ROSS Stewart is a second-year HND student at City of Glasgow College.
Check out his website, here.
What course are you studying?
I’m currently studying HND Digital Media for Design Print & New Media, City of Glasgow College.
What inspired you to choose this course ahead of all the others on offer?
I knew that City of Glasgow College is highly thought-of and provides some great courses. After reading over the modules for both years, one and two, I saw the course provided web development and new media; skills I know to be in high demand, in the jobs market.
I reckoned that, being taught Dreamweaver, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, After Effects, Automator and 3DS Max within a two-year period, would also give me the knowledge to continue into university or a full-time job.
From a young age, I have also had an interest in video editing and 3D work.
So, basically, the course is all the different types of media I enjoy, rolled into one, as it includes a motion graphics module and a 3D animation one.
At what stage are you?
I’m half-way through second year.
What have you most enjoyed about the course so far?
Learning and understanding the developments of branding.
Brands are built up in such a way, through colour, layout design and typography, which is almost unnoticed to most of the population.
Physiologically, colours, design techniques and consistent advertising give the big-name brands, we all know, their quality and price. To some extent, it’s not the actual product or the service you are paying for, but the brand. Colour theory, and how each person perceives colours, is extremely complicated and not very well known-about. Studying how we perceive our own planet through our vision and colour is something I really enjoy learning about.
What lies ahead and how are you preparing yourself for it?
I’m currently starting my graded unit in college currently and freelancing for clients on the side. I’m planning on releasing a clothing line in the near future to create my own unique brand.
Are you currently using any of your new-found skills in actual media work?
I’ve been working freelance since I was 15 (I am aged 19 now) and my course has helped me gain a more professional and business aspect when approaching potential clients for various projects.
I’ve been creating clothing, branding, flyers for local nightclubs and photo manipulation for canvases.
I’d love to continue into a job or university this summer and perhaps get my own clothing brand started.
What next, after you have no doubt successfully completed your course?
Continue into higher education or enter the industry either as a freelance or through an agency. I’d love to own my clothing brand and make my own mark. I’d love to start something unique.
Any single piece of media studies advice you want to share?
Do what you enjoy, find a niche in the market and exploit it.
