Reflection of the last half semester

The past half semester has been a mix of diverse creativity on a Wednesday, and continual frustration on a Thursday. I have found the Culture Vulture assignment tough to concentrate on because of the pressure coming from the team project, as we have recently had an influx of content to sort out, which should really have been delivered earlier.

As my role in the team has developed into a design/PA position, I have had a lot of administration work to do. Recently I have been sorting out a final checklist for the folder, which will be used this week to make sure that we each present the correct work for each of the learning outcomes.

In the Culture Vulture assignment I experimented with a range of different materials, but found it difficult to continually come up with new ideas. I would have liked to have had more work which would have possibly given me greater choice over the final design, but having to juggle this with an increasingly heavy workload in the team assignment has not been easy.

I feel very annoyed that the grades for our team in both assignments could be jeopardised through no fault of our own. I also think that the project itself has been hard because we are effectively working as an intermediary between our client and the college system. My target of getting 4 merits in the second year could be in jeopardy, and will put me under pressure to gain these results in the last assignments of the year.

I am looking forward to some elements of the next semester, such as creating the portfolio page. For this I think I will create a corporate identity, and also creating a profile page which will use the Textpattern content management system. I have explored using this system in my own time over the past half semester, firstly by creating a personal blog, and secondly by redoing my Shark Racing website with the system. I have found it easy to use once I had got my head around it, and should be an efficient way of keeping my profile page up to date. If I do end up not having a job straight away, I will at least be able to show personal project on the site which will appeal to potential employers.

Having a backup plan for the possibility of not going straight into work will be something to think about. I would want to expand on my weaker skills, as well as learn new coding languages and techniques which will hopefully make me more employable.

The project I am least looking forward to is the User Interface assignment, which will use Flash. It is well documented on Das Forum that I am not a Flash fan – it’s just not the program for me. I’ve never found Macromedia programs easy to use, and Flash is one of the most complex ones. I will be hoping to find a way in which I can keep the assignment relevant to other skills I want to develop, such as accessibility and product demonstrations.

In my sessions on Monday with John we have been looking at jobs, CVs and other employment angles. I am feeling more and more confident of being able to apply for job once the course is finished. I will want to put a lot of work into the portfolio and CV as these are the most important elements when looking for job, as ex-students have told us. Tailoring both to the employer target audience will be a vital exercise in the next semester.

Over the next week I will be completing the On the Job and Culture Vulture assignments, which still have loose ends to tie up. The priority for tomorrow will be to get our site packaged up for the college web administrator, and get our feedback form off our client, which will not be easy if the last semester is anything to go by.