What skills do new designers need to obtain a good job?

Design Discussions design employment
1

My question to all interior space, industrial, and visual communication designers is: What would you consider to be the top 5 most important skills (which could include knowledge of specific computer programs) or qualities one needs in order to gain a good job after college?

-Also, what kind of design do you do? Do you work in a big or small firm?

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  1. Verbal communication skills
  2. Visual communicatino skills (I purposely did not say sketching. There are pleanty of other ways to do this other than through pen and paper which are just as fast).
  3. Strategic thinking
  4. Ability to speak other people’s languages within an organization (marketing, engineering, sales and management).
  5. Real passion for design. If you think of it as a job rather than a way of life, you will never succeed and stand out.

I am an ID’er and work in a mid-sized corporate enviroment.