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Design internship vs graphic artist

The differences between design interns and graphic artists 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 a graphic artist. Additionally, a graphic artist has an average salary of $54,900, 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 a graphic artist are graphic design, adobe photoshop, and adobe illustrator.

Design internship vs graphic artist overview

Design InternshipGraphic Artist
Yearly salary$45,791$54,900
Hourly rate$22.01$26.39
Growth rate3%3%
Number of jobs97,0188,752
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age3838
Years of experience1212

What does a design internship do?

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.

What does a graphic artist do?

A graphic artist is either an illustrator or an animator who creates art work that will be used in graphic projects such as advertisements, posters, or even book covers. Although a graphic artist has his/her own style of artwork, he/she may be often commissioned to create art specifically for a particular project. A graphic artist may work with a graphic designer in order to convey the overall message of a project. The portfolio of a graphic artist includes cartoons, illustrations, and graphic novels.

Design internship vs graphic artist salary

Design interns and graphic artists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Design InternshipGraphic Artist
Average salary$45,791$54,900
Salary rangeBetween $32,000 And $64,000Between $35,000 And $84,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CABellevue, WA
Highest paying stateWashingtonWashington
Best paying companyMetaParsons
Best paying industryTechnologyNon Profits

Differences between design internship and graphic artist education

There are a few differences between a design internship and a graphic artist in terms of educational background:

Design InternshipGraphic Artist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 74%Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common majorGraphic DesignGraphic Design
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Design internship vs graphic artist demographics

Here are the differences between design interns' and graphic artists' demographics:

Design InternshipGraphic Artist
Average age3838
Gender ratioMale, 41.7% Female, 58.3%Male, 54.6% Female, 45.4%
Race ratioBlack 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 Percentage13%13%

Differences between design internship and graphic artist duties and responsibilities

Design internship example responsibilities.

  • Design promotional materials, annual reports, newsletters and HTML emails, manage the website presence and functions
  • Manage the website and twitter page, write the blog posts and attend numerous fashion shows and sample sale rooms.
  • Assemble front-end implementation using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
  • Develop knowledge of designing websites and learned languages such as HTML and CSS.
  • Improve and simplify the user interface by using interaction design and data visualization.
  • Leverage project management principals to improve process and program effectiveness, drive down costs and improve efficiency.
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Graphic artist example responsibilities.

  • Manage external communications such as brochures and other sales collateral for direct mail from inception to circulation.
  • Develop, debug, and maintain client websites using HTML & CSS, WordPress, and basic use of JavaScript.
  • Flash & Dreamweaver software assisting in production of the company website.
  • Create custom graphic art for cars, windows, store fronts, business signs.
  • Design and implement the company's first Facebook app and engages in designing everything encompassing pixels and print.
  • Design, develop and maintain websites as projects present themselves with the use of HTML and WYSIWYG web development tools.
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Design internship vs graphic artist skills

Common design internship skills
  • Design Intern, 12%
  • Sketch, 11%
  • Graphic Design, 5%
  • User Experience, 4%
  • Visualization, 3%
  • UI, 3%
Common graphic artist skills
  • Graphic Design, 12%
  • Adobe Photoshop, 10%
  • Adobe Illustrator, 9%
  • Art Direction, 7%
  • Photography, 5%
  • Brochures, 4%

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