I feel like my education wasn't enough..need advice

[Jesus Pimp]

I'll be graduating college next month. My expertise is interactive design i.e web, graphic design, and cd-rom production etc.. plus I'm a computer geek. I know a little about networking and building computers. Anyway I feel like my education wasn't enough. Like they didn't teach me any real world skills. So I feel like I'm lacking somewhat. After graduation I plan on sitting down and teaching myself more stuff and improving my skill set before I go looking for a job. Is this a bad idea? Some people have told me the longer I wait to look for a job, the lesser the chances I will find one. Or maybe I just don't have enough confidence in my work and what I know. I'm not quite sure. What do you think?

[Johnny Rotten]

College doesn't teach any real-world job skills. It takes a talent and gives it a technical category that you become familiar with over time.

Don't wait. Get an internship. It's about all you'll be able to find anyway. Get an internship as a graphic designer and hone your skills in the mean time. Or you could learn a programming language, because no one hires Web designers anymore. Learn InDesign, if you haven't already, because everyone's shifting away from Quark, as Apple has been so slow to make an OSX version.

[cheerios]

#1: it's not apple's responsiblity to port other people's software, that's Quark's problem.

#2: learn EVERYTHING you can. No knowledge is ever wasted. But, remember, a good place to learn is on the job. an internship might be a good idea.

[yournamehere]

That's why they call it a bachelors degree.

There's no substitute for on the job training.

[Jesus Pimp]

So it's never too late to do an internship after you graduate?

[Loki]

[EDIT]: i think JR said the exact same thing... but over here internships are paid work experience. Also, its never too late to get work experience =)

If you are unsure, why not try to get work experience in a big graphics design company? That way you can find out for sure how qualified you are/arent, your strengths/weaknesses in the real world, and how to build up on that.

btw, when i say work experience, i mean just that. don't expect to get paid for however long you work there, but i reckon 2-3 weeks would be enough for you to figure out how you stand.

[TrollInvestigtr]

best way to learn stuff (especialyl tech stuff) is to just jump in and do it. BTW the new media industry is completely fucked right now. might take a while to get a job. if i could go back to collge now i'd major in something like accounting. sorry to be a downer but thats the situation of the industry right now. its terrible.

[Jesus Pimp]

No kidding, but I know some people so and places not openly advertised. So try to be optimistic.

[Johnny Rotten]

Originally posted by cheerios
#1: it's not apple's responsiblity to port other people's software, that's Quark's problem.

Excuse the brain fart. Quark. Quark has been slow to make their OSX version.

[Liquor Dealer]

It doesn't matter how many degrees one accumulates - with anyone of them and a buck you can buy a cup of coffee almost anywhere. Degrees get you in the door - after that you're on your own. The best advice ever given to me along these lines was "use a little common sense - there is no substitute for common sense". One thing I found out early in life about getting degrees, to get the best jobs you have to have at least a masters if not a doctorate - you must have no less that 10 years of on the job experience with at least four of those in your area of expertise - and you cannot be over 22 years old. The only thing ever said about degrees that holds true in every instance - It is a whole lot cheaper and easier to hire one than it is to get one.

[Jesus Pimp]

You can't be over 22 years old? I'm 24 but I look like I'm 18..

[tobasco]

dont wait.. you can still be learning, reading books, trying out things while looking for a job.