Education

• Take a degree-level course in graphic design skills. Two or four-year courses are available at colleges, universities or art schools covering skills such as typography, design, layout, and photography, according to the education website StateUniversity.com. The design education equips you with the skills to design layouts and gain an understanding of print and digital production processes. Use your college vacation to work as an intern at an advertising agency or design consultancy. Alternatively, offer agencies and consultancies design services on a freelance basis so that you can put your design skills into practice and build a portfolio.
  
  

Technology

• Develop your skills in graphic design technology. Commercial art directors prepare designs on computers using page make-up software. You will also need to develop technical skills in preparing artwork and computer graphics, editing digital images and preparing designs for digital publication. You should also be familiar with software for web design, video production and online media. You can learn technical skills as part of your formal education or take short courses or workshops on specific technologies. Software publishers also provide online courses.
  
  

Employment

• Apply for a position as a designer or junior art director in an agency, design firm or publishing company so that you gain practical experience and build a portfolio of work. By working on a variety of design projects, you will gain an understanding of the way clients brief designers on their requirements and you will learn to create design proposals under the pressure of deadlines. You will also build your teamworking skills as part of a project team that includes writers, photographers, editors, account executives and production managers.
  
  

Production

• Build a detailed understanding of print and digital production processes so that you can design publications and other material for economical production. Work closely with representatives of production companies such as printers, packaging manufacturers or video producers. Ask production companies if you can visit their premises and get a first-hand view of the way your design proposals will become finished items such as brochures, advertisements or videos. Discuss the type of information production companies need from designers so that they can produce the intended results.
  
  

Project Management

• Learn the skills necessary to coordinate a project from start to finish. Your work forms part of a larger project, so it is important to understand the different stages in the project and how your work overlaps with others. You will also need to understand the timescales and costs for different parts of the project. Project management is a skill that you develop on the job. The Bureau of Labor Statistics notes that some art directors learn about project management and finances by earning a degree in art administration.