For many, searching for a club at school that doesn’t exist can be simply disappointing, but for some, it is seen as an opportunity to take charge and create the club themselves. Carrie Rong, a U2 Physiology student, tasked herself with filling a gap in McGill’s array of student clubs, creating The Design Collective, a club dedicated to those passionate about design. The club seeks to provide free services to clubs and organizations in need of logo, web, or graphic design, as well as helping students improve their design skills, as a way of giving back to the McGill community.
Carrie has always been passionate about art, and began to take interest in design while at McGill. She soon noticed a shortage in design communities, where others with similar passions could come together.
Upon speaking with Carrie, she said, “I felt that there was no one I could geek out with and chat about design things with, and if there had been a design community at McGill I would’ve discovered my love for design much sooner […] I wanted to use this passion to give back to the McGill community, making it easier for anyone who wants to start learning about design.”
And so she got to work, determined to bring that community to reality. She first began trying to recruit new members via social media, gaining the attention of McGill students, and subsequently adding new members to The Design Collective.
Since then, there has been a lot of work in designating the club with a specific definition for the work it does. Carrie describes the process, saying, “I had to think about whether we would focus on offering design services by making club requests our main priority, or focus on a more workshop-based community for designers. […] This semester is our time to test everything out and get feedback from members. I expect that we will keep iterating on how the club works as time passes, but I think we have a great start and I love the passion and interest that I’ve seen.”
“Our vision as a club is to be a hub for everything related to design […] as well as foster an inclusive community to discuss design trends, give feedback, and introduce people to different kinds of design.”
As for now, the club offers design services to other clubs, workshops to learn and improve one’s design skills using design software, as well as providing opportunities for members to become involved in design projects.
For those interested in becoming involved with The Design Collective:
Email influencedesignmcgill@gmail.com! We are always looking for people passionate about design, even if you consider yourself a beginner. Right now, we are having weekly meetings with workshops on topics like “Intro to Figma” and other social events, and our online communication is through Slack where members can sign up to design things that clubs have requested from us! We’re trying to provide as much opportunities to design things for real organizations as possible, while also building a solid set of skills in every designer.
Images were provided by Carrie Rong, on behalf of the Design Collective at McGill University.