# Besides going back for BFA what's best way to learn design? **URL:** \ **Category:** design\ **Created:** [May 25, 2007, 3:17pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/besides-going-back-for-bfa-whats-best-way-to-learn-design/226974 "2007-05-25T15:17:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![vthok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f05b48/32.png) [@vthok](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/vthok)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2007, 3:17pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/besides-going-back-for-bfa-whats-best-way-to-learn-design/226974/1 "2007-05-25T15:17:36Z")
I have been a Hardware engineer for 5+ yrs now and I am trying to switch over to a design position (mostly in web design). Over the last months I have learned about Flash and learned basic typographic principles and color principles off lessons on [lynda.com](http://lynda.com). I met with a manager on a design group and he looked over my first piece (a site I’ve been working on for my wife’s cousin). [http://stickeredvan.com/clients/MMP](http://stickeredvan.com/clients/MMP) He was impressed with (1) my pro-activeness in pursuing a new career and (2) with what I had accomplished so far based on only 9 months of learning and with no formal education in it. However he did say I needed a ways to go. He recommended me learnign Photoshop, CSS, and HTML. He also recommended going back to take a class here and there at my local community college (like design layout etc). He also said to get my portfolio to be btwn 5-6 GOOD pieces (half being interactive like for websites and hafl being static pieces like logos, icons, layout examples, etc). My question is besides hitting up college for a class here or there is there any good publications (magazines, books,etc) or websites I can go to to also learn design principles. Also anyplace where I can learn how to use Photoshop to make icons (he mentioned they use it alot for that). Thanks again guys!