Hello! My name is Umme, pronounced “ooh-may” and I am a graphic design intern at ROI Advertising. I have been interning with ROI for about 9 months now. Everyone is so nice that it feels like they are my second family. I love what I do each day. There’s always something different to work on, and I have learned a lot about design and my design capabilities while being here. Everything that I have designed/created has been a good learning process. Each time I discover something new, which motivates me to do even better on the next project.
Before ROI, I had never prettied up a PowerPoint. Over time, I’ve learned how custom designed PowerPoint templates are utilized. I even tried creating a template later on. I have attempted some logo designs and that was also a good learning process. I love anything with branding, as it was very last thing I learned about before graduating from George Mason University. I often find myself looking at branding designs in my free time as I am currently trying to come up with self-promotional ideas.
One particular ROI client I enjoy creating work for is Rizik’s. They specialize in bridal, evening, and formalwear for women located in Washington D.C. I have worked on some cool window posters and postcard designs for them. I found myself intimidated at first but gradually started designing without any hesitation. I’ll admit, my first few designs took a while to come together, but I’ve definitely seen a growth in my design style. Over the months, I have developed a pretty good eye for design when it comes to fashion advertising. I designed a couple of magazine mock-ups when I was still at George Mason but it was a great experience creating designs for a real client.
Another thing that I’ve accomplished is creating storyboards for TV/video advertising. I was very excited that one of ROI’s Principals, Elliot included me with the creative team. I definitely took my time to research various storyboarding techniques. It was a lot of fun and I got to hone my skills editing photos with Photoshop. I could just go on and on about my fun experience but I think you get the idea of where I am coming from!
One of the things that I also like about ROI is teamwork. Of course there are times where we all have our own assignments to do but it eventually all turns into a team effort. I love working with my Creative Director, Sean and Senior Designer, Carolyn. They are an ideal team to work with, honestly. They are everything an intern looks for in a creative team. They are both very talented and inspirational individuals and always have a lot to share about their experiences. If you have time, please check out their web comics, Curls and Panda Force!
Lunchtime is the next thing that I like about working here! Mostly because we eat together, which is something I always appreciate since I always eat together with my family at home too. I can tell that my Creative Director really cares for our team because he allows us to take breaks to recharge (bubble tea!) and checks up on us to make sure we’re doing well. Our team is incomplete without Tina, our Production Manager. She keeps everything together and makes sure we are all well organized. I really admire her for her ability to multitask; she is amazing. Last but not least, the ROI Principals! Elliot and David are both hardworking and very caring about the quality of work and culture at ROI. They treat us to lunch on special occasions — not to mention, free ice cream!
+ View more of Umme Bukhari's work here.
