What are studios looking for when employing a fresh grad as a junior designer? Anita McArthur, from Seesaw Studio, shares her thoughts on the topic.
What do design studios really look for when hiring a junior designer, especially someone fresh out of art school? It’s a question we hear a lot, and the truth is, while design craft matters, it’s not the full picture.
Being a great designer requires more than simply having a good eye for aesthetics, it also involves understanding people and how to effectively communicate with different markets using a combination of visual language (type and images) and written and spoken language. Luckily, for a recent grad, you are not expected to have all the answers, which is why it is called a ‘career’; it takes time to master. What you do need is, the right attitude to learn and develop.
IQ + EQ
At Seesaw, we’re always looking for a balance between general and emotional intelligence (IQ + EQ). That’s not just about how clever or talented you are on the tools. It’s about how you collaborate, how you listen, and what you bring to the conversation. Culture fit is everything. As a studio, we spend so much time together crafting, critiquing, strategising, laughing. As a proud, certified BCorp studio, our aim is to build a happy team that feels cohesive, inspired and genuinely connected. You can be an exceptional designer, but if you can’t work well with others, it simply doesn’t work.
Refining the craft
Going into a junior designer role is a little like starting an apprenticeship. You’re not expected to know everything. You’ve been taught the tools, exposed to the references, and now it’s time to refine the craft. That means understanding the nuances that bring a brand to life. How storytelling introduces personality, how colour defines a mood, how typography sets a tone. These aren’t just aesthetics, they’re strategic choices.
As a junior…
At the junior level, we’re not looking for polish. We want people who are eager to learn, who are curious, and are as interested in the world as they are in their own ideas. We want you to bring something to the table. A unique perspective, an obsession for detail, a hunger to understand how things work and why. We can teach the software. What we can’t teach is that innate drive to explore, create and contribute.
Being adaptable
Great design isn’t just about aesthetics. It’s about what works and communicates effectively. And working across multiple clients means you’ll need to be adaptable. You start to learn that design isn’t one size fits all. Different sectors speak in different languages, visually, verbally and behaviourally. How we create a brand for a corporate client is worlds away from how we might approach fashion, education or retail. Each sector has its own rhythm and tone. Understanding this takes both time and exposure within industry.
That’s where good mentoring comes in. Creative leaders who will guide you, push you, challenge your thinking and, most importantly, back you. They help you learn how to shape your aesthetic to suit the client, without diluting your creativity. How to bring clarity to complexity. How to listen, think critically and still find space to innovate within constraints.
Having purpose
For us, purpose is also a core filter. We work with clients who want to make a difference in the world and we’re drawn to people who care about those things too. Purpose isn’t just a positioning statement, it’s something we actively seek in the people we hire. That doesn’t mean you need to have it all figured out. But we want to know what drives you. What matters to you. What makes you want to make things better. Because ultimately, that’s what we do as designers. We don’t just shape visuals. We shape conversations, experiences and impact. plus, we bring ideas into the world that have the power to influence how people think, feel and behave. And that’s a responsibility worth taking seriously.
Just be…
So if you’re just starting out, don’t worry about being perfect. Instead, be passionate. Be thoughtful. Be interested in things outside the everyday. And be generous with your ideas, and open to others. And most importantly, be someone people want to work with. That’s what studios are looking for. That’s what we’re looking for. And chances are, that’s where your best work will come from. Not just in what you design, but in who you become while doing it.
BJ Ball + Ball & Doggett would like to thank the Anita McArthur, Director of Strategy @Seesaw Studio (Melbourne) for sharing her words of wisdom.
For more information on Seesaw Studio—go to: //seesawstudio.com.au
