VID Intern Reflections

Liz Brooks (2021-2022)

Intern Liz Brooks smiling in front of a natural backgroundI became an intern on the VID team in Spring 2022. As a double major in marketing and art, I have a passion for graphic design that has grown since being a student at Clemson. When I saw the opportunity of the VID internship, I was so excited about the possibility of continuing my passion. I remember how difficult it was to find my own resources on learning design software programs as a freshman and sophomore, so I wanted to be a part of a program where I would be able to share with other students what I know. One of my favorite parts about consultations is the opportunity for both me and the student to collaborate and teach each other new things. VID’s services are offered to students of all majors, so it is a great way to network while being able to share my knowledge of design. The consultations are about getting to know each other as we go through the design process, and it was a great way to make connections.

The VID program has taught me how to communicate professionally and effectively with multiple people and programs, including students, faculty, the Watt Family Innovation Center, student government, my fellow interns and the Pearce Center itself. Through leading the marketing team, I have learned and practiced skills that will help me in my future career. It has been so great to have Sarah, Charlotte, Lauren and the other interns to help me with the design process and improve my designs.

The VID team has helped me to further realize my interest in social media marketing and developing effective writing skills that I can use in my future projects personally and professionally. I was able to explore design through a variety of projects, including marketing materials such as infographics and flyers, social media posts about design tips and tricks, announcements, consultant introductions and photography for digital marketing of the Pearce Center and VID program.

Being able to work in person has been such a fun experience, collaborating with everyone who works here and offering consultations and meetings face-to-face. I am so thankful for the people I got to be around weekly, the support they showed me and the opportunities that were available to me.

Morgan Shumacher (2021-2022)

Intern Morgan Shumacher smiling in front of a natural backgroundWorking at the Pearce Center for Professional Communication for the past two semesters has been a lot more impactful than I originally anticipated. Being an architecture major, a lot of my time is spent working on projects, designing buildings and creating presentations for those buildings. As I began my role as an intern, I learned just how transferable those “architecture” skills were, and I have since had a newfound interest in both graphic design as well as visual information design because of the VID program.

My time here has consisted of a lot of training, leading mock consultations and working in the Adobe Suite, as well as learning collaboration and organization skills that will carry over seamlessly into my career after I graduate this coming May. About halfway through the Fall semester, the entire VID team collaborated on redesigning a magazine named Cultivate out of San Antonio, Texas. We started rebranding the magazine with a new logo, typography and colors, as well as a working template for their future publications. We were able to complete about half of the redesign before the winter issue was published last semester, and this semester, I was fortunate enough to be named team lead for the Cultivate design team. I, along with another intern, completed the entire spring issue redesign by the end of this semester while still completing the ongoing VID training.
This experience has allowed me to increase my confidence as a designer and my knowledge of the software I use daily as an architecture student, as well as my graphic design skills for magazines, something I have particularly enjoyed during my time here. Moving forward after graduation, I hope to use both the hard and soft skills learned during my time as an intern in the professional architecture world and become a more coveted future employee because of my gained insight and experience working as a VID intern.

Sarah, Charlotte, Lauren and the VID interns have been a truly amazing group of people to work alongside. I am forever grateful to have been able to serve as a VID intern for the year that I did and cannot fully express how beneficial this experience has been for me because of this team.

Kelsea Allen (2020-2021)

Intern Kelsea Allen smiling in front of wood panelingWhen I accepted this internship, I had no idea what it was going to be like. The concept of the Visual Information Design program was very exciting to me, as I think this application of consultation-based services in the context of design is extraordinarily useful; many people on campus can and will benefit from it. When I was interviewing for the position, I was told that the program was very new. I was expecting some level of chaos and disorganization to come with this, but that has not been the case at all. Thanks to the hard work done by Sarah and Charlotte, it is already a well-established program that we just need to tell everyone about. It is so exciting to be a part of the beginning of VID, and I am excited to see how much it grows over time.

I have had an overwhelmingly positive experience in this program; this led me to stay for a second semester when I had initially planned to only stay for one. I am majoring in graphic communications, and so many of the skills from my coursework have been applicable. I have made promotional and informational flyers, completed many hours of training, led consultations to guide classmates to their best designs, designed hallway posters for the Pearce Center and even designed the annual report. It is a really nice feeling to know that I can be relied on to handle such important projects. I have received so much support from Sarah,

Charlotte and the interns on my team. My confidence in my design skills has significantly increased since becoming a VID intern, and I have so many new projects in my portfolio that I am proud of as a result.

I wish that I had gotten to experience this internship in person, but everyone has done such a great job staying in touch that I have not felt disconnected. Overall, I have really enjoyed my time as a VID intern. I have gained so much valuable experience and have had a great time doing it. I am so grateful to everyone at the Pearce Center for allowing me this opportunity.

Zain Surka (2020-2021)

Intern Zain Surka smiling in front of a building and treesI joined the Visual Information Design team as an intern in the spring of 2021. During my years at

Clemson in the School of Architecture, I have become more and more interested in graphic design. I was excited to see a new resource for students who wanted help with visual projects. My freshman year, I remember how tough it was to learn the basics of design on my own, so I wanted to share all that I have learned with students across disciplines. 

Even though this semester was virtual, the experience was unmatched. Soon after starting the internship, I was able to learn more about how consultations work through the multitude of training sessions with my mentors. It was incredible to see how we can apply strategies used by writing centers in a design context. I also had no idea there was so much research completed on these topics. Additionally, the trainings exposed me to design concepts I was never formally taught. Through learning these, I am able to now apply them to my own work and adequately explain how they function to others. The consultations were a unique experience and taught me more than I ever expected. Most were with students with very little design background, so it was interesting to look at design from that perspective. 

At the end of this semester I will be graduating, so unfortunately I will not be able to return to the Visual Information Design program. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time working with my team. It was amazing to get to look at design from multiple lenses. I am so thankful for Sarah, Charlotte, Dr. Bushnell and all of the interns for creating an amazing experience in my last semester at Clemson.