Skills and Knowledge Awareness of diverse and global range of design cultures and languages: I have a keen interest in different cultures and languages. I have been exposed to different cultures over the years and this has continued all the way through to university and work life, where I have had interaction with fellow international students and colleagues. In addition, I’ll continue watching documentaries and films to increase my awareness. Experience of design research, analysis and synthesis: In second year I had to do some research on Cuban culture and design office spaces based on the concept developed from the research I had done. It was an interesting project as it needed me to learn and understand a completely foreign culture to mine and produce results that would reference this. Research is important every design brief and I will continue to develop this on all the projects I work on. Visualising/ prototyping skills and aptitudes in a range of media and formats: I enjoy working with CAD, at present I am confident in generating building plans on ArchiCAD and AutoCAD, when it comes to rendering I have tried my hand at a range of programs notably, 3DS Max, Photoshop, Artlantis and SketchUP, so as to review the results and concentrate on what I feel I am strong at. I will continue to explore different software programs on my free time, particularly vectorworks as it is one specification advertised by employers in job applications. Aptitude in compiling interim and summative design presentations: I am highly independent in my working style which can sometimes come in the way of me sharing my initial ideas with others. I appreciate the presentations and tutorials as they have encouraged me to present my ideas to tutors and fellow designers, and in turn I have gained feedback which I document and has at times led to me expanding my thoughts in the design process. Aptitude for designing through a digital platform: I focus a lot of my designing with the help of CAD programs; this means my sketching has taken the backseat. Experience of process, component and production technology: The knowledge I have is applicable to furniture design, this is because I have worked in a kitchen and bathroom furniture design sector. I will continue to expand on my knowledge by referring to books in a quest to produce a more realistic design proposal.
Project Process Experience of design process and methodologies: The projects I undertook while working as a kitchen designer have taught me about the design processes and methods involved with fitted furniture design. Furthermore, while at university I have attended talks from previous graduates who have given me an insight on the interior design industry and I have continued to develop my understanding of this through Lectures and projects undertaken in university. Experience of team leadership and management: In second year I was team leader in a 5 person group project. It was a stressful process at some point, but I believe I did well in communicating the project vision, assigning each member with tasks and duties and keeping up to schedule. Most recently, I have become supervisor in a retail environment where I plan on improving on my delegation and task management skills. Experience of costing projects and fee negotiation: The experience I have in this area is from my short stint as a kitchen designer where I was present in the costing and fee negotiation stages of the design process. I do understand the importance of learning this as it is valuable skill to have if I am to take the freelance route and regardless it is good knowledge. Experience of planning and managing project activity: Since first year I have been using a Gantt chart in planning my projects. Keeping up to pace with the Gantt chart has not been the best, mainly if there are other assignments inter-crossing. In my final year, I scheduled each module with a certain number of hours per day; I stuck to the schedule up until the Christmas break where I slacked for a while. This meant I had to review my plans and make a new schedule. In my future projects I intend to stick to the Gantt charts I create. Experience of managing client relationships and collaboration: During my work as a kitchen designer it was important to keep in touch with the client, starting from the initial meeting and establishing the brief and clients’ needs all the way to the construction and final project handover. This ensured that the client was part of the decision making, up-to-date with the process and maintained a good working relationship. To build up on this I will seek to find live projects in the months after graduation. Experience of a wide range of project types and scales of innovation: During the three years of my degree course, I have experienced a breadth of projects ranging from new builds, to commercial projects, furniture design, building analysis, and ecological designs etc. all of which have exposed me to different materials, construction methods, and contemporary design. I am currently designing a logo for a client and therefore I will continue to find projects that allow me to explore my skills outside of spatial design.
Enterprise and Marketing Experience of project procurement and client consultation: The experience I have had in procuring a project was when I was working as kitchen designer and I was part of a team that had to present a tender for a range of kitchens in a residential project. I have also procured work to paint some murals, design crafts and logos for private clients in the past. I believe as I develop my practice I will gain more experience in this area. Knowledge of design sector and creative industries: The knowledge I have is acquired through research, lectures, colleagues and acquaintances. I personally need to build my knowledge on specific companies and practices. Experience in planning continued professional development: I care about my personal development, and regard this process as important in my progression. So I will continue acquiring knowledge around me, pushing myself, updating my portfolio, blog and eventually website as part of my development. Experience and understanding of legislation and regulations: In second year I undertook some research on building regulations, and since then I have had to refer to a few of them when undertaking a project to keep it in check with the real world. Experience of design budgets and account management: As a kitchen designer I had to work within the client’s budget, therefore I am confident in working under a budget. In other regards to designing a budget and account management my experience is limited; I will need to identify a method which will work in my professional practice. Experience of design practice marketing and promotion: I have updated my logo, CV and business card. To further promote my practice I will set up a website to accompany my blog and online portfolio. I will prepare material for self-promotion to be used at the final year exhibition.
Values and Vision Understanding and practice of ethical business standards: I do have an idea of some aspects of this because I have read the values and visions of some ethical businesses online, but I have not researched the topic in detail. I will try to do so and include it in my blog. Subscription to policies and standards of ethical design: I read about sustainable design and try to keep abreast with sustainable building materials and construction methods. I will need to communicate and incorporate this in my projects. Commitment to and understanding of the imperatives of professional practice: This process is important as it serves as a checklist on my growth over the years. I will continue to review my work as I develop in my professional practice. Awareness and appreciation of key design futures and innovation trends: I will continue to keep well-informed on the endeavours in the design industry by subscribing to design magazines, TV programs, forums, websites and phone apps. Commitment to the advancement of design knowledge, expertise and value: If I was to pursue a Master’s degree it would be in Design Management or Project Management. These are fields that I believe would complement my Interior Design degree. Awareness and practice of user centred design: With every project, my main emphasis has been on the end user of the space. I am able to establish this through research on anthropometric data and ergonomics which play a part in making the design user friendly. I have a copy of the Metric handbook which I refer to when undertaking a project.