According to plan: A Student follows his own map to a global career

The blend of American and Arab cultures Tarek experienced at the American University gave him a hunger for more international exposure. He decided to study both in Europe and the United States and moved first to the Netherlands to pursue a master’s degree in interactive multimedia at the Utrecht School of the Arts. He primarily explored the graphic potential of the World Wide Web and developed a site still used by designers around the world to share ideas and show off their explorations with Arabic type.

After immersion in European culture, Tarek applied to the MFA in Design program at the School of Visual Arts in New York. He credits this program, which focuses on the designer as author, as the turning point in his career. In addition to studying with some of the living legends of the design world, he was introduced to the business world. He learned how to frame his own commitment to personal causes and concepts in financially productive ventures — becoming, in essence, his own entrepreneurial client.

Starting out on his own

After finishing his degree at SVA, he returned to Holland to start his own design studio, Tarek Atrissi Design. He chose Holland because of its location at the center of many markets and countries, which opened his new firm to as many cross-cultural options as possible. One of his first major projects was creating the identity and logo for Qatar, a rapidly growing country in the Arabian Gulf. This commission was a direct result of press about a solo exhibit of his design work at the Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar while he was a graduate student in New York.

The power of public relations

Tarek counsels students to learn not only about design skills and the business world while in school, but also about public relations. His Adobe Design Achievement Awards winning entry was published in several magazines and mentioned in the Lebanese national newspaper. While a graduate student, he was featured in Novum, a German design magazine and étape, a French design magazine. He has found, though, that one small paragraph in a newspaper about his work produces far more new accounts than multi-page articles in design journals. He thinks design students should be encouraged to get involved in non-design matters and read journals outside the design profession. He suggests they attend conferences in industries that interest them, to make contact with potential business clients, rather than attending only design conferences.

Be yourself

Above all, the university taught Tarek to focus on what makes him unique and to work on developing that uniqueness to his advantage. He hopes all students absorb that message while studying to be graphic designers.