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The differences between design interns and senior 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 a senior designer. Additionally, a senior designer has an average salary of $102,058, 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 senior designer are sketch, graphic design, and human centered design.
| Design Internship | Senior Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $45,791 | $102,058 |
| Hourly rate | $22.01 | $49.07 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 97,018 | 47,503 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 1 |
| 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.
Senior designers are typically in charge of realizing design solutions that adhere to the business goals and marketing strategies of an organization. They should be comfortable managing graphics designers and making decisions. They must have extensive knowledge of styles, layout techniques, and graphic design while also managing projects and people effectively. Senior designers have a variety of duties, which include delegating tasks to junior designers, maintaining high-quality standards, and collaborating to improve digital creativity standards.
Design interns and senior designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Design Internship | Senior Designer | |
| Average salary | $45,791 | $102,058 |
| Salary range | Between $32,000 And $64,000 | Between $72,000 And $143,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Washington |
| Best paying company | Meta | Lyft |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Media |
There are a few differences between a design internship and a senior designer in terms of educational background:
| Design Internship | Senior 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 senior designers' demographics:
| Design Internship | Senior Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 41.7% Female, 58.3% | Male, 71.0% Female, 29.0% |
| 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% |