Evaluation

B1: Personal Progression Evaluation

Research into My Future Options

After College I planned to progress into higher education at University and study Fashion Journalism as an undergraduate degree. During extensive research into this course and which Universities offered it, I stumbled upon a similar course at Northumbria University that I felt better suited my interests and would better support me in finding a job in the future. The academic search task was very helpful to me and even encouraged me to explore options I hadn't previously thought to. 

When researching potential jobs in the media industry, I was most intrigued by the Fashion Journalism sector so I continued my research into jobs that were available in this side of the industry. This was very helpful to me as I found many jobs I would be very interested in pursuing like Fashion Publicist, Fashion Writer, Fashion Editor and Fashion Marketer. This task really helped me to reconsider my future options as I found out about Fashion Writer which was very journalism based and suited my interests perfectly. I found out about all the previous skills that were needed to pursue these careers was a University degree in Fashion Journalism and an interest in the subject of fashion, this information more so pushed me to really consider studying Fashion Journalism at University. I also conducted an employment search in the industry to find jobs that were currently available in Fashion Journalism to help me find potential future employers, I found this job below as a Fashion Editor for Refinery29.

    

After reading the job description, I found that this job was exactly what I'm interested in and I would have the skills and experience required after studying Fashion Journalism at University. This employment search was very helpful as it highlighted Refinery29 as a possible future employer for me.

I researched extensively into potential higher education options, ultimately deciding on University almost instantly after seeing the lack of apprenticeships available in the Fashion Journalism industry and the fact almost all job roles require a University degree in Fashion Journalism. I made an account on UCAS to help me in my search for Universities and what courses they had to offer. Through this, I found out that many universities didn't actually offer a Fashion Journalism course but rather only fashion focused courses. However, I found that Northumbria University offered a similar course under the name 'Fashion Communications' which, under further research I found actually better suited my interests therefore changing my course choice. Ultimately, I made the decision to apply to University through UCAS, using the application I created with all my personal details and the personal statement I constructed. I applied for multiple courses to better my chances of being accepted into each of them, these courses were 'Fashion Journalism' at University of Sunderland, 'Fashion Communication' at Northumbria University in Newcastle, 'Fashion Marketing and journalism' at London Metropolitan University and 'Fashion Communication: Fashion Journalism' at University of the Arts London'.

    

So far, I have received three conditional offers from London Metropolitan University, Northumbria University and University of Sunderland and I am still waiting to hear back from University of the Arts London. The offer I have received from London Metropolitan University is subject to me obtaining 112 UCAS points and having achieved at least a grade 4 in GCSE English Language. My offer from Northumbria University is subject to me obtaining 120 UCAS points and a satisfactory portfolio which I have submitted. Finally, my offer from University of Sunderland is subject to me achieving 120 UCAS points.

Creating My Brand Identity

Business Logo

Upon Research for my Business Logo I immediately knew that I wanted the design in the middle to be a circle as I really liked the way it looked on the example logos I found, I felt that it looked very professional and fit my media theme. I also instantly realized that I wanted to implement a neutral colour theme to my own logo as I felt it looked professional along with the circle theme. I found that a lot of the example logos I found had quite a fancy font in calligraphy which I decided I wanted to add to mine.

When I was eventually creating my Business Logo I chose to follow the beige colour theme with a very neutral beige colour so that it wouldn't overpower the text. To change it up a bit in my second draft I decided to create a vertical ombre effect with the colour fading to white, I much preferred the way this looked in comparison with the original beige background I started with. Moving on I created a circle template with small circles around it to put my name in the middle of, I was very happy with the results of this. I then decided to go onto a website called DaFont to find a font I could use for my logo, I found a font I liked that was a mix of fancy and calligraphy to match the theme of the logo. I thought the logo looked a little bit plain and needed something more so I chose to add two horizontal lines above and under my name to help pull together my logo and ensure it looked as professional as possible.

I created a google form to gather feedback from my peers on my business logo, I learned a lot from this and was able to make changes accordingly. I found out that my peers really liked the simplistic design of the logo and the warming tones as well as the font and overall aesthetic of the logo. When I asked what I could improve on I was told that if possible I should make my font bigger which I went on to do in the final draft.

Overall I was very happy with the final result of my logo and this will really help me in the future when I'm looking for a job and possibly even starting my own business, due to the fact I can attach this to any work I have completed so people will know I have worked on it.  

           

Business Card

For my business card I knew that I had to follow the same theme I had with my business logo so I looked at that when thinking about how to design my business card. I chose to follow the same colour scheme and the same font as my business logo to make sure I could pull the two together and create a consistent brand identity. This would ensure that people would associate my business card and logo together due to their similarity and consistent theme.

 I chose to use a neutral beige colour in an ombre effect similar to my logo however this time use it horizontally rather than vertically. In my earlier draft of the business card I used a different font but when gathering research I found that my peers preferred the bolder font I used in my business logo so in my final draft I reverted back to the original font. I made sure to ask if people felt the themes of my business logo and card matched to which they all responded with yes. I added matching icons of a phone, location marker, mail icon and laptop to the right of my business card in black, I then chose to add all my information in black so that it matched the colour of the icons. I added the design of my logo on the left of the business card to ensure people would be able to associate my business card and logo together. In the same font as the logo, I added the text 'Lucy Baker Media' to the top left of the screen to show people who I am and what I do for future reference.

This Business card will really help me in the future like the Business logo in the fact I can use it to associate me and my future works and it can assist me in advertising my work for employment purposes. Overall I am very happy with the way my Business Card and Business Logo turned out in their similarity and simplistic design.

Conclusion 

Overall this project has really helped me as I have learnt a lot of things I didn't previously know and came out of it with many resources that can assist me in the future for years to come. I am definitely more experienced with the likes of Adobe photoshop, Adobe premiere pro, Wix website designer, UCAS and many more. I also have gained a lot of knowledge on higher education and employment options for the future that are available to me and the skills required for them. I am definitely more confident with being prepared for higher education and my future employment opportunities. Another thing I am now able to do is showcase my skills in effective formats like creating a suitable CV, a personal statement and even creating my own website. I have already been able to use my website as a difgital portfolio and my personal statemnt when applying to University, I have also used my CV when applying for jobs.