Design Jobs Board

We select a handful each year to come and experience the Pearlfisher way of doing things.

We don’t mind where you are on your journey to becoming a creative professional, but what we do care deeply about is your raw talent and sparkling personality. A placement or internship with us is about getting stuck in and involved in everything we do, so that’s why we need to make sure we select the right person with the right attitude. We don’t do nepotism, bribery or blackmail – the only way to secure an opportunity with us is to apply and send us your work. So please concentrate all your talent, intelligence and creativity into this application and we will get in touch if we like what we see…

Purpose

As a globally-renowned agency, we feel that we have a duty to find and nurture young talent in our industry. A design internship at Pearlfisher will build on an individual’s raw talent and skill, developing and diversifying the skillset of the intern through support and guidance, the opportunity to work on live briefs and becoming immersed in the creative hub of our London studio. For interns from outside of the UK, the experience will also be invaluable in terms of understanding a more global approach to design.

The role

You will be reporting directly to our Senior Designers within the Design team, working closely with them and supporting the wider Design team on a broad range of creative briefs. Projects include but are not limited to design for identity, packaging, product, digital, print, and environments across a variety of sectors eg FMCG, luxury, alcohol, pharmaceutical, and sustainability innovations. Through this, you will learn about how we approach design projects from brief to concept and through the various stages until finalisation and handover to Realisation.

You will:

• Be expected to generate and create ideas, expressing your creativity.
• Be scheduled to work on a wide variety of projects which will give you exposure to different types of clients, their brands and their way of working
• Gain exposure to all facets of a global design agency, including liaison with and some input into Strategy and Futures
• Learn how to interpret creative briefs.
• Develop a point of view and opinion about your own work and that of others.
• Present your ideas in reviews.
• Support the wider team at all project stages, as required.
• Start to gain an understanding of the Realisation process and how it brings your ideas to life.
• Help with the day-to-day upkeep of the design studio.
• Participate in and help to prepare for company events.

You will also be expected to cover concierge duties during lunchtimes/absence (shared with other members of the intern team as required). This will give you an opportunity to meet and greet internal and external personnel and to become more familiar with the day-to-day running of a busy agency.

Review process

Your position will be reviewed informally every 2-3 weeks and, for internships of 6 months or more, formally every 3 months. This will give us and you the opportunity to ensure that you are fulfilling the role to our expectations, and that the role is developing for you in the correct way.

Notes

The level of involvement and active input that you will be responsible for, and the associated timeline, is very much in your hands. If you can prove yourself as a capable and proactive individual, you will be given more responsibilities more quickly. The above outline is not exhaustive and there will often be additional requests from the team or clients that you will be expected to carry out.

Required skills and experience

• A degree or equivalent qualification in a design discipline
• Some previous work experience in a relevant field
• A creative portfolio of work that is complementary to our field of work and that shows clear thinking, self-generated ideas and unrivalled creativity
• Student or other awards would be a bonus

Internship plan

Phase 1: You will go through the company’s onboarding and orientation process which will include a skill assessment from the Design Directors (or other Senior team members in their absence) that will guide the rest of the internship and the level to which the intern can be pushed. You will be given inductions in all areas of Pearlfisher’s business, that you might fully understand our current offers.

Phase 2: Once we have established your strengths and training needs, we will focus on each by setting distinct and clear tasks, through being scheduled to work on appropriate live briefs, shadowing and working alongside the Senior design team. Projects could include design for identity, packaging, product, digital, print, and environments across a variety of sectors eg FMCG, luxury, alcohol, pharmaceutical, and sustainability innovations. Through this, you will learn about how we approach projects from brief to concept and through the various stages until finalisation and handover to Realisation. At all stages, your work will be reviewed and clear guidance given for development to Pearlfisher standards.

Phase 3: You should have developed skills to be able to carry out some independent work on the above projects, though always with guidance and development through the review process.

Each of these phases is not distinct and could run concurrently, depending on your strengths. Fortnightly reviews (outside of project reviews) will be put in place to ensure that you are performing at a level that is useful to the business and that you are learning what you need to.

Apply today

We foster a welcoming, diverse and inclusive workplace culture where everyone is treated with respect and dignity.

Each of us thrives when everyone feels valued for who they are, regardless of gender, race, religion, social class, disability, sexual orientation or background. We leave no room for discrimination of any kind because we believe we have a unique opportunity and obligation to design more equitable ways of living and working.

As long as you have the experience required for the role, we welcome applications from all walks of life.