For anyone interested in starting a career related to the management and development of projects, earning a strategic design & management degree is essential when pursuing such a career. Once you have earned this degree, there are a wide range of career opportunities that open up for you. We’ve compiled a list of career paths commonly pursued by recent graduates.
Brand Strategy
Upon earning a degree in strategic design and management, there are a myriad of different careers you can choose to pursue. The first is known as brand strategy. As a brand strategist, you will often work under a marketing team or brand manager as a means of tailoring a specific message for the brand. You will also look over any market research and analysis, as well as the tone of their message. Entry level employees that work as a brand strategist typically start out at over $50,000.
Product Strategy
This job role centers around being able to assess a multitude of aspects about the products that the employer is attempting to place on the market. When doing this, you will take a look at all of the possible products and decide which ones are actually worth selling and might be in demand, as well as to what type of customers to market these products to. It is also up to a product strategist to identify the prices that these products should likely be sold for. You will often be tasked with collecting and gathering market data to back up all of your findings. Potential salaries can range anywhere from over $33,000 to well over $100,000.
Design Strategy
Anyone that has graduated with a degree in strategic design and management will be able to start a career as a design strategist as well. A design strategist will often work with creative directors and brand strategists to develop a core strategy for design projects. This covers development and concepting and requires the employee in this role to ensure strategic success. The average salary for this career path is around $100,000.
Design Research
Working in a career in design research entails a large variety of job duties, including working with clients to create products, services and experiences designed solely around what works best for that specific company and what will earn them the most profits and revenue. A design researcher will lead a group in market research and must be able to assess the social, cultural and emotional needs of potential customers. Afterwards, a design researcher will need to link their findings with the overall market strategy. Average salary for this role is just above $60,000.
Entrepreneurship
It’s also possible to use the knowledge you’ve gained through this degree to focus on entrepreneurship, which is ideally suited to someone with this degree type, as starting your own business will require the development of business and marketing models. While a small business owner can make any amount of money, the average salary in the U.S. is close to $60,000.
Project Management
When starting a career in project management, you will typically act as the manager that oversees the tracking, development and implementation of certain projects, usually short-term ones. It is up to you to map out the beginning, ending and end goals for the project before it is set to begin. You will routinely work with senior management and other staff in order to meet these goals. The average salary of a project manager is close to $100,000.