Graphic designer to advertising assistant
A graphic designer already meets 34% of what the advertising assistant role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
61.7/ 100
1 How much of what an advertising assistant is expected to do is already part of a graphic designer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the advertising assistant role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An advertising assistant role treats 5 of its required skills as things a graphic designer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- advertising techniques
- develop creative ideas
- develop digital content
- digital media
- identify customer's needs
What stands in the way is 7 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 9 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An advertising assistant role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a graphic designer background worth leading with.
- already held create advertisements communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held adobe creative suite information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held digital media arts and humanities
- already held design graphics communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held develop digital content working with computers
- already held advertising techniques business, administration and law
All 9 carried skills, including the 5 the advertising assistant role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 23 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn liaise with advertising agencies required
- still to learn support managers required
- still to learn use communication techniques required
- still to learn use different communication channels required
- optional, not held collaborate in the development of marketing strategies optional
- optional, not held create content title optional
- optional, not held implement marketing strategies optional
- optional, not held provide written content optional
- still to learn file documents required
- still to learn perform business research required
- optional, not held evaluate advertising campaign optional
- optional, not held examine advertisement layout optional
- optional, not held monitor media industry research figures optional
- optional, not held perform media outlets research optional
- still to learn use IT tools required
- optional, not held create media plan optional
- optional, not held coordinate advertising campaigns optional
- optional, not held create media schedule optional
- optional, not held develop media strategy optional
- optional, not held manage budgets optional
- optional, not held media planning optional
- optional, not held types of media optional
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an advertising assistant role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 file documents practise this
- 02 perform business research practise this
- 03 liaise with advertising agencies practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 9 skills that carry over
- already held advertising techniques knowledge
- already held develop creative ideas skill
- already held develop digital content skill
- already held digital media knowledge
- already held identify customer's needs skill
- already held adobe creative suite knowledge
- already held create advertisements skill
- already held design graphics skill
- already held perform market research skill
16 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held create media plan optional
- optional, not held collaborate in the development of marketing strategies optional
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- optional, not held coordinate advertising campaigns optional
- optional, not held create content title optional
- optional, not held create media schedule optional
- optional, not held develop media strategy optional
- optional, not held evaluate advertising campaign optional
- optional, not held examine advertisement layout optional
- optional, not held implement marketing strategies optional
- optional, not held manage budgets optional
- optional, not held media planning optional
- optional, not held monitor media industry research figures optional
- optional, not held perform media outlets research optional
- optional, not held provide written content optional
- optional, not held types of media optional
55 held skills the advertising assistant role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role 3D lighting knowledge
- not needed by the target role 3D modelling knowledge
- not needed by the target role Adobe Illustrator knowledge
- not needed by the target role Adobe Photoshop knowledge
- not needed by the target role Adobe Photoshop Lightroom knowledge
- not needed by the target role Capture One knowledge
- not needed by the target role GIMP (graphics editor software) knowledge
- not needed by the target role Microsoft Visio knowledge
- not needed by the target role SketchBook Pro knowledge
- not needed by the target role Synfig knowledge
- not needed by the target role adapt to type of media skill
- not needed by the target role aesthetics knowledge
- not needed by the target role apply 3D imaging techniques skill
- not needed by the target role apply desktop publishing techniques skill
- not needed by the target role brainstorm ideas skill
- not needed by the target role computer graphics knowledge
- not needed by the target role convert scribbles into virtual sketches skill
- not needed by the target role copyright legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role create 3D characters skill
- not needed by the target role create 3D environments skill
- not needed by the target role create animated narratives skill
- not needed by the target role create moving images skill
- not needed by the target role design greeting cards skill
- not needed by the target role design management knowledge
- not needed by the target role design prototypes skill
- not needed by the target role desktop publishing knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop an artistic framework skill
- not needed by the target role develop animations skill
- not needed by the target role digital compositing knowledge
- not needed by the target role draw design sketches skill
- not needed by the target role edit digital moving images skill
- not needed by the target role edit negatives skill
- not needed by the target role edit photographs skill
- not needed by the target role finish project within budget skill
- not needed by the target role follow a brief skill
- not needed by the target role graphic design knowledge
- not needed by the target role graphics editor software knowledge
- not needed by the target role interactive media knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage contracts skill
- not needed by the target role meet expectations of target audience skill
15 further entries not listed here
3 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- optional, not held media planning optional
- optional, not held types of media optional
Other moves recorded from graphic designer
- special effects artist 56% covered · moderate
- animator 56% covered · moderate
- advertising copywriter 52% covered · moderate
- desktop publisher 49% covered · substantial
- animation director 47% covered · substantial
- animation layout artist 46% covered · substantial
- cartoonist 43% covered · substantial
- creative director 40% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a graphic designer become an advertising assistant?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A graphic designer already covers 34% of what an advertising assistant is expected to do: 9 skills carry over, 5 of which the advertising assistant role treats as required.
What skills does a graphic designer need to become an advertising assistant?
7 required skills are missing, plus 16 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is file documents.
How hard is the move from graphic designer to advertising assistant?
Its learning distance is 61.7 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.