Design Careers Guide

What is design?

A career in design is about problem-solving using your creativity. You’ll spend your time making things work better, look better, feel better. Whether you’re working alongside clients or customers, you’ll turn ideas into real-life visuals that communicate messages and create experiences.

Whether it's a poster that grabs your attention or an easy-to-use website, good design makes life simpler.

What types of design are there?

The design world is huge. According to the World Design Organisation (WDO), there are 1.6 million designers, 1.97 million people working in the design industry, with an additional 2.5 million people using design skills in their roles.

So there’s something for every interest and skill set. Let’s explore the types of design you could work in.

Graphic Design

Creating visual content like logos, posters, packaging and social media graphics that grab attention. Perfect if you love working with colour, fonts and layouts.

Motion Design

Bringing graphics to life through animation. Great if you want your designs to move and tell stories.

UX/UI Design

You’ll make life easy by making digital products like apps and websites intuitive, easy to use, and genuinely enjoyable. Ideal if you're into tech and problem-solving.

Game Design

Designing art, characters, interfaces and more for video games. Perfect if you love world-building and telling stories through graphics.

Interior Design

Shaping the space in which we live, work and play. You’ll plan layouts and choose materials that make places amazing. Ideal if you love decorating living spaces.

Web Design

You’ll build functional websites that work across devices. Perfect if you’re into combining your creativity with coding.

The best part is, you don’t have to pick just one. Loads of designers are skilled in multiple branches of design, and there are loads of opportunities to upskill yourself.

How do I start a career in design?

The design industry is super competitive, and you’ll need to get your foot in the door early. So the best way to do that is with work experience. No matter where you are in your educational journey - whether that’s school, university or even if you’re about to graduate, there’s a path just for you.

Click to find out more about each path:

Here’s what one student said about their placement year at Burberry as a Digital Product Designer:

Will AI replace designers in the future?

You’ve probably seen loads of ChatGPT generated designs or wild visuals from MidJourney and wondered if there’s even any point in pursuing a design career. Here’s the truth: AI is a tool, not a replacement.

AI can be super useful and help to generate ideas and automate long processes, but it can’t think critically or understand humans the way we do. That’s where you come in. When it comes to connecting with people and knowing brand tone, you’ll be the best person for the job.

Designers who will thrive are those who’ll use AI as a starting point and then bring in their creativity and human touch to refine it. So think of AI as an assistant, not a replacement.

Getting to grips with AI now could open doors for you in the future. With all sorts of new roles opening up like AI model training and AI art direction, employers are going to need designers who understand both the tech and creative side. So, why not get ahead now?

What can I do with design work experience?

Whether that’s moving up within your chosen field or branching out into other areas within design, there’s a lot that work experience can do for you.

You could climb the ladder from junior designer to art director or creative director, where you’ll lead teams and major projects. Loads of designers move between in-house roles at companies, agency work, go freelance or even start their own agencies.

Design skills are transferable, too. You could start in graphic design and then move into UX. The skills you develop during your career can really open doors across tech, film, publishing and more.