This was not planned.
When I got laid off from my full-time job in January 2020, I figured I would take a little break and learn Photoshop as I have been wanting to but couldn’t fit into my work schedule.
COVID-19 changed everything. I began helping a local bakery café with graphic work and online presence. Since I needed to develop some new skills quickly and there were no potential interior design projects in sight, I kept on taking classes that interested me.
I never thought I had it in me to be a graphic designer. My focus was to know enough to do my job with the bakery café. I was doing store signage and menu design, photography, photoshoot styling, and content creation. Everything was new to me. I got a lot of support and help from my professors and my classmates. I was having a great time even though we had to be remote and deal with COVID-19 restrictions.
A few semesters passed; my classmates reminded me to check my progress. Combining with the classes I had taken for my bachelor’s degree, I was eligible for an A.A. degree in Art, Gallery, and Museum Studies. And I was two classes away from completing the Multimedia – Graphic and Web Design program.
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to take the remaining classes. (They were photography and web design.) I had started getting busy with work. And I was planning to visit my family in Taiwan more regularly. Somehow, I couldn’t pass up getting another degree. I made it work, and I am glad I did. I enjoyed the last two classes as much as all the other classes I had taken.
This wasn’t planned, and I couldn’t have planned it better.
Now I can declare confidently that I am a Graphic Designer!
MICHELLE CHIANG 