There is no one point when one “becomes” a designer. There is always more to learn, and years from now, you’ll probably find something basic you never did. But there is certain skills that you really should have, terms you should know, tools you should be comfortable with, and concepts you should be familiar with. Here’s a list for you to reference as you go through your education – or educate yourself. All of these are best learned through actual design, so don’t wait to complete the checklist before you start designing. Design away, and don't be afraid to ask for help (especially from Google).
File Setup
□ RGB vs. CMYK
□ Resolution: PPI/DPI
□ Raster vs. Vector
□ File Dimensions
□ Most Common File Types (.psd, .ai, .indd, .jpg, .png, .pdf, .eps, .gif)
□ Layers
Typography
□ Serif vs. Sans Serif
□ … vs. Slab Serif vs Script
□ … vs. Blackletter vs. Mono vs. Hand
□ … vs. Decorative
□ Kerning
□ Tracking
□ Leading
□ Alignment
□ Golden Ratio Typography
□ Hierarchy + Font Size
□ Font Weight
□ X-Height
□ OpenType
Color
□ Primary vs. Secondary vs. Tertiary
□ Color Symbolism & Associations
□ Color Formulas
□ Pantone
□ RGB vs. CMYK vs. HSB vs. Lab
□ Opacity
Photoshop / Photo Editing
□ Adjustment layers (i.e. brightness and contrast, hue and saturation)
□ Clipping masks
□ Blending modes (i.e. multiply, screen)
□ Selection + Selection Tools
□ Layer masks
□ Silhouetting
□ Cropping
□ Brushes
□ Layer Styles
□ Smart objects
□ Layer Comps
□ Gaussian Blur
□ Healing + Spot Healing
Illustrator / Vector Illustration
□ Pen Tool
□ Alignment
□ Pathfinder
□ Shape Builder
□ Direct Selection
□ Fill and Stroke
□ Fill Effects
□ Brush Definition
□ Outlining Text + Strokes
InDesign / Print Files
□ Bleed
□ Margins
□ Resolution
□ White Space
□ Alignment
□ Exporting PDF
□ Links Folder
□ Standard Print Dimensions
□ Dielines
□ Master Pages
□ Character Styles
□ Paragraph Styles
□ Placing Linked Files
□ Spot Color vs. CMYK
□ Incorporating Print Techniques
□ Text Boxes
□ Outlining text
□ Indent and paragraph spacing