Is there anyone who has a job in graphic design who could lend some advice?

Question

I'm a senior in high school and I want to go into graphic design. Ultimately I want to get a job with a publishing company and work on cover designs.

One of the schools I'm looking at is Cal state poly San Luis Obispo. They have a graphic communication program, and an emphasis in design reproduction technology. When I visited the college they had students' cover designs displayed.

Would a publishing company take on someon with a degree in graphic communication or would I be better off majoring in graphic design?

Answer 1

In graphic design what matters most (when applying for jobs) is your portfolio and amount of experience in the field. You can have a degree in fine arts, computer science, biology, whatever, but if you have a strong portfolio of past and present work in cover designs, and experience to back it up (most good jobs require 3+), then you'd have no problem.

In terms of majoring in graphic communications: do research on different schools (maybe even out of state) to see which offer best program that suits you.