Our junior designer Andrew recently left Lincoln University (with a first, may we add) and he was delighted be asked to go back to give a presentation about agency life to the newer students on the course.

Unfortunately, Andrew being the low key character that he is, he decided to not tell Framework about this wonderful opportunity until after the event. Fortunately for us, we got hold of his presentation and we were so flattered by his praises, we’ve pressured him to write a blog about it.

In Andrew’s Words.

I started at Framework right back in August 2021, where I was feeling very excited but also quite nervous at the thought of stepping into the unknown and to life in the world of working at a design agency.

But was there any need to be all that nervous? The short answer is no. I was given great support during my first few months at framework which helped me to be able to build my confidence and grow as a designer day by day from working on very small projects to much bigger ones. Agency life is great as you also get a nice balance of socialising, gaming, pizza parties and the added bonus of a cute office dog called Win! The diverse characters at Framework are what make coming to work very welcoming and motivating.

When I first arrived everyone was very friendly and helpful during my first few weeks and still are to this day. The part that I found a little bit intimidating was the thought that my work is going into the real world and is going to make an impact on someone’s company but I found this to become more exciting as the projects develop and as time goes on.

What Is The Work Like?

My role as a junior designer consists of working on websites, branding, illustrations, artworking and animations. This included icons for websites, graphics, illustrations and images for artwork. Alongside this I have been included in client meetings which consist of planning the final branding logo concepts, assisted in creating brand guidelines and developing websites from the very beginning. Some of the clients that I have had the pleasure of working with have been Unidays, Team 17 and Toolstation.

The team that I work alongside have been brilliant in helping me create the final outcomes that are required from a project and it is really nice to be able to collaborate with my colleagues and work together on projects as well as supporting the design team with smaller jobs with our other clients.

Before joining Framework I felt like I had a little bit of typography, general layout and branding knowledge but most of my skill set now has been developed over the past months of working at Framework which has now led me to think more in motion, being braver and creating more abstract and bold design decisions. But the learning doesn’t stop there…I feel like there is so much more that I want to be able to explore in the next coming months to years as the learning never stops in design!

A Typical Week As a Junior.

So, a typical week at Framework might look something like this… Depending on how many different jobs are in for the week you could find yourself working on 3-5 different projects, which could range from small 3-4 hour jobs to 1-2 days worth. Alongside this, you can also find yourself in a few internal/client meetings talking about a different project entirely or starting a discovery for a brand new one. This all comes with also trying to meet clients’ expectations too where some clients could be a dream to work with and others hmm, not so much. But as long as you have plenty of coffee in the morning and throughout your day what can go wrong? But this is just the life of a designer! it can be overwhelming at times but also very enjoyable and rewarding which drives that hunger for more design work!

Andrew’s Top Tips.

Here are a few of my top tips when just starting out in the life of a junior designer in a design agency…

• Ask a bunch of questions
• Learn from the designers around you and the way they work
• Remember you’re a junior
• Take every opportunity when it comes
• Step out of your comfort zone

Added Extras.

Alongside this, there are also a few added extras that make agency life that little more special. One of these is teamwork which is a great asset, as working alongside designers who have been in the industry for years now is only going to benefit you loads! At Framework, we even have little design-offs within the team to see which design the client will pick and have a small competition to see who wins. On the back of that, client trips away from the office are a great way to build that confidence and connect with the client you are working with much better and really get you invested in the project.

Final Words.

Overall I feel very happy that I took up the position as a junior designer at Framework as it has turned out to be a great place to work every day and I can see myself working here for a long time because of what I will learn in the coming months to years is very exciting to me. I would highly recommend agency life after university because it allows you to put your foot in the door and begin to learn a lot in such a short space of time from the team around you both in design and out of design, to speaking with clients about their new project.