Division of Student Affairs Offers Design Opportunities for Chloe Keicher
from FSU Art BA ’21 Chloe Keicher:
During my time with the FSU Division of Student Affairs (DSA). I was given the opportunity to engage with a variety of projects that each presented their own unique challenges. As someone interested in graphic design, this internship was ideal because I was given projects that each presented their own unique challenges. There were some days where I worked on artistic designs for posters and brochures, and others where I was retouching the design and size of documents and preexisting artworks for the school. Additionally, I was able to help jump start a design for some work that would be done down the road.
When I first started my internship, I expected the work to be the hardest part of my to-do list every day. And while the work was very challenging, I think the hardest part was one I had not even anticipated, communication. With everything moving online during the pandemic, my internship was obviously conducted remotely. And as a very hands-on individual, creating visual work without direct feedback and interaction with people is something I really struggled with, especially the first few weeks of the internship. This allowed me to grow my communication skills in ways I had not anticipated, by forcing me to ask for help and specific feedback where I needed/wanted it.
There are two parts of the internship that were the most enjoyable for me, although they tie in together. First, the team I worked alongside in the department were phenomenal. I never felt like I had a question that was too dumb or would take too long to answer. They were always available and supportive, and it really helped cement the confidence I had in my decision to continue towards graphic design as my future career. The second most enjoyable thing were staff meetings. Going into the remote internship I was afraid that I would constantly feel like I was a nonexistent entity to the people I was working with and that no real, valuable interaction was possible with a bunch of strangers on zoom. I was wrong. Staff meetings were a highlight of my week, because it meant I was able to get caught up on the projects that other interns in the office were working on as well as getting to know a little bit about them and the members of the staff.
I would recommend this internship to other students, especially if they are not quite sure whether they are making the right decision by going into their career field. The team in this department creates a wholesome environment where people can feel confident that they will be given tasks according to their skill level, while also being challenged to think critically and push their designs/projects further.
