Too Many Grads or Too Few Competencies?
There's been much discussion on the boards here at Core77 about the future of the design field ("should I stay in ID?"), leaving the industry, going to school ("are there any jobs?"), and BusinessWeek has this timely article for all those considering design school. (Graphics-focused, but still worthwhile.)Is there a glut of students graduating from graphic design programs in the United States today? A 2004 National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD) survey indicates that out of 18,000 graphic design majors in 152 four-year programs conferring B.A. and B.F.A. degrees 3,500 are graduated annually. This figure is strongly disputed, however, by North Carolina State's Meredith Davis, who claims the comparatively low number does not account for approximately 1,300 two-year associate degree programs (according to the GDEA), other schools that confer fine art degrees with limited design study, and schools that are not NASAD accredited. If there are overall 450 four-year programs, 1,300 two-year programs, and each graduates, on average, 25 students a year, then Davis estimates these schools could be releasing as many as 40,000 students (with and without degrees) into a field supporting around 200,000 practitioners (not including interactive designers).