employment in the arts. Many schools also offer associate programs fully online, allowing you to work while in school.

For many art students, an associate degree is the first step in their professional and academic journeys. To qualify for most careers in art and design that offer real advancement potential, you need at least a bachelor's degree. However, an associate program can serve as a trial run for arts education, helping you to determine if you want to commit to a career in the field.

Bachelor's Degrees

A bachelor's degree offers an overview of the arts while conferring specialized knowledge in areas like game design, art history, or animation. A bachelor's degree is the minimum education requirement for most design-related careers, teaching you the skills needed to pursue a variety of positions with potential for advancement. It can also function as the next step toward a graduate degree, such as a master's or doctorate.

The curriculum of a bachelor's program offers extensive knowledge in your field of study, preparing you for entry-level and mid-level positions. However, many advanced careers in design, including managerial and leadership roles, may recommend or require a master's degree. For example, a bachelor's in art history typically prepares you for entry-level roles in a museum or gallery, but if you want to work as a curator or gallery director, you may need to earn a master's degree.

Many colleges offer bachelor's programs either partially or fully online, which may allow you to continue working while pursuing a degree. Some schools also offer special tuition discounts for students who complete their degrees entirely online.

Master's Degrees

A master's degree is necessary for some art and design careers, as it offers advanced knowledge and skills in one focus area. Graduate study builds on the skills gained in a bachelor's program, often conferring mastery of one artistic area, such as interior design or film. Most programs require two years of full-time study.

A master's program typically provides advanced knowledge in a specialization, and many programs emphasize leadership skills, preparing students to assume management roles upon graduation. Master's degree-holders may pursue a variety of advanced positions, such as gallery director, museum curator, animation supervisor, artistic director, or executive producer.

Some master's programs occur partially or primarily online, making it easier to balance school work with a career. Other programs offer intensive, accelerated enrollment options for students looking to complete their degrees rapidly.

Master's programs often include experiential components that enable you to gain practical experience in a professional setting. For example, you might intern at an art museum as part of an art history program or with an animation studio as part of an animation program.

Doctoral Degrees

A doctorate is the highest level of education attainable in the arts, conferring the most advanced knowledge and skills in a highly specialized area of study. This degree requires significant dedication, including several years of study, the completion of rigorous exams, and an extensive final project -- typically a dissertation.

Most doctoral programs have a highly academic focus, and the degree isn't commonly available for all areas of art and design. For example, technical fields, like graphic design, fashion, and interior design, rarely require a doctorate. However, many schools offer doctoral programs in more academic subjects, like art history or film studies.

Earning a doctorate prepares you to teach at the college level, and most programs require you to concentrate in one area of study. For example, in an art history doctoral program, you might focus your studies on contemporary or Islamic art. A doctorate can also prepare you for executive positions in the field, such as chief curator at a major museum or director of a cultural agency or nonprofit.