Students and Alumni Flock to Behance to Connect with Potential Employers

Pratt Institute’s Behance page allows students, alumni, and faculty to collect their portfolios in one place so they’re easier for potential employers and recruiters to peruse.

When recruiters and hiring managers are looking for Pratt students and alumni, there’s one central spot on the web for perusing hundreds of resumes, work, and contact information: the Pratt gallery powered by Behance. 

Dubbed “Cupid for creatives” by Wired magazine, Behance pools portfolios from visual artists and designers and connects them with companies seeking job candidates. Started more than a year ago, the Pratt page now includes nearly 900 people: roughly 30 percent are alumni, and 66 percent are graduate and undergraduate students. Pratt's Center for Career and Professional Development (CCPD) is encouraging people to sign up so they don't miss out on opportunities.

Through Behance, Kemar Swaby (M.S. Communications Design, Class of ’15) was asked to create a submission to a public service announcement competition. He designed a poster for an anti-human trafficking campaign and ended up winning the competition’s grand prize.

Christopher J. Lee (A.O.S. Graphic Design '13) is another one of Pratt’s success stories with Behance. He designed a font called  “Canter Typeface” that, through Behance, got picked up by Fontfabric, a site with a huge designer following; it's available to download for free there.

"Behance gave me tremendous amounts of exposure and job opportunities I've never thought I would get! I continue to tell and push my friends to join the Behance community," he says.

Another feature of Behance is its social media aspect. Viewers can comment on pieces—those that draw the most remarks land on a “Most Discussed” page. Likewise, viewers can “appreciate” work, directing pieces to a “Most Appreciated” page. 

Lee’s piece sits at the top of the “Most Viewed” items on Pratt’s page—and was featured on one of Behance’s general, curated pages that include all organizations and users. “It’s a badge of honor. It means a lot,” says Hera Marashian, associate director of CCPD, who launched Pratt’s Behance page. 

When recruiters call Marashian looking for designers in a broad variety of disciplines—architecture, interior design, fine arts, communications, fashion—she often directs them to Behance.

“We’re going to send them there because it’s logical. They can see plenty of work and zero-in on what they want,” says Marashian. "For both employers and artists, it's a huge asset that everyone should know about and use."

Text: Ruth Samuelson