The ingredients for this type of content are simply: images and typography. Combining these two, a graphic designer can build an image that is pleasant to look at, but also communicates a message in a clear, intuitive fashion, making it easy for the viewer to interpret. Graphic designers are behind all sorts of visual content that you may see in your day-to-day life: for example, travel brochures, movie posters, even the illustrations in high school and college textbooks. They also work on visual communication that you may not think of as a form of design, such as public signage that conveys information, warnings, or instructions.
Graphic design is a complex and challenging pursuit, which makes it a stimulating career to choose. Certainly, graphic designers need to be aware of fundamental principles of visual design, such as the rule of thirds and color theory. However, on a higher level, they also need to maintain a focus on user experience. This means being mindful of how viewers take in what they create, including the visual hierarchy and information architecture that governs how the message is communicated.
In addition to the exciting challenges it provides for a creator, graphic design has many other advantageous aspects as a career choice. It appeals to many because it allows them to bring their creativity to their work, yet also gain compensation that’s in keeping with their talent and hard work. This is particularly the case with the high demand for graphic designers in fields like tech. In the information technology world, many large companies have in-house graphic design teams. Alternatively, you can work at a design firm that specifically caters to the tech industry. If you’d rather control what you work on and the timeline for your projects, graphic design is the type of career that lends itself well to a freelance structure. Another great thing about this job is that you can do it from anywhere, provided you have an internet connection and the right equipment. So, as a graphic designer, you can travel the world while making a good living in a creative field at your desired pace. Plus, if you’d like to grow your career beyond the title of graphic designer, studying graphic design also puts other possible future paths on the table: Visual Designer, UX Designer, Web Designer, Mobile Designer, even Creative Director.
Best Graphic Design Classes & Schools in Connecticut
#1: Certstaffix—Adobe Illustrator CC
Connecticut students acquire the techniques that are vital for graphic design success using Illustrator in Certstaffix’s Adobe Illustrator CC course. The instructional approach is based on hands-on projects that build as the students acquire more skills.
At the start of the course, students discover the Illustrator workspace, learning to use the toolbar and organize their workflow using the different panels offered in the program. They learn how they can customize a particular workspace in the program to fit their specific needs, and how to save that workspace to use again in the future. As they’re exploring the overall program interface, they explore how the zoom, pan, and rotate functions in Illustrator can help them view their drawings from different perspectives. The course covers navigating across different artboards and documents as part of the same workflow.
After familiarizing themselves with the program, students learn to work with objects in it. They discover how to use the selection tool, including specific techniques like outline mode and using a marquee. They learn different tools to use with objects, including the lock, unlock, distribute, and align functions. And they study several different modes of alignment, aligning objects to each other, a key object, the artboard, or assigned anchor points. They also learn how to group objects, place them in an array, or nest them.
The next phase of the course concerns shapes. Students learn how to create and manipulate them, making ellipses, rectangles, and polygons. When they’ve mastered making these shapes, they learn to adjust their properties, including the line strokes of their outlines, the shape of their corners, and their colors. They explore the drawing modes available in Illustrator. This section concludes with the first hands-on project of the course: creating an advertising logo that they can use image trace to convert into vector art that can be further edited in the program.
Students now move on to editing shapes and paths. They learn the eraser, knife, and scissors tools for shape editing. And they use the width, intertwine, and shape builder functions. Exploring paths, they learn how to reshape them, join them, or make a compound path. Next, they begin working on the artboard, using its rulers and guides to achieve precision. On the artboard, they learn how to scale, position, rotate, and transform objects.
Next, it’s time to learn more about drawing functions. Students explore the pencil and curvature tools first, then move on to the pen tool. They learn about techniques they can use to draw precise straight lines and curves by using paths or anchor points for alignment on the artboard. Then they discover brush tools such as the paintbrush, calligraphic, art, blob, bristle, and pattern brushes.
The course then transitions to working more with selections, as students learn how layers can help them manipulate objects in their designs. They also delve further into what color can do for their designs, learning about how to use patterns, blends, and gradients for color editing. And they explore typography, learning how to add text to their designs and manipulate its appearance. They apply different graphic styles and effects to their work, experimenting with all the options. The course covers how to add symbols to a design. This section concludes with a new hands-on project: making graphic art to go on a t-shirt.
At the end of the course, students discover graphic composition, combining different pieces of artwork into a single image. They learn how to place images together, then how to use masking with opacity, shapes, and text. And they discover how to replace images with new ones, as well as how to embed and unembed them in an illustration. After their combined image is finished, they discover how to create a PDF that they can export for a final preview.
Key Information
This is a full-time, three-day course. It has no prerequisites. The cost is $1330.
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Certstaffix garners praise from students for its “essential” program, which is “well run and organized,” and its “wonderful teachers,” who have a “very positive attitude” during the learning process.
#2: ONLC Training Centers—Adobe CC Graphic Design Bootcamp
ONLC’s Adobe CC Graphic Design bootcamp introduces Connecticut students to the Adobe Creative Cloud and its creative potential for aspiring graphic designers. They discover the overall resources included, such as Adobe Stock Photography and the typography resources Typekit. Next, they explore how to create visual assets in different Adobe CC programs, including Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign. They discover graphic design’s core principles as they experiment with the different tools available in the Creative Cloud. They also learn how to choose which program within the suite is the correct one for a particular project and goal. The course also covers how to use Adobe libraries to store and organize visual assets for graphic design.
Students learn the fundamental skills and tools in Illustrator. They learn how it can help them create vector graphics and compose illustrations. With InDesign, they create pages and build layouts for publishing as print or in digital form. They also discover the powers of Photoshop for graphic composition and image editing. And the course briefly explores Adobe Lightroom as a tool for use in tandem with Photoshop. The course wraps up by introducing students to using Adobe Bridge to streamline their workflow and organize projects and assets within the Creative Cloud.
Key Information
This is a full-time, five-day course. The only prerequisites are basic file management skills on a computer. The fee is $1995.
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Students call ONLC’s program “a very positive experience” that “far exceeded expectations.” They find themselves “so impressed” with the “very experienced” instructors, who are “kind and patient,” as well as “good at communicating with all.”
#3: New Horizons—Adobe Photoshop Part 1
Students discover the basic concepts and tools of graphic design in the Adobe Photoshop Part 1 course from Connecticut’s New Horizons. They gain an introduction that makes it possible to work with the interface and edit images in the program. The course starts with how to organize and customize a workflow in Adobe. Students discover Adobe Bridge as a tool for organizing assets in Photoshop. They also learn how the Photoshop workspace can be organized and customized to serve their creative needs.
Once they’ve familiarized themselves with the program, students begin creating basic images in Photoshop. They learn about image format management and how to manipulate elements of a single image. And they discover the core design principles that govern graphic composition. Using the selection tool, they manage their selections and place objects on different layers for manipulation.
After composing their first Photoshop image, students learn how to use the tools in Photoshop to edit it. They also learn image repair and modification, as well as different techniques for managing color editing. Then they move on to advanced editing techniques, which include adjusting layers and how to apply camera raw. They also use some of the program’s more sophisticated tools to refine their images.
The course concludes with a unit on production workflows and how to manage files within a graphic design process. Students learn how to organize their Photoshop files and assets, import assets for insertion into a composition, and export the final images they’ve created. They also learn about image formats. They discover the best ways of saving an image for presentation on the web or in print form, and how to format Photoshop images for export to another type of software, within or beyond the Adobe Creative Cloud.
Key Information
This full-time course takes two days. It does not require any previous knowledge of Photoshop. However, this course is specifically intended to serve digital photographers who want to learn about editing in Photosophy, so students should have basic familiarity with digital photography. The course fee is $990.
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Graduates of this program say that the teachers at New Horizons are “exceptional” and create an “enjoyable” learning process. The course served as “good career preparation,” and the resources provided by the school were “excellent.”
#4: Ledet—Adobe Creative Cloud Print
Ledet’s Adobe Creative Cloud Print course teaches students interested in graphic design how to use several programs within the Creative Cloud, including Fireworks, Photoshop, Flash, and Dreamweaver. In Fireworks, students begin by discovering the workspace, particularly exploring the panels they can use to manage states, pages, and layers. They work with selections, bitmap images, and vector graphics. And they learn how to do masking with the layers they’ve explored. The course covers text insertion in Fireworks, as well as how to place symbols and apply different styles. Students learn web and mobile design optimization. Instructors also present an overview of critical techniques for prototyping.
The course moves on to Photoshop. Students begin with discovering the tools panel. First, they explore the cropping, measuring, and selection tools. They also discover the functions of the program that can be used for drawing, painting, and retouching. And they learn how to work with type and typography. They explore selections further, including employing the refine edge tool, adding and subtracting from selections, feathering them, using the quick selection tool, and saving the selections they have made.
In the Flash unit, instruction begins with an overview of the stage and work area. Students explore the tools panel as well. They learn how the property inspector and timeline functions can provide them with a view of their work. They discover how to make and merge drawings in Flash, as well as how to create animations.
Students next explore Dreamweaver, starting with its layout and design tools. They study the features available in the workspace. They also experiment with the coding environment and text editor. And they learn live coding and how to use a code navigator. The course covers employing Dreamweaver as a tool for mobile development and design. Students also learn how to work with smart objects in Photoshop. They integrate Dreamweaver with popular content management systems, and they use HTML and CSS to make starter web pages.
Key Information
This three-day course is full-time. There are no prerequisites. $1599 is the cost.
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Graduates of Ledet’s courses “highly recommend” its “hands-on training” and the “great resources” provided by its “encouraging” instructors.
#5: Ledet—Adobe Creative Cloud Web
The Adobe Creative Cloud Web course from Ledet includes several programs that are critical tools for graphic designers. These include Adobe Bridge, as well as Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign. It begins with a brief unit on Bridge: how to use its folders, filters, keywords, and metadata to keep graphic design assets and creations organized. The course also covers how to make galleries and collections in the program. Students explore batching in Bridge and how to use its automation tools.
The Photoshop section of the course begins with exploring its capabilities for vector graphic creation. Students place strokes in vector images, fill vector shapes with patterns, and add masks to vector layers. Moving on to text, students learn about how to use and update text styles, as well as how to add text layers that they take from another document.
Students next discover some basic tools in Photoshop, including the cropping, selection, and measuring tools. They learn how to export cropped images as PDFs. Then they explore the painting, drawing, retouching, and type tools. The course familiarizes students with Photoshop’s panel system and how they can customize it for particular design needs. It also helps students learn how to use screen modes and tabbed windows to organize their workflow.
The course covers how to combine multiple images into a single layout in Photoshop. Students learn how to edit these combined images and transform them using different tools: remove backgrounds, change sizes, add text, refine edges, and work with objects on different layers. They also discover the file formats available in Photoshop and learn how to select the correct one for a specific project. And they explore selections, learning how to use the quick selection, quick mask, magic wand, and pen tools.
Students discover how to retouch images in Photoshop and do painting. They learn about the different color models they can use in their designs and how to manipulate the program’s color settings. The course covers how to use the color panel to copy colors with the eyedropper tool, choose and apply colors in a design, and employ different blending modes. It also introduces students to using the brush, airbrush, and bristle tools for painting. And they learn how to use the healing brush, clone stamp, and patch tools for retouching. They also discover the clone source and history panels in this unit. Moving into more sophisticated editing processes, students define highlights and shadows, set white and black points and neutrals, adjust curves and midtones, and sharpen images. They learn how to use the DNG format and the camera raw plug-in.
The next Adobe program addressed in the course is Illustrator. The unit begins with shapes. It covers how to rotate a shape, change its dimensions, constrain it, and enter its size into the transform panel. They learn how to use the shape and transform tools to create artwork, as well as how to add and change fill colors. And they use the selection tool to build illustrations through combining objects on different layers. They also discover how to add effects to their illustration. The course introduces image manipulation in live paint mode.
Continuing in Illustrator, students explore how to organize an illustration’s color palette through swatches and the use of the color panel. Then they learn how to use the program’s pen tool to draw straight lines and curves. They combine lines and curves, trace images, and use tools to make arcs and line segments. They create, cut, join, and edit paths in their designs. And they combine and subtract shapes using the shape builder tool.
The course moves on to InDesign, introducing students to the program’s workspace and its panel system. They learn how to use the panels for document navigation and organization. They also discover how to enter type in the program, format it, and place it in a design. Then they apply paragraph, character, and object styles to it. They explore how to place graphics in a design and position them in a frame. Then they learn how they can build documents using master pages. They create and format them, make the master pages into templates, and add layout pages as well. And they place their formatted text into master pages and add images to a page.
The course further explores the text and typography features of InDesign. It covers changing text attributes, using the program’s word processing features, adjusting alignment and spacing, and threading text across different frames. Students explore the program’s baseline grid. They learn how to apply text styles and how to import styles from other documents. And they import text from Word, fix its font issues, and place text on paths they create in their design.
Students then learn more about object, character, and paragraph styles. They import styles from other InDesign documents. And they also learn to nest them and organize them into groups to make them easier to use. Going back into graphics, students learn about the links panel and how to customize it for a particular project. The course covers fitting images into a frame, combining them with text, removing their backgrounds, and applying object styles to them. The course concludes with learning how to import images from Photoshop to InDesign and how to export a completed layout.
Key Information
This is a three-day, full-time course. There are no prerequisites for the course. The fee is $1499.
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Students who have attended this course call it “thorough yet accessible” and “very informative.” The instructors are “highly knowledgeable” and do a “fantastic job” with their teaching.
#6: Noble Desktop—Graphic Design Certificate
Students who pursue Noble Desktop’s Graphic Design Certificate complete several bootcamps on Adobe programs, then wrap up with a final bootcamp on making a graphic design portfolio.
Adobe InDesign is the topic of the first bootcamp. Students use graphics, text, and color to build InDesign layouts across multiple pages. When they’ve produced a final design, they learn how to format their creation for output as a PDF or in print form.
The next bootcamp covers Adobe Photoshop. First, students discover how they can use the program for photo retouching. And they explore how they can create Photoshop graphics. They also learn about adjusting color, contrast, and other features for image enhancement. The course covers preparing images to be presented in video, print, or web form.
In the Adobe Illustrator bootcamp, students discover the many types of graphics they can create using Illustrator’s suite of tools. The aspects of graphic composition they study include icons, logos, typography, packaging, and patterns. And they learn how to use the pen tool more precisely by employing templates for drawing purposes. At this point, students are equipped to build print-ready or web-ready vector graphics.
After having studied these three critical Adobe graphic design programs, students pursue a bootcamp focused on the development of a portfolio for the graphic design job market. They first delve further into the format and conceptual processes of graphic composition. Instructors then guide the students in developing and expanding their projects into components of a portfolio that will allow them to demonstrate the skills they’ve learned to prospective hiring managers. This bootcamp also covers how to present on graphic design work, as well as how to incorporate evaluation and critique into revised versions of a project.
Key Information
Students can take this course full-time or part-time. The full-time format takes one month. The part-time course is three months long. Classes meet six hours a week in the evenings or for seven hours every Sunday. There are no prerequisites for this course. $2995 is the fee. Students can arrange an installment plan or a 0% financing contract.
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Noble Desktop has small class sizes to allow for individualized attention from its expert instructors. Each student gets a proprietary workbook for study purposes. After completing a course, students have one year to retake it for free.
According to graduates, studying at Noble Desktop is “a very worthwhile investment.” They “would recommend it to anyone.” The “excellent” instructors “really make learning fun” and leave their students feeling “empowered” at the end of the course.
#7: Noble Desktop—Figma Bootcamp
Students in Noble Desktop’s Figma Bootcamp begin their studies by learning how to design on the program’s grid. First they set up a new frame in Figma. They add type to the frame and give the background a color. After importing photos and learning to crop them, students round their corners and add drop shadows to them. Then they explore different aspects of vector graphics, such as opacity, layers, and color styles. They also learn about text styles, including how to create, organize, and edit them.
The course covers how to create reusable components and edit them. Students learn how to override the content of a component in two different ways–globally, or just in a single case without globally updating all other instances of the same components. Next, they transform their framed designers into clickable prototypes by making links for navigating between all the different frames. They also learn how to export the assets and files they’ve created. And they discover the commenting and collaboration features that make Figma such a popular tool for user experience design teams.
Students then move on to discovering how to use autolayout for alignment, spacing, and sizing, as well as positioning and constraining elements. They learn to keep a stable navbar while integrating links into scrolling. The course also covers animation in Figma, including features such as parallax animation and smart animate. Students discover the variants and properties of components. They learn how variants can help them create pop-ups and hover states in their designs. The course concludes with shared team libraries that students can use to store and organize the components and styles they create.
Key Information
This is both a full-time and a part-time course. The full-time version is two days, while the part-time course is a two-week one. For the two-week course, class is held six hours a week on weekday evenings. It has no prerequisites. $695 is the fee for the course.
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Noble Desktop has a strong reputation for expert instructors and is known for its small class sizes. With their registration, students get a proprietary workbook. After completing their studies at Noble, students may retake any course within 1 year.
According to Noble’s graduates, it's “great” instructors “eagerly share their expertise.” They found the courses “clear,” “comprehensive,” and “engaging.”
Connecticut Industries That Use Graphic Design
The Connecticut economy’s major industries include manufacturing, defense, healthcare, film, finance, clean energy, and information technology. The instructional manuals, flyers, and catalogs that manufacturing companies use to communicate with their customers need designs that present them well to the public. In the defense industry, graphic designers make the visual materials that companies use to instruct equipment operators and communicate with possible investors in their business. For healthcare providers, graphic design is a critical part of clear visual communication when giving health information in venues such as the posters patients see in an office and the flyers they receive about their specific health issues or treatments. When it comes to film advertising, graphic designers are essential for the social media ads, posters, and other promotional images used to drum up interest in a film. Companies providing financial services need graphic designers to create marketing materials, informative pieces like brochures, and user interfaces for their websites and custom apps. The new sustainable graphic design movement demonstrates the role that graphic designers can play in the clean energy industry. In information technology, companies need workers to provide static graphic design for promotional materials, in addition to user interface design for apps and websites.
Graphic Design Jobs & Salaries in Connecticut
A Connecticut web designer’s average annual salary is $80,000, while a mobile designer makes $140,000. A graphic designer in Connecticut will be paid $64,000 annually on average. Connecticut-based UX designers earn an average of $133,000 a year. The average yearly salary of a creative director is $91,000 in Connecticut. A visual designer in the area will make a yearly average of $74,000.