Graphic Communications (B.S.)

FAST FACTS ›

  • The Sonoco Institute is the country’s only university institute with this multidisciplinary approach to packaging as a core competency.
  • Students can expect an extremely high job placement rate after graduation — one of the highest at Clemson!
  • Our students are required to hold an industry internship for at least two semesters before graduating.
  • Our industry partnerships provide internship opportunities and furnish our laboratories with the latest technology.
ABOUT.

Graphic communications encompasses all areas of the graphics industry — from graphic design to distribution, from art to technology, from print to packaging to marketing. Think about all the products that are packaged in printed containers — cereal and computer boxes, game packaging, admissions brochures, posters, billboards, the list goes on and on. In this unique major you’ll learn how to create and print on a myriad of materials. With an emphasis on learning by doing, you’ll spend hours in the lab working next to your professors on professional-grade technologies. Combining creativity with technical skill, your knowledge will be stretched and molded as professors and peers guide you through classes and projects. Our comprehensive classes will prepare you for a career in an ever-changing and dynamic multi-billion-dollar industry. 

CLASSES.

What you'll study:

When you walk into our laboratories, you’ll see something different from other programs. You’ll see faculty working side-by-side with students on various projects and equipment to provide them with the creative and scientific skills needed to succeed in any area of this growing industry.

Your courses will be varied. Some will be in flexographic methods, printing industry operations and color reproduction, while others will include screen-printing methods and the five printing processes. Before graduation, you’ll present digital and printed graphics projects — yours from concept to completion.

The variety of interwoven skills in graphic communications means that a number of areas are explored in each class. For example, in any one class there might be students working in the lithographic area, another group in the sheet screen-printing area, others in the textile screen-printing area and even others in electronic prepress. Instead of separate classes for prepress, production and management, skills are combined in each class. In that way, you’ll understand how the details of each assignment fit into the overall process. As a result, Clemson graphic communications students develop a variety of skills, knowledge and talents that are highly sought after in every graphic communications-related industry.

Curriculum:

Popular Minors:

  • Communication Studies
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Packaging Science

Similar Majors:

BEYOND THE CLASSROOM.


Internships and Research Projects:

INTERNSHIPS:
You’ll be required to complete at least two industry internships before graduation. Students are encouraged to work in different geographic locations, process areas and segments of the industry.
FORUM:
The annual Bill Treadaway Print Leadership Forum provides a unique environment for students to engage and interact with industry leaders and for the University to foster industry/ education partnerships.
TECHNOLOGY:
Clemson is the first university to offer an undergraduate course in functional materials and printed electronics.

Connect with Other Students:

CAREERS.

What are students doing at graduation?*

77%

Employed

9%

Grad School

5%

Seeking Employment

9%

Other

Where are students headed at graduation?*

Recent employers and job titles*

  • Copac — Design engineer/packaging 
  • Beck Atlanta — Packaging Process Leader
  • Starpack — Production Graphics Processor

Recent graduate schools and sought degree types*

  • Clemson University — Master’s
  • University of Missouri — Master’s
  • Rochester Institute of Technology — Master’s

Common Career Areas**

  • Management
    • Sales
      • Technical Sales Manager
        • Marketing
          • Creative Manager
            • Process Engineer
            *Represents only Clemson University graduates who completed Michelin® Career Center surveys from 2009 to 2011.
            **Used w/permission from Univ. of Tennessee.
            FIND OUT MORE.

            Have more questions or want more information? Fill out the form below, which goes directly to the following department contact as well as our admissions office.

            Sam Ingram, Department Chair
            864-656-6348 — sting@clemson.edu