IDEA School of Design’s Bachelor of Design in Visual Communication Grad 2026 chooses their concentration!

We asked IDEA School of Design’s Bachelor of Design in Visual Communication Grad 2026 which concentration they chose for third year and why. Check out this story!

Lola Garsonnin

I decided to choose the interaction concentration because I really liked the problem solving aspect of the projects we were given in 1st and 2nd year. I still love to draw in my free time, but I wanted to keep my hobby of drawing and art separate from work life.

Alexis Chiang

I am in the Interaction Concentration. I chose the concentration based on my observed strengths, and after the evaluation with the instructors. I wanted to hone where I’m naturally better at, thus choosing this concentration.

Maren Brophy

What is your concentration? Non-con, short for no concentration!

Why did you pick this concentration? I came into IDEA School of Design primarily interested in Illustration, but after being exposed to graphic design and UX/UI I developed a strong interest in those areas as well. Not picking a concentration allows me to explore all those areas. Furthermore, I wanted more freedom to curate my portfolio based on what projects I thought would support my career best.

Andy Poystila

I chose the open concentration, specifically UI/UX and Illustration because I love illustration, 3D graphics, websites, apps and video games. I am learning how I can incorporate both art and UI/UX this year! ):D

Rachel Lu

I chose to go down the branding concentration pathway. I wanted to take this path because my dream job is to become an art director in either the marketing or entertainment industry. I thought that focusing on branding would help me hone my skills in leadership, creative vision, and creative problem-solving.

Sophia Pan

Concentration: I chose branding (with a slight interest in UX/UI...) because I always had an admiration for packaging, love imagining possible art direction for different concepts, and playing with colours and products. It just felt natural for me to go into it, and I feel happy I found something to be passionate about. I feel like branding has endless possibilities and I never want to limit myself.

Summer Highlights: Taking political science and philosophy over the summer at Douglas College has given me a new insight and a new experience not just with the schools’ different digital systems but exploring new classrooms and teachers. I was lucky enough to have teachers that were passionate about what they were teaching, and learned a lot about my own personal worldviews. It also taught me to take on more challenges and explore new places and perspectives.

Scarlett Side

I’m Scarlett from third year and I chose branding because over the last two years I have built strong skills in visual identity, and I am eager to learn more about branding this year.

Siobhan Barry

I am in the Open Concentration. I was fairly evenly split between the options when choosing my preferred stream, and during the 2nd year meeting, I got the green light from instructors to pursue Open so I decided to roll with it. This way, I can continue to expand and grow my knowledge in all three streams and combine the skillsets for my portfolio/when job hunting. 

As far as summer experience goes, I had a couple fun freelance opportunities that included designing a tshirt for a friend's small business, and making a tour poster for another friend's UK music tour. They were both pretty small jobs, but fun little experiences.

Mena McGill

I chose branding because it fascinates me how much depth lies behind good brands. It’s not just about logos or colour schemes; it’s about reflecting the values, the story, and the personality of the brand in a way that resonates with people. The process of connecting a brand to its target audience through carefully crafted tone, style, and visuals is something I think is very powerful.

Neeka Yazdani

I am in the Branding Concentration, and I made this choice because my 2nd year made me realize what kinds of projects I'd like to be doing in my future. I started off thinking I would be in the Illustration concentration, but I soon realized I do not want my career solely based in that and wanted to expand my horizons in branding. I also found that illustration took too much energy out of me and started neglecting the personal aspect of it. I see more opportunities for me in the branding industry and am excited to learn more about packaging and brand identity. 

During the summer, my workplace, a local restaurant in Coquitlam, reached out to me to commission a liquor menu for the fall season and onwards. It took months of creating and testing out new cocktails and pricing to determine what will be permanently sellable. Halfway through the process, I suggested I add spot illustrations to the menu because it was feeling blank, and we went with 4 spot illustrations of our newest drinks. I learned a lot from this experience, especially about customer satisfaction and interests when it comes to alcohol - I learned how to make all of the drinks as well!

Brendan Hurt

I picked my concentration as Branding. I picked it because after exploring all fields over the last two years, branding work is both extremely enjoyable but also something I don’t get too wrapped up in or attached to. I prefer illustration in my free time but I can confidently say I want to stick with mainly branding work to pay the bills.

Louis Yau

I chose Interaction for my concentration because I like being nosey and seeing how people interact with the world around them.

Eunsong Kim

I was in my 3rd-year of a Communication Design major at Emily Carr, and I chose to transfer into 3rd year at IDEA School of Design because I got feedback mostly on self-expression but not on how to develop the concept and polish the work! I heard the teachers at IDEA are very engaged with students and give lots of feedback, so that's why I'm here. 🙂

Jerry Kambashi

I chose the branding concentration because I admire the thinking and effort behind each brand and their story. Also, my first encounter with graphic design was making a logo for homework in grade 5!