Meet Bilal Padia, Manchester Part-Time Graduate

Bilal Padia enrolled on the part-time course wanting to bring more creativity to his role as an Artworker. Whilst at Shillington he produced a refined portfolio, intertwining his artworking abilities with newfound skills in graphic design. Since graduating he’s joined the design team at Havas Lynx in Manchester.

We caught up with Bilal to find out more about his experience as a part-time student at Shillington, his approach to design and advice to others looking to follow a similar path. 

Before enrolling at Shillington you actually worked in the Graphic Design industry, what did you hope to achieve from studying on the course and do you think it supplied you with what you needed?

I was actually a Graphic Design graduate before being employed as an Artworker for an organisation in Blackburn. While this was a nice challenge, I wanted to be more involved in a creative process. At this point though, I was not very confident in design and I did not know what to expect from industry. Luckily, Shillington offered the opportunity to learn key industry skills required to work within the Graphic Design industry.

This course gave me that much needed confidence and I feel a lot more prepared now than ever before.

What made you chose the part-time course in particular? Are there any tips you’d give to other students about to become a part-time student?

I was working, so the part time option was best for me. I would say just plan your time well and invest in the hours, it will be worth it in the end. Time management and organisation skills are essential to succeed within this course.

Can you tell us a bit about your portfolio—do you have any projects which you’d highlight as the most successful out of the bunch?

My portfolio has a variety of different projects that cover all aspects of design, including branding, packaging editorial and UX/UI. My favourite project was the packaging brief, ‘Toof’s Paste’. I would say that is my most successful project because I found my rhythm with illustration, and that then allowed me to expand on a playful character.

We love how you decided to include your sketches and thought processes within your portfolio next to each project. How important do you think this process is within design, and is it something you enjoy?

I have almost three sketchbooks worth of sketches and thought processes! That is how important it is to me. In addition, it helps to communicate a story and a journey of how I went about solving a problem. Seeing the end results transformed from them is just mind blowing!

Your work has a great sense of commercial awareness, do you think the projects at Shillington helped you achieve this within your work?

Of course! There was a variety of different projects to work on, each with different disciplines. On top of that, we are always expected to look for references, what is out there in the commercial world and what is currently trending.

Ultimately, our work needs to solve the objectives in our briefs so that is how Shillington helped.

If you were to review your overall experience at Shillington, what would you say?

This has been a special experience. The staff were amazing and really helpful and motivating. It was something I looked forward to on a Monday and Tuesday night, where I was able to leave work early to study my passion and meet up with the fellow students, who I became great friends with too!

If like Bilal you’re eager to up-skill and change your career, Shillington might be what you’ve been looking for. Our part-time intake is just around the corner at our Australian campuses with classes starting in February. Find out more –> shillingtoneducation.com

Part-time courses start again in London, Manchester and New York in September 2017. If you’re keen to secure a place early, come along to one of our Info Sessions.