Graphic Design in Vancouver

Frank Bullitt

Been mulling over the thoughts of heading to Van for work for a while now and I think I will head over in the next round of Visas.

I have friends over there and all speak very highly of it, they are in BC I believe. I want to go over but I would also like to get a job in my field, considering that I have been working here now in Ireland in it for over 2 years now, Graphic Design by the way.

This is the main part of my query, I have seen that most of the studios over there are quite open and have careers pages on their sites, so I will of course email them and get the ball rolling, but just checking here to see if anyone has any experience in this field over there, or knows anyone that does?

Thanks for the help.

ciaran67

Gintonious wrote: »

Been mulling over the thoughts of heading to Van for work for a while now and I think I will head over in the next round of Visas.

I have friends over there and all speak very highly of it, they are in BC I believe. I want to go over but I would also like to get a job in my field, considering that I have been working here now in Ireland in it for over 2 years now, Graphic Design by the way.

This is the main part of my query, I have seen that most of the studios over there are quite open and have careers pages on their sites, so I will of course email them and get the ball rolling, but just checking here to see if anyone has any experience in this field over there, or knows anyone that does?

Thanks for the help.

You will be lucky to get something in this line. There are loads of GDers out of work here in Vancouver. Its not very well paid either according to the jobs ive seen come up. I've acutally given up trying to get artworking positions and now work for transit and earn far more money doing this anyway. But defo email companies, you never know who you might snag. That's how i got my first job at the North Shore News back in 1998, before i emigrated here.

Good luck!

Frank Bullitt

Thanks for the reply.

I was only talking to a mate the other day and he says the opposite of what you have just said, obviously you are actually there so you have more of a scope than he does.

I will try to get in contact with a few places, already had a response from someone over there and they have given my a large list of resources to get cracking on.

Are you a designer yourself?

ciaran67

Gintonious wrote: »

Thanks for the reply.

I was only talking to a mate the other day and he says the opposite of what you have just said, obviously you are actually there so you have more of a scope than he does.

I will try to get in contact with a few places, already had a response from someone over there and they have given my a large list of resources to get cracking on.

Are you a designer yourself?

Ive been doing it since the Financial Times in '88. The eighties on Fleet St were monumental.

I hope your mates right. I looked a bit but I've gone into a whole different profession.

Frank Bullitt

ciaran67 wrote: »

Ive been doing it since the Financial Times in '88. The eighties on Fleet St were monumental.

I hope your mates right. I looked a bit but I've gone into a whole different profession.

Thanks, am in contact with a designer over there now and he says it is competitive, but that there are jobs.

Always hope.

ciaran67

Gintonious wrote: »

Thanks, am in contact with a designer over there now and he says it is competitive, but that there are jobs.

Always hope.

Believe me, the turn around I've had as a 45 year old, from this time last year, would give anyone hope!

bay

I've been in Vancouver since the end of April (2013) and finding it incredibly difficult to get a response from companies never mind a job. I've sent out mailers through the mail and I've tried traditional email and very few people even acknowledge the contact. I've tried to find events etc but that proves just as difficult. I've also looked for internships but also find these very hard to find. Does anyone have any suggestions as to a way in to design in Vancouver?

Frank Bullitt

What sort of experience do you have?

bay

Hi Gintonious, I graduated in 2011 after which I did a 9 month internship in 3 different studios in dublin, then did some freelance for companies I had worked for in the past, Mostly just helping out with flowing in text, few small branding jobs etc for about 2 months. Most of my experience would be in print/illustration with a small amount of experience in web design.

Frank Bullitt

Im here nearly 3 months but I still am not working, there are lots of jobs here but you have to crack the community.

Check out meet up.com and go to events. I find it a waste of time looking on craigslist but you can get lucky on it.

Have you had contact with any studios?

bay

yeah I know what you mean about cracking the community, I get the sense its fairly small. Yeah I've contacted studios but I rarely get a reply. I've only had one interview since I got here. In desperation I went to a recruitment company recently, there said its a fairly small group here and they tend to only hire people from vancouver or BC. I don't know how true that actually is though

Frank Bullitt

bay wrote: »

yeah I know what you mean about cracking the community, I get the sense its fairly small. Yeah I've contacted studios but I rarely get a reply. I've only had one interview since I got here. In desperation I went to a recruitment company recently, there said its a fairly small group here and they tend to only hire people from vancouver or BC. I don't know how true that actually is though

Once you crack it, you are flying though. Vancouver is a tough nut to crack in any industry, every single one of my friends said it will take at least 3 months to get a job, so don't get too beat-up about it just yet, trust me.

One thing you NEED to do here, and I am currently in the process of picking up on it, is selling yourself big, don't be modest in the slightest, they will pick up on it. Get to Creative Mornings, they are free, get some business cards printed out and when you chat to someone, give them one. Look into the GDC, its $250 to join but it is held in a high regard here, so it is a worthy investment.

Get following people on twitter, and start blogging as well, even if it is only small. This is the advice I was given, and it has turned the tables around for me in the last month, there are little talks on all over the city so get to them.

Surrounding yourself with the right people will open the doors.