Jana Ahlstrand

“I chose Carthage because I wanted a connected community that would make it easy for me to connect and network with people. Because I chose Carthage, I can do so many more things than I would be able to if I chose a bigger school.”

“Professor Kate Prange has been such an essential and awesome addition to our program! She is truly so passionate about design and teaching her students. As someone who has experienced so much out in the real world, her knowledge in the industry and her connections have been so helpful to all of us students. She gave me a lot of advice regarding my new club, Bea. Magazine, as she was a creative director for many years.”

“Graphic Design II has been my favorite thus far. We’ve gotten to experiment and dabble in many different aspects of graphic design, including Swiss-style posters, book covers, music promotions, campaigns, editorial design, and more.”

“I am heavily involved in Greek life! Attaining leadership within my sorority is an important part of my character development. First, I became the marketing director, then the recruitment chair, then most recently, president! In addition, I created my club called Bea. Magazine, which is new to Carthage and allows students to collaborate and use their creativity to create magazines based on pop culture and fashion! I am also a student graphic design intern for the Carthage Athletics Department.”

“I am currently a graphic design intern for the Carthage Athletics Department! This is such a fun internship; it’s a great portfolio builder, I can network within the sports community, and it’s an awesome way to put NCAA on your resume! I was also recently promoted to Student Lead Intern, which allows me to practice my organization and management skills.”

“After college, I plan to move to an urban city and start my career! I’m hoping to work at a magazine company and continue editorial design. If not that route, I would love to work with music artists and create tour posters, album covers, logos, etc.”

“Anywhere on the lake! Although I do not like lakes, and frankly, they are my worst fear, the sunrises are always so beautiful, and it’s always a great spot to study, get inspiration from, have a picnic, and sit on a hammock.”

“Being part of the sports community has brought me many exciting moments and memories. I’ve assisted with photoshoots, video-media days, and social media coverage for almost all of the sports on campus. It’s been very rewarding to create relationships with so many student-athletes.”

“I believe graphic design has become more needed over the years and is finally getting the recognition it deserves. Graphic design is a great pair with marketing or business administration, and this combination will come in handy later in my career. My advice for graphic design majors is to allow yourself to explore all the different styles and aesthetics and don’t refrain from any possibility.”

“When I was 8 years old, I wanted to work at KFC when I grew up. Now that I’ve grown up, I don’t want to work at KFC anymore; my aspirations have changed. If I were to tell 8-year-old me that I chose to be a graphic designer instead of a food service worker, I think she would be disappointed at first because I wouldn’t get free KFC, but I don’t think she’d be surprised. Considering I always got in trouble in class for doodling instead of doing my work, I think I always knew from a young age this a path I was bound to take.”