The city of dreams, Dubai, is growing at a faster pace and so is its digital infrastructure. Today, almost 98% of the UAE’s population uses social media and as a result, there is a huge demand for graphic designers among businesses to give life to their online ventures.
So, if you have the skills and willingness to work in the city of Burj Khalifa, Malls and Museums famous for their enticing architecture, this is the right time to get started!
As per Indeed, the average base salary of a graphic designer in Dubai is AED 3,908 per month which is roughly more than 85,000 INR whereas the average base salary of a graphic designer in India is just 18000. Apart from this, you’ll also be liable to get bonuses, and in some cases TA. Moreover, as you gain a better foothold in the industry, there are high chances of earning 2-5x of your initial salary in the city.
If this intrigues you, you’re in the right spot! Read on the blog to learn the trending graphic designing domains and how you can build a successful graphic designing career in Dubai.
Let’s get started!
Popular Graphic Design Domains
If you’re wondering about the doors that learning graphic design skills can open for you, keep reading!
- Graphic Designer
If you have a knack for art and aesthetics, and understand colour theory, working as a graphic designer would be a fun and growing experience for you!
As a graphic designer, you’ll be responsible to cater to the various visual needs of your clients, from creating logos that represent their brands, to creating illustrations and layouts that strike and chord with their target audience.
- UI / UX Designer
Apart from the designing skills, if you are tech-savvy and have an understanding of user psychology and an interest in creating satisfying user experiences on the web and apps, a career in UI/UX designing would be very fulfilling for you.
As a user-experience designer, you’ll be responsible for developing wireframes and prototypes, running tests and getting rid of any hurdles that emerge while web designing.
- Animator
The demand for skilled multimedia artists or animators is on the rise and for the right reasons. Today, most businesses want to add vitality to their marketing campaigns and animators are their ultimate saviour for this task. By adding life to static art elements, animators can give life to any business.
- Creative Director
If you have team spirit and the ability to lead, along with an exhaustive portfolio of multiple creative projects to your name, you can work as a creative director. As a creative director, you’ll be responsible for setting the aesthetic goals for projects, be it ad campaigns, brand identity, magazines, videos or short films, games, etc and ensuring that the result meets the client’s needs.
- Freelance designer
If you don’t want to be bound by the shackles of a 9 to 5 job, you can be a freelance designer and offer your services to potential clients on a per-project basis or for a certain period by signing an NDA. In case you’re starting, freelancing can allow you to create a diverse portfolio that you can use in future to bag bigger deals.
9 Essential Steps to Excel in Graphic Designing in Dubai
1. Subscribe to Inspiring YouTube Channels
Since YouTube is the free and most accessible way of learning any skill online, here are a few amazing YouTube channels that can help you learn the basics and intricacies of graphic design.
Logos are not just a few symbols put together. Will Paterson’s YouTube channel is a haven for you.
He uploads critiques of popular logos and shows how to use certain tools like Adobe Illustrator while designing logos. His bite-sized videos on trending topics can be an instant knowledge booster!
Tom Cargill, the man behind Satori Graphics, is an accomplished graphic designer and illustrator in the UK. On his YouTube channel, you can find an abundance of videos on logo designing, graphic designing hacks, basic to advanced designing principles and techniques, and video guides for using software like Adobe Illustrator.
The best part is that he focuses a lot on free resources that you use and incorporate into your designs to take them to the next level.
If you’re a complete beginner in the graphic designing domain, there is at least one tool that you must get your hands on, yes we’re talking about Canva. Right from creating Instagram posts to posters, logos, YouTube thumbnails, and whatnot, Canva is perhaps the easiest-to-use designing software out there.
Design with Canva is dedicated to unveiling the mysteries of Canva with entire playlists dedicated to using Canva for Instagram, YouTube, website, videos and more. More recently, they have also started a video series on AI generative tools that can help leaps and bounds to content creators.
In the graphic designing domain, Canva is not a hard nut to crack, but the Adobe suite is. If you want to learn graphic design while mastering Adobe software, Tutvid is your go-to YouTube Channel.
The channel is full of easy-to-understand and step-by-step videos to make creative videos, short films, photoshop, and tips and tricks for beginners to master graphic designing.
If you’re interested in learning how to use any of the software from the Affinity suite, Affinity Revolution is for you! The channel host, Ally, has created an entire playlist for Affinity Designer tutorials, Affinity Photo tutorials, and Affinity Publisher tutorials.
Apart from that, she makes at-length videos on the new updates in these tools and how you can make the best use of them.
2. Udemy Courses
There’s no wonder that Udemy certifications add a brownie point to your resume and make you stand out as the most skilful candidate.
Here are a few Udemy courses that you must check out if you’re keen on learning graphic design.
If you’re looking for a good beginner-level course for graphic designing, this is for you! The course comes with 13 modules covering topics such as colour theory, photography theory, layout, logo design and branding, and more. Moreover, It offers 10 hours of video content, 1 article, 14 downloadable resources and a certificate of completion.
If you want to understand the features of Adobe Photoshop and how to use them to take your work to the next level, this course is for you! It has 14 modules, 11 hours of video content, 65 downloadable resources, and assignments and offers a certificate of completion towards the end.
If you’re into social media content creation and want to learn how to make the best use of Canva, check this course out! It covers 6 in-depth modules covering the essentials of social media content creation and how you can achieve so much with just a simple tool like Canva. With 7.5 hours of video content, assessment and a certificate of completion, this course deserves to be on your bucket list!
If you have been willing to learn Adobe Illustrator, this course is your one-stop destination. With 14 modules, 21 hours of video content, 5 downloadable resources, 3 articles, and assignments, it’s a comprehensive course that will allow you to learn the intricacies of the software.
3. Personalised Coaching
We all know that there’s something to in-person, physical teaching that no Zoom meetings could ever overtake. Agree or Disagree? If you’re looking for a premium personalised coaching experience to learn graphic designing at a minimal cost in Dubai, we suggest you check out DG Training’s Graphic Designing Course.
With expert faculty, comprehensive course programs and job assistance, your career in graphic designing is bound to take flight. The best part is we offer customised services. So, even if you’re a complete beginner or an advanced learner, there’s always something for you!
4. Why is KHDA Certification a Must?
If you’re planning to work as a graphic designer in Dubai or UAE at large, or even in the adjoining countries of Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi, you might probably know the importance a KHDA certificate holds in these countries.
A KHDA certificate will validate that you have completed a course with hard work and dedication, and thus add brownie points to your resume.
5. Importance of Self-Study
If you’re planning to work as a full-time graphic designer, you need to understand the importance of self-study. The internet opens a whole Pandora’s box of opportunities, you can learn a skill and you can monetise it too.
But, for that, you need discipline in your life and effective time management strategies that will allow you to accomplish both your professional and personal goals.
6. Freelance Opportunities
If you’re a newbie looking for freelance opportunities in graphic designing, there are a lot of platforms like UpWork, Fiverr and Guru that can help you land your desired gigs. On the other hand, you can cold pitch marketing agencies and tell them about what you know about graphic designing and how you can help them.
You can also do something as simple as letting your social network know that you have learned these new skills and are looking for opportunities to hone them.
7. Project Portfolio
A project portfolio is an essential element of your job application. It speaks volumes about your knowledge and expertise and thus it’s crucial to pay heed while making one for yourself.
There are three must-haves in any project portfolio of a graphic designer.
- Diversity: Do not stick to one aspect of graphic designing and instead try your hands at a multitude of projects until you decide on your expertise. Thus, show all the things that you have designed, was it an Instagram post, an e-book, or a creative video? If you have created it, show it in your portfolio!
- Clear navigation: Think about this: would you ever trust a graphic designer whose designs lag? No, right? Thus, your website must have clear-cut navigation without compromising your creativity.
- Contact details: It’s one of the most essential parts of your portfolio, give them your contact details or create a contact form, and include your social link so that the employer gets a vague idea of who you are.
8. Crafting an Effective Design Resume
There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to resumes. Thus, if you’re simply attaching the same resume that you made while you were just starting, you’re making a grave mistake. Your resume must be updated with all your recent projects, achievements, courses, certifications, etc.
9. Job Search Platforms
If you’re looking for the best internship or job opportunities for working as a graphic designer in Dubai, here are a few platforms that you must check out: Glassdoor, Indeed, NaukriGulf and LinkedIn
On that note, we bid you adieu. Hope you found this blog helpful!
