Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

PCC's graphic design grad is ready for the real world

Photos and story by James Hill

PORTLAND, Ore. – It has been an intense two years for Alicia Adkins, 23. Adkins and 24 other 2004 graduates of the Graphic Design program at PCC’s Sylvania Campus earned associate of applied science degrees last week. The two-year course of study culminated in a portfolio review in the Sylvania Campus design studios on Friday, June 11, which was open to the public and the college community. That night, PCC staged its 42nd commencement at the Memorial Coliseum, awarding more than 2,600 degrees and certificates."The portfolio class is a critical part of going into this field for students,"said Cece Cutsforth, graphic design instructor. "It’s an opportunity to share portfolios with each other, invite family members to see why they have been sacrificing for two years and opening it up to professionals. This was the first year I thought we were ready to do something public. Students submit their strongest work in a package they come up with that best represents themselves."Adkins, who is a Lawrence, Kan. transplant, has juggled life between a 25-hour-per-week job working for McMenamins Lodge in Forest Grove and a full load of courses at the college’s Sylvania Campus. A Hillsboro resident, Adkins said, "The program at PCC forced me to be a lot more structured. I was pushed."The yearly review of graduates’ portfolios gives the graduates a chance to show off the skills they have acquired. It also allows them to practice presentation to interested visitors. The students use a number of professional software tools to create their portfolios and produce unique graphic designs, including digital image editing, photo manipulation and layer compositing.For Adkins and the others, the finished result is a polished portfolio of approximately 10 pieces to show to art directors and potential employers in the graphic design industry. Adkins primarily focused her portfolio on magazine and fashion design, although the pieces also include the creation of a corporate standards manual, company logos and product shelf presentation designs. She also created a unique appetizer menu the waitressing job helped her to focus on a functional design that uses a transparent vellum stand encasing a votive candle for illumination of the menu items.Adkins said she explored several educational opportunities when she first moved to Oregon. The Graphic Design program at PCC seemed, she said, to provide "the best preparation. The teachers really know what they’re talking about and stay in touch with the industry to help you get ready for the real world."What most impressed Adkins was that "I wasn’t just learning how to use programs. They include the skills with your concept and emphasize that design is just as important as computer skills. It was very intense."She will be spending her summer in an internship at Pacific University waiting for the marketing and publications department, which will give her further experience.Eventually, she plans to head back to school and earn a four-year degree in design, but wants to work a while first. "I love going to school,"she said. "For the dollars, you get just as good an education at a two-year ? and can then get out there and put your learning to use."