Where I've come from; where I am now; where I'm going.

As a qualified and experienced product designer, I have become increasingly frustrated by the lack of opportunity in my profession. Despite having sufficient qualifications I had difficulty in finding interest from potential employers and in gaining valuable work experience. I have also been disappointed by the limited scope for creativity and conceptual design within these positions.

During the ten years I have spent as a product designer I have worked for three companies, two of which have closed down due to competition from abroad and lack of demand. The third company has closed down its research and development department. I have therefore decided to return to college as a mature student in order to learn new skills which will hopefully open up new opportunities in the digital media industry.

I chose to study Web Design as it combines some of my current skills and strengths and also allows me to draw on previous work experience. It is also one of the few industries in demand in the UK, and potentially offers good career prospects.
I had been planning to move up to the Leeds area for a few months (from Cardiff) for personal reasons and had been looking at a range of courses in the area. The HND Interactive Media course seemed to offer a flexible and realistic approach that is appropriate for mature students. From the website description it seemed well thought out and relevant to industry.

In addition to the skills I will learn on the course I intend to keep up-to-date with new software and programming developments and also to learn new skills such as Flash animation. I may consider further education such as a part time degree, but at the moment I am more interested in finding freelance or permanent work opportunities and in gaining work experience.