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The differences between design interns and assistant designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a design internship and an assistant designer. Additionally, an assistant designer has an average salary of $52,475, which is higher than the $45,791 average annual salary of a design internship.
The top three skills for a design internship include design intern, sketch and graphic design. The most important skills for an assistant designer are sketch, tech packs, and adobe illustrator.
| Design Internship | Assistant Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $45,791 | $52,475 |
| Hourly rate | $22.01 | $25.23 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 97,018 | 47,598 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
As the name entails, graphic design interns learn about the career in graphic design in a hands-on setting. They have varied tasks and duties, including taking part in every meeting of the design team, conducting client research, assisting with social media and design projects, and working closely with experienced designers. They are often paid little or nothing at all for their service, but the experience that they acquire from their field can be dispensable.
Assistant designers act as administrative support to senior designers in creating innovative designs by negotiating with the vendors about the prices of decoration materials. They are keen and up-to-date to the latest fashion and trends by conducting surveys and research. They are exceptionally creative and innovative and have excellent IT skills as they use illustration, typography, and photography layouts in the design process. However, being an assistant designer, career development relies on his/her /her specialism, reputation, and experience depending on how its opportunities are influenced by the company he/she works for.
Design interns and assistant designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Design Internship | Assistant Designer | |
| Average salary | $45,791 | $52,475 |
| Salary range | Between $32,000 And $64,000 | Between $37,000 And $73,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Washington |
| Best paying company | Meta | PVH |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Construction |
There are a few differences between a design internship and an assistant designer in terms of educational background:
| Design Internship | Assistant Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between design interns' and assistant designers' demographics:
| Design Internship | Assistant Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 41.7% Female, 58.3% | Male, 28.3% Female, 71.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 10.4% White, 70.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 10.4% White, 70.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 13% |