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 Advertising design graduate students lay out their futures By Art Novak Monica Salas, an advertising design graduate student at the Savannah College of Art and Design, views her major as being different from other art and design programs. “Advertising is an interdisciplinary program,” she said. “There is always something new.” Classmate Harshad Methrath agreed: “With the flexible electives SCAD has to offer … there is a lot of interaction with … other departments. I have friends in [art and photography], and I am learning a lot from them.” Because advertising draws heavily on many creative disciplines, SCAD provides fertile soil for the development of students like Salas and Methrath — and for the growth of the new advertising design program itself. This program has the resources to introduce tomorrow’s advertising professionals to all the creative problem-solving tools imaginable. Not so long ago, preparing for a career as an advertising “creative” meant creating mass-market ads for newspapers, magazines and broadcast media. Today, the choices for aspiring art directors and copywriters are more diverse — and more difficult. With integrated marketing communications now firmly entrenched in the advertising industry, large ad agencies encompass an array of affiliated business units that seek out specialists in a broad spectrum of communications disciplines beyond traditional “mainstream” media. These might include sales promotion, direct response, Web design, package design and event marketing, as well as business-to-business, ethnic children’s and guerilla advertising. Going for the Master of Arts or Master of Fine Arts in advertising design gives students an extended opportunity to analyze the maze of possible career paths and gain additional skills so they can set off in the right direction after graduation. Veronica De La Pena, another “AD at SCAD” grad student, said, “I want to change my Mexico. Hard-sell billboards surround Mexico City. I want to learn from the source (the United States) and go back to Mexico and change all that in a positive way.” Advertising design faculty help overcome naiveté by exposing students to challenges that are part-and-parcel of producing “real-world” advertising. “We envision this department as the career center for the advertising arts,” explained David Foote, chair of advertising design. “Our classrooms are outside the school walls. We expose students to what advertising is really like. When they graduate, they should be so comfortable in the ad agency environment, the only thing that changes is that they get a paycheck.” This philosophy appeals to grad students like Natalie Garber. “The new advertising design major has created a buzz in the local community as our professors have created assignments around real businesses’ advertising needs,” she said. “This practical experience allows us to work with real clients … and make valuable connections.” Making valuable connections also helps drive the advertising design department’s commitment to enter national creative award competitions. Recently, an ad campaign Garber created for Domino Sugar reached the finals of the student competition at the prestigious One Show in New York. Representing the fledgling SCAD advertising design department, Garber’s work compared favorably to that of students in programs that have been around for decades. Foote is convinced that “SCAD’s performance at the One Show is merely a hint of things to come.” To help students “catch the fever” that inspires top creative talent, the graduate program includes field trips to top advertising agencies, such as the Creative Strategy class’s recent junket to Fletcher Martin in Atlanta. Proximity to top creative talent, advertising agencies and internship opportunities bodes well for the development of graduate studies in advertising design at SCAD’s new Atlanta facility. “We are developing close relationships with Atlanta agencies,” said Foote. “Our graduate students will be the primary beneficiaries of those relationships.” Novak is an advertising design professor. |
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