Graphic Design Intern

About the Role

This internship is scheduled to begin in early January 2027 and continue through May 2027, with the potential to extend into a full-time summer internship. The Graphic Design Intern will support the Lodging Marketing team, contributing to a variety of creative and marketing initiatives across CSM. This role will support initiatives focused on enhancing operational delivery, maximizing profitability, and providing exceptional service through effective visual communication and creative execution. Through hands-on experience, mentorship from the Graphic Design Specialist, and practical assignments, the intern will gain an understanding of the creative development process, brand management, and the role of design in supporting broader marketing and business objectives.

Key Responsibilities

• Create and modify creative assets for marketing campaigns across social media, websites, digital advertising, and external communications, ensuring accuracy, consistency, and adherence to established brand standards.
• Maintain and organize creative assets and template libraries within digital asset management systems.
• Partner with creative, marketing, and business stakeholders to support project execution, creative updates, and campaign launches.
• Assist in developing self-service creative resources and templates to improve efficiency, consistency, and scalability.

Requirements & Tech Stack

• Figma: Familiarity with collaborative design and prototyping tools.
• Adobe InDesign: Understanding of multi-page layouts, character and paragraph styles, and editorial design.
• Adobe Illustrator: Ability to create, edit, and manipulate vector illustrations and artwork, including logos, icons, patterns, maps, and custom visual elements.
• Adobe Photoshop: Understanding of photo manipulation, retouching, and preparing imagery for digital and print use.
• Canva: Basic working knowledge.
• Microsoft Office 365: Proficient in PowerPoint, Word, Outlook, Teams, SharePoint, and OneDrive.
• Experience creating or maintaining templates and design systems.
• Basic understanding of video editing capabilities.

Qualifications

• Completed at least three years of college coursework, preferably pursuing a degree in Visual Communications, Graphic Design, or Digital Media.
• A portfolio demonstrating design thinking, creative problem-solving, and consideration of the user journey.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to think conceptually and develop effective marketing materials for multiple brands with varying needs while maintaining each brand's individuality and established standards.
• Ability to look beyond aesthetics and consider the intended audience, messaging, objectives, and desired outcomes when developing creative materials.
• Creative versatility and adaptability, with the ability to transition between a variety of projects, such as editing menus, developing promotional materials for on-site events, and creating motion graphics for short-form video.
• Comfortable capturing and editing short-form video and photography.
• Basic understanding of social media platforms and their creative capabilities.

Additional Details

• Applicants must upload a portfolio of graphic design work or include a link on their resume.
• Availability: 20+ hours per week onsite in downtown Minneapolis, with flexibility to accommodate school schedules.
• Rate: $25.00 USD per hour.