Graphic Designers

Design or create graphics to meet specific commercial or promotional needs, such as packaging, displays, or logos. May use a variety of mediums to achieve artistic or decorative effects.

Most important skills

Active Listening
Speaking
Writing
Critical Thinking
Active Learning
Reading Comprehension
Social Perceptiveness
Coordination

Key knowledge

Design
Computers and Electronics
Fine Arts
Communications and Media
English Language
Sales and Marketing
Customer and Personal Service
Production and Processing

What the work involves

Create designs, concepts, and sample layouts, based on knowledge of layout principles and esthetic design concepts.
Determine size and arrangement of illustrative material and copy, and select style and size of type.
Use computer software to generate new images.
Mark up, paste, and assemble final layouts to prepare layouts for printer.
Draw and print charts, graphs, illustrations, and other artwork, using computer.
Review final layouts and suggest improvements, as needed.
Confer with clients to discuss and determine layout design.
Develop graphics and layouts for product illustrations, company logos, and Web sites.

Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Artistic, Conventional, Enterprising.

Qualifications and licensing

Most common education: Bachelor's Degree (65% of respondents)
Related experience: Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years (30%)
On-the-job training: Anything beyond short demonstration, up to and including 1 month (25%)
Preparation level: O*NET job zone 4: Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
Licensing: Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.

Check before planning

Licensing for Graphic Designers is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.

Limits

Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0

Work environment

How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).

Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.

Rankings compare typical U.S. occupation-level work conditions; individual jobs and employers vary. Data: O*NET 31.0 Work Context and BLS wages (May 2025).
Condition	Level	Compared with other occupations	Most common answer (O*NET survey)
Contact with others	Low	Lower on contact with others than 61% of occupations compared	55% of surveyed respondents chose “Contact with others most of the time”
Dealing with the public	Low	Lower on dealing with the public than 65% of occupations compared	30% of surveyed respondents chose “Important”
Teamwork	High	Higher on teamwork than 64% of occupations compared	67% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important”
Freedom to make decisions	Moderate	Lower on freedom to make decisions than 53% of occupations compared	40% of surveyed respondents chose “Some freedom”
Time pressure	Very high	Higher on time pressure than 95% of occupations compared	70% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day”
Conflict situations	Low	Lower on conflict situations than 76% of occupations compared	30% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month”
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people	Low	Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 79% of occupations compared	42% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month”
Consequence of error	Very low	Lower on consequence of error than 91% of occupations compared	47% of surveyed respondents chose “Not serious at all”

Work-pressure profile

Time pressure: very high
Conflict situations: low
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: low
Consequence of error: very low

Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.

Full answer distributions