Additional Information
Creative directors can enter the field from a variety of college majors.
Examples include a degree in advertising, communications, graphic design,
journalism or public relations.
But experience matters, too. Most people get experience in related positions.
Then they work their way up.
Make sure that you intersperse at least a few computer- or Internet-related
courses throughout your education. Technical experience or education will
be extremely valuable for those entering this field. Technology-minded creative
directors will command the highest salaries and the best opportunities.
When Susan Herr first began her career, she worked as an assistant to a
creative director in an ad agency. Mentor programs were available at that
time. But these days, education's the way to a job.
Herr is now a creative director. She recommends that students "find a good
school and work very hard to get a really good portfolio. Though I'm a computer
fanatic in love with all graphics and multimedia software, I think many young
people skip over design fundamentals if they're good on computers. I think
that's a disservice to the field.
"It's imperative that young people educate themselves to the fundamentals
of good design and typography, and innovate from those fundamentals -- not
from the special effects the computer allows that only razzle dazzle with
little graphic content or sensibility."