Home / Career Explorer / Arts, Design, and Entertainment

Commercial and Industrial Designers

	Median Wage (USD, 2024)	Projected Job Openings (2023-2033)	Projected Growth (2023-2033)
National Statistics	$79,450	2300	3.1%
State Statistics	-	-	-
City Statistics	-	-	-

Statistics

National

State

City

State

City

$79,450

Median Wage (USD, 2023)

2300

Projected Job Openings (2023-2033)

3.1%

Projected Growth (2023-2033)

Design and develop manufactured products, such as cars, home appliances, and children's toys. Combine artistic talent with research on product use, marketing, and materials to create the most functional and appealing product design.

Experience Requirements Overview

Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Education, Training and Experience

Required Level of Education: Bachelor's Degree

Related Work Experience: Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years

On-Site or In-Plant Training: N.A.

On-the-Job Training: Over 3 months, up to and including 6 months

Detailed Work Activities

Draw detailed or technical illustrations.
Coordinate construction or installation activities.
Develop artistic or design concepts for decoration, exhibition, or commercial purposes.
Develop artistic or design concepts for decoration, exhibition, or commercial purposes.
Collaborate with others to develop or refine designs.
Present work to clients for approval.
Collaborate with others to develop or refine designs.
Evaluate quality of materials or products.
Evaluate potential of products, technologies, or resources.
Evaluate characteristics of products.
Monitor current trends.
Conduct research to inform art, designs, or other work.
Estimate costs for projects or productions.
Draw detailed or technical illustrations.
Monitor the productivity or efficiency of industrial operations.
Establish standards for products, processes, or procedures.
Coordinate design activities.
Build models, patterns, or templates.
Conduct market research.
Develop safety standards, policies, or procedures.
Establish standards for products, processes, or procedures.
Conduct market research.
Develop promotional strategies or plans.

Work Values

Achievement

Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.

Working Conditions

Recognition

Relationships

Support

Independence

Tasks

Prepare sketches of ideas, detailed drawings, illustrations, artwork, or blueprints, using drafting instruments, paints and brushes, or computer-aided design equipment.
Modify and refine designs, using working models, to conform with customer specifications, production limitations, or changes in design trends.
Evaluate feasibility of design ideas, based on factors such as appearance, safety, function, serviceability, budget, production costs/methods, and market characteristics.
Confer with engineering, marketing, production, or sales departments, or with customers, to establish and evaluate design concepts for manufactured products.
Present designs and reports to customers or design committees for approval and discuss need for modification.
Research production specifications, costs, production materials, and manufacturing methods and provide cost estimates and itemized production requirements.
Direct and coordinate the fabrication of models or samples and the drafting of working drawings and specification sheets from sketches.
Investigate product characteristics such as the product's safety and handling qualities, its market appeal, how efficiently it can be produced, and ways of distributing, using, and maintaining it.
Develop manufacturing procedures and monitor the manufacture of their designs in a factory to improve operations and product quality.
Participate in new product planning or market research, including studying the potential need for new products.
Read publications, attend showings, and study competing products and design styles and motifs to obtain perspective and generate design concepts.
Fabricate models or samples in paper, wood, glass, fabric, plastic, metal, or other materials, using hand or power tools.
Develop industrial standards and regulatory guidelines.
Coordinate the look and function of product lines.
Supervise assistants' work throughout the design process.
Design graphic material for use as ornamentation, illustration, or advertising on manufactured materials and packaging or containers.
Advise corporations on issues involving corporate image projects or problems.

Work Styles

Achievement/Effort

Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

Persistence

Initiative

Leadership

Cooperation

Concern for Others

Social Orientation

Self-Control

Stress Tolerance

Adaptability/Flexibility

Dependability

Attention to Detail

Integrity

Independence

Innovation

Analytical Thinking

Data Source: This page includes information from the O*NET 30.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This page includes Employment Projections program, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Session has been expired