Preparing for the Graphic Design Interview: What Should You Bring to the Interview

Bring plenty of resumes for starters. There's a couple of reasons why. First, you never know when an art director will bring in the owner or another designer for an opinion of your work. Also, even though you sent the art director a resume, you can count on the fact that they probably lost it along the way. Don't be caught unprepared. Plus, you showed you ability to be prepared in your presentation of your work! Points for you! Regardless, it's nice to be able to offer the interviewer a nice fresh clean copy if they need or want one. Have one copy handy for yourself for your own reference. You don't want someone to catch you by surprise — keep it in front of you. It just makes it easier to both be looking at the same resume and to refer to certain points and know what both parties are looking at. • Take some notes during the interview. Again, get some points for management — their free — for now! The whole interview process is a learning experience for both sides. Write down important things like hours, what they expect, wages, and career potential. Your going to get some answers to your questions, write them down. That way you won't have to ask them about it again at a later time. Have potential questions written down before the interview so you don't forget to ask them. It's easy to forget a question or two when you are in an intense situation like an interview. • Have a mini portfolio or brochure about yourself to leave behind. In most cases, I would not recommend leaving your portfolio behind unless you can pick it up he next day. Generally it's a good idea to have some sort of portfolio that you can mass distribute without asking for it back. Often you can give away CDs to employers, and then bring in a nice print portfolio that shows things off in a clean and personal way. Give the CD to the employer to keep and refer to, but take home the print portfolio once they have presented it personally at the interview. Well done graphic design print portfolios can cost a lot, so you don't want to be leaving this kind of thing in a huge pile on someone's desk.