The journey to UVU was brutal, but looking back, I wouldn't change a thing. There's nothing as rewarding as getting my degree from UVU.
After I graduated from high school, I got my associate degree at Salt Lake Community College, and then I transferred to BYU. I did a year at BYU taking the pre-recs to their graphic design program, but the program didn’t give me the real-world experience I was hoping for.
I left BYU and got a job as a UI/UX designer at a software company. I worked there for about 8 months until I was let go. It really took some humility to admit I didn’t know as much as I thought I knew. I realized I needed to go to school to become who I wanted to be.
I attended Southern New Hampshire University for two semesters, but it didn't click. I knew that if I really wanted to succeed as a graphic designer, I needed a teacher to push me.
That's when I found UVU. UVU’s graphic design program was ranked in the top 100 graphic design schools in the United States. The pieces fell into place, and I started at UVU. Wow, did I pick the right school.
Once I started getting into the solely graphic design classes, they were the hardest classes I've ever taken. We were held to the highest standard I experienced to that point. It was so rewarding to be able to walk out of class each day and know I could do better.
I created things that I never thought I would be able to. The level of creativity we were able to achieve as an entire cohort was incredible. It's one of the most fulfilling things I've ever done in my life.
The journey to UVU was brutal, but looking back, I wouldn't change a thing. There's nothing as rewarding as getting my degree from UVU. I actually felt prepared for my career. There are so many people that cannot say that.
If I had gone to UVU any sooner or any later, I wouldn't have been with those 18 other students.
Our teachers held us to such a high standard, but we held each other to sometimes an even higher standard. There would be times our teachers said, “This is looking good,” and then the other classmates in the room would say, “No, I think you can improve that.” We all just built on each other.
At our final art show, we saw what everyone else was making. It was like, “I have to up my game because my piece is going to be next to that guy. I want to make them look good, and they want to make me look good.” There was just this cohesion.
Two nights before the show, I couldn’t find anywhere that would cut the posters I had created, so I had to do it by hand. It took me 6 1/2 hours to cut all of those perfectly by hand. I finished at like four in the morning. I was absolutely exhausted, but it was so worth it to be able to put my work up on the wall next to some of the greatest artists I've had the opportunity of working with.
I loved being able to go to class. My awesome professors were the reason that we became who we are. If it weren’t for our professors, it would have just been another run-of-the-mill graphic design program.
Gareth Fry changed my life. He’s one of the graphic design teachers at UVU, and he’s one of the greatest people I've ever known. I think about how much he's influenced me almost every day.
UVU is incredible because I feel like your chances of getting a job after graduation are so much higher. It's just great. It really prepares you for what you're going to be doing. I use the tools I learned at UVU every single day at work.
I work as a graphic designer and web designer at a design agency in Salt Lake called Declarative Labs, and it's fantastic. It's a completely female-led agency.
Just the other day, we had a client say, “Hey, we need a 30-second commercial to broadcast on TV for our product.” My boss looked at me and said, “I know we've never asked you to do a motion graphic before on this level, but can you do it?” I just said, “Yeah, I've done stuff like this before. Let's do it.” And I was able to crank it out in half the time I thought it would take.
Honesty has influenced my experience at UVU — teachers are honest with me. I'd show my work, and they were honest and told me I could do better. I was honest with my cohort and encouraged them to do their best.
When I'm at work now, and I don't know what I'm doing, I can be honest with my supervisor and ask for help. Just being honest makes a world of difference.
So yeah, be honest, sleep when you die, and take a class from Gareth Fry.
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