Taylor Pursues Passion on Graphic Design Course

Graphic Design student Taylor Mills (who is 20, from Bangor) is on the pathway to getting the qualifications she needs to work in her dream job area through studying at SERC. 

Taylor completed her GCSEs and A Levels in Glastry College. After her A Levels, she contemplated going to university to study performing arts but ultimately decided to study her longtime passion of art at SERC. She chose SERC due to her local campus being close by. She began studying the Level 3 Foundation Diploma in Art and Design and Media Practice at the College, then progressed onto the Pearson BTEC HNC in Graphic Design and is now completing the Level 5 HND course.  

Taylor says, “Something that I really enjoy about the course is the games design module; in groups, we had to come up with an idea for a game and develop it as a team – I really enjoy what my group did and it was the best experience of teamwork I’ve ever been a part of. Our concept was a rhythm game, and we primarily worked on character design and plot for it. We also just finished doing contextual research, in which we must research artists who work in an area we ourselves would eventually like to work in. My research was in concept art and illustration as those are the areas I’m really interested in having a career in. So, I’ve done a lot of research on concept artists and book illustrators; it was interesting learning how they got to where they are today and gave me good insight into the areas of industry I’m interested in.” 

“We use a lot of software in class as our work is primarily done on computers and tablets. We mostly work with and learn how to use Adobe Illustrator, which is a program used by lots of professional artists. At times it can seem complex, but the tutors are great at explaining anything we need to know about it. We also learn how to use Adobe After Effects, which is great for motion graphics. On top of that, the course covers product design, posters, marketing, colour theory, and lots more.” 

Taylor concludes, “I’d absolutely recommend this course – you'll have all the support you need, and it has a really comfortable learning environment. If you’re coming to SERC straight from school, it’ll be a completely different learning environment to what you are used to – tutors treat you like an adult and you’re more responsible for your own work and independent, which I think is a positive. I was anxious when I first started SERC, but SERC is now one of the places I feel most comfortable. It’s been one of the best experiences I’ve had in terms of education.” 

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