‘I design everything from social media content, to paid animated adverts, from email design to PR events’
Molly Harris, Graphic Designer for Benefit Cosmetics, graduated from her BA (Hons) Digital Arts degree in 2020. We caught up with Molly, who told us about her role at Benefit Cosmetics, the skills she learned during her degree and her favourite memories of Kent.
How do you feel your time at Kent prepared you for working in the industry?
Kent was very good at supplying work related resources to students, from CV workshops to understanding the world of digital media and the roles you could expect to look for upon graduating. Industry days where you could network were really insightful, and the professional level at which you are held whilst studying prepares you for a working world with working relationships.
What did you learn in your degree that has been beneficial to you in your role?
I love how varied the course was. I find the world of graphic design is constantly evolving – it’s no longer a print world. So many companies need a range of online digital assets, whether that be social media content, emails to customers or having a dynamic web page – there’s much more to graphics now. I feel like my course covered so many of the basics that I use everyday that I wouldn’t have gotten from a traditional graphic design course. Although I may not use my 3D rendering skills very often, I found having skills like this gave me an edge in the application processes for a lot of jobs. Having so much versatility shows willingness to learn and adapt.
What are your main responsibilities and tasks?
At a large company like Benefit no two days are the same, I’m constantly working on multiple design briefs at one time. The briefs vary quite a lot. I design everything from social media content, to paid animated adverts, from email design to PR events. I have the freedom to influence macro and micro moments from the look and feel of our Valentine’s Day content to a product launch. The best part about working in a larger design team is getting to feed off of the other designers. It’s inspiring how no two ideas are exactly the same and I feel lucky to be supported by such an amazing, female led team.
Are you working on any exciting projects that you can share?
Right now it’s all about spreading the love for Valentine’s Day (of course) so I’m currently working on our social campaign which has around 3 story designs and main feed posts, assets for our webpage and some exciting promotional emails, as well as some Valentine’s inspired PR events in Ireland.
What are your plans for the future?
I see myself having a long and enjoyable career with Benefit where I have the freedom to expand and develop my creative skills. Going forward I’m going to be getting more into motion graphics and the world of paid ads. I look forward to learning more from the inspiring women that surround me.
What advice would you give to someone wanting to follow the same career path?
I would say that it’s so important to believe in yourself. It can be really hard when you’re fresh out of uni to doubt yourself and your skill set when the competition is so great. Just remember that behind every success there are going to be countless rejections and you need to learn to be resilient. The right job will always come to you at the right time, it’s about having patience and expanding your skill set in your own time to achieve what you want.
What was your favourite memory from your time at Kent?
One of my favourite memories from my studies was actually during first year, we were given creative freedom on a short film and I have very fond memories of the filming process. In fact almost all of my favourite memories are from group projects.