Education - Picking a Minor?

TuffSpot · 10-09-2012, 04:50 AM

As I mentioned in my introductory post, I'm currently at a community college and will be transferring to a 4yr state school in the coming fall. I'm planning on a bachelor of fine arts right now because there is no graphic design program at this school, but I can use the art electives to tailor the degree to a certain extent. I've picked this school for several reasons, most of them related to finances.

My question is about choosing a complimentary minor. I had been planning on minoring in business for something a little more "useful" than an art degree, but my advisor at the state college suggested mass media. Apparently the mass media minor has a 'creative advertising' focus, and she thought that this would appeal since she knows I intend to be a graphic designer. I don't think she has any industry experience, though.

Until recently, I've considered a minor my back up plan in case the art thing doesn't work out. Aside from a few minor quibbles like location and pay, my current job is a great fit but I'm not sure that such opportunities are readily available with the kind of wage and location that I'd want. I want to be marketable outside of graphic design so that I don't live paycheck to paycheck. I watched my parents do that for most of my childhood. Don't wanna go there. But now I'm wondering if pursuing the creative advertising spin on a mass media minor would make me more marketable to potential employers looking for a graphic designer.

I'm not that interested in being self employed, which is the immediate application for a business minor. I've freelanced a little bit, have a hobby-based business that I tackle in my free time, and interned with a self-employed work-from-home (but quite professional) portrait photographer for two years during high school. My current boss is also self employed, more or less, so I think I have a pretty good handle on what it entails. Right now, I'm really liking the idea of a salary or regular paychecks.

The tl;dr here is this: would I be better off with a creative advertising related mass media minor (more attractive to employers?), or would business be better (just in case art doesn't work at first)? The business minor requires 21 hours, but I've already completed a transferring course which reduces it to 19 and I can take two of the other required classes at my community college, leaving me with 13 hours to complete at the state college. The mass media minor is 18 hours, none of my current classes can apply, and only one can be completed at the community college (which is half the cost per credit hour of the state college).

Thanks for reading my small novel. Thoughts from people out there in the real world would be much appreciated!

(And if I've put this in the wrong place - my apologies! It didn't quite seem to fit into business.)

**Buda** · 10-09-2012, 06:43 AM

Is there any chance at this stage that you can transfer to a school with a reputable graphic design programme?

Even if you had already started your fine arts degree and wanted to get into design, I'd suggest you move to design. But since you haven't started yet, its not too late to go that route.

When I was faced with picking a school and programme, I picked the very best design programme at the time in my city. It's not something I regret.

The problem with tailoring a degree to suit a designer from papers that aren't design is that none of your tutors/professors are graphic designers or have any experience in the design industry. How will you learn what you need from them?

**KitchWitch** · 10-09-2012, 12:52 PM

The college I went to didn't have a graphic design major, either (yet), so I ended up with a BFA with a 'focus' in graphic design. It was weird. Small art school, I don't even think I had a minor. If I could have chosen one, I would have gone with psychology because it's interesting to me and clients are insane. Anyway.

The cynic in me says if you're already looking for a back-up career for graphic design then you don't really want to do it and why bother. If you're in it just for the money you'll make, choose a career that literally makes the most money right now and follow that path. But we'll tell my inner cynic to shut it.

Business is a good choice, IMO, because it can apply to many fields. Mass media is also a good choice to widen your range in design. However, the advertising field is going to be just as saturated as the grahpic design field, so that may not provide you with a reliable back up as far as job opportunities. Web design/web development might be good. Maybe photography, marketing.

Do you have to choose/declare a minor? Can you just take a bunch of classes that you think would benefit you and just get your BFA? Not sure how that works. Need caffiene. Good morning.

PrintDriver · 10-09-2012, 01:56 PM

If you think that interactive media is the wave of the future, maybe you might think about early childhood development and education courses. As books and games become more stupid-pad oriented rather than actually tactile, having some insight into age groups might be helpful.

It will be really sad if the future comes down to handing a 3 year old the rubber-baby-buggy-bumper version of an iPad and all they get to do is push buttons.
<hope I don't live to see it, but it's probably inevitable.>

There is already a trend in educational exhibits to incorporate video games and interactive media as part of the experience. Kids today don't know what to do if there isn't a button or joystick interface. The look on their face when presented with building blocks sorta says, "You actually want me to THINK in 3 dimensions???"

TuffSpot · 10-09-2012, 02:17 PM

Buda - I don't have a "city." There's problem number one. I live in a rural state and any kind of graphic design program will require me to move. If I attend the 4yr college with an art program, I can commute. It's still a 45 minute trek one way, but it will allow me to keep my current job that provides experience. I understand that an actual design program would be best, but I don't see that as a financial possibility. This college is not my ideal choice, but my ideal choice would be out of my budget. My hope is that an art degree will still teach me the foundations of good design.

Kitch -
Your inner cynic is fine

That's a really good point. I think that my need for a backup plan is not so much second guessing my career choice, but being unsure about job availability. I don't have to choose a minor, but I have heard so many stories about people with art degrees failing to find a job, any job. On this forum, I read posts about people who have been looking for years. That scares me, so I've been viewing a minor as a safety net. Maybe that's the wrong way to look at it...I'm not sure.

Re: photography, I enjoy it and have messed around with cameras since I was 14. I hate doing portrait photography, I have absolutely no flair for it, and I'm just not sure where I'd go with that career-wise.

PD - I hadn't really considered that field...I have absolutely zero experience with creating interactive media like that. I did the graphics for a flash-based horse game, but didn't assemble it. That was passed on to a programmer. Would be interesting to explore.

The closer I get to actually transferring out of the community college the more nervous I am. There are a lot of decisions to make in the next three months (to meet admission/aid deadlines) that will have a big impact on my future, and it freaks me out a little bit.

**KitchWitch** · 10-09-2012, 02:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TuffSpot

Kitch -
Your inner cynic is fine

That's a really good point. I think that my need for a backup plan is not so much second guessing my career choice, but being unsure about job availability. I don't have to choose a minor, but I have heard so many stories about people with art degrees failing to find a job, any job. On this forum, I read posts about people who have been looking for years. That scares me, so I've been viewing a minor as a safety net. Maybe that's the wrong way to look at it...I'm not sure.

Not the wrong way, I get what you mean and I'm not trying to belittle your line of thought. When I graduated college a lot of the folks that graduated with me got jobs at Blockbuster and were there for a loooong time. It's smart to walk down the 'what if' road and be prepared for it.

Bottom line is you have to do what feels right and makes sense for you. We can give you our opinions, but can't step in your shoes. If a minor in business makes more sense for your future, do that.

I'm gonna go get more caffiene.

**Buda** · 10-09-2012, 08:50 PM

If a decision doesn't freak you out, it's not one worth making. It's good to be freaked out about your future. It means you give a damn.

Keep focused and mindful of the stuff you need to do to get where you want to be. View each task as a baby step and it should be less overwhelming.

TuffSpot · 10-11-2012, 04:48 AM

Thank you all for the feedback

Kind of confirms what I've thought for a while - there's no Do This and You'll Be Fine answer to this question. Bummer for me...was hoping for something a little easier!

Once I get some homework out of the way over the weekend, I'm going to sit down and make The List of Very Important Steps, which I've been meaning to do for a while. Thanks for the kick, Buda.