How to Become an Industrial Designer

Industrial designers combine art and engineering to make people's lives easier. They design everyday items from dishes to cars. If you enjoy drawing and inventing things, then industrial design might be the job for you. The need for industrial designers has never been greater with the growth of high-tech items.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Look at your positives. Do you possess a creative streak or do invention fairs sound fun to you? If your mind is always coming up with new ideas or ways to make things better, then you're the right fit for industrial design jobs. Problem-solving skills are a plus.

2. Take design and art classes in high school to work on your eye for detail. If computer-aided drafting (CAD) classes are available, enroll at once. CAD programs are the number one tool used by industrial designers. Other important courses are geometry in order to understand proportion and shop classes. Build sets and props for your school or community theater group.

3. Apply to a college that offers an industrial design degree. You can substitute majors in architecture or engineering for an industrial design degree. You'll need a minimum of a BA for entry-level positions. Art and design schools are another way to go. A master's degree may put you ahead of the competition. Coursework should focus on both the artistic and technical aspects of things.

4. Gain expertise in computer aided design software if you haven't already. It really is indispensable in today's industrial designer jobs.

5. Check into possible internships while in school. These might be for a manufacturer or a design firm.

6. Learn more about industrial design once you start work. Many employers provide on-the-job training for entry-level positions. After gaining experience, you can move up. If the idea of being your own boss sounds good, you might want to pursue self-employment. One out of every three industrial designers is self-employed.

7. Specialize in a specific product category. Most industrial designers focus their energy on certain fields, like kitchen appliances, toys or medical equipment.

Tips & Warnings

• Some industrial designers with undergraduate degrees pursue graduate degrees in business administration for training in business skills.

Who Can Help Sponsored

• Earn your degree from industry experts at University of Phoenix. Take the next step in your career.

[Marythemom]

on 6/1/2009 Just wanted to post that I received a question about becoming an industrial designer that I answered on our company blog if anyone wants to check it out. http://id-one.blogspot.com/2009/06/becoming-industrial-designer.htmlMary BrushPresident ID-ONEwww.id-one.net

[Marythemom]

on 7/1/2008 As the president of an industrial design consulting firm, I can tell you I do not hire designers without a degree in industrial design. No substitutions! We do also employ graphic designers and mechanical engineers - but we prefer to hire designers with ADDITIONAL experience in those or manufacturing not other degrees alone. Of course as a consultancy we have to have high standards of efficiency and excellence.

Mary
www.id-one.net

[ohboy]

on 10/26/2007 You will have a hard time subsituting an engineering degree for an ID degree also. Architecture is a little closer, but still not easy.

Its like saying that you can substitute a dentistry degree for opthamology.

[cgielow]

on 10/26/2007 CAD is not the "number one tool" used by Industrial Designers. They will tell you that a pen and paper are, and that model-making is equally important.

Let's also be clear, to an Industrial Designer, Adobe Illustrator, Freehand and Photoshop are extremely popular "CAD" tools but do not fit the typical definition. Industrial Designers do not use tools like AutoCAD, they use specialized "CAID" (Computer Aided Industrial Design) tools like Rhino and Alias Studio, or ME-focused CAD like Pro/E or SolidWorks.