If you've ever dreamed of designing the supercar of the future, or even just building an ergonomic remote control, then a career in industrial design could be for you. Combining creativity and technical skills, industrial designers are the people who make the tools you use easy on the hands and pleasing to the eye. That can mean anything from building an office chair that's good for your back to creating a salt cellar that matches your kitchen.  

A career as an industrial designer begins at design school. There a number of colleges around the country that offer courses in industrial design but to qualify you'll need to create a portfolio of your own work. While most schools appreciate the difficulty of designing products before you study, they will want to see samples in order to assess the level of your creative talent. The format of the portfolio may vary, with some schools satisfied with sketches and slides while others such as the Art Center College Of Design in California, demanding to see the objects themselves.   

Once accepted, be prepared to complete courses that range from the history of design to hands-on modeling. The School of Design at Arizona State University for example, includes courses in algebra, marketing and public-speaking, in addition to studio-time devoted to modeling and molding.  

The real problems for industrial designers begin after graduation, when they start to look for work. Matthew Reece graduated last year with a Masters Degree in Design Management and describes the six months he spent looking for his first job as “difficult.” In the end, he won a place with a consultancy firm that helps companies change their image. "It's not totally in line with my training," he says, "but it is a good chance for me to develop strong project management skills."  

According to Reece, the hardest aspect of finding that crucial first job is that there's no clear method to help new graduates approach firms. "Finding work in the field is not as formalized as in other professions," he explains. "I tried things like Monster.com and direct-mailing big companies but you get lost in the shuffle. I ended up networking, which finally worked."  

One way to get started is with an internship. Although you won't be paid, you will gain experience and, most importantly, contacts that could land you a paying job. To find an intern position, begin by making a list of firms you'd like to work for and rank them by preference according to location, reputation and interest. You'll need to send them a whole package of information describing yourself, where you study and why you want to work for them.  

According to Michael Garelik, a product designer who specializes in chairs and lamps, internships are particularly good for the more artistic, less industrial design firms. "There are a lot of things in the twilight zone like this," he says. "The name of the game is to get your foot in the door."  

It's also becoming increasingly clear that to make that first step, you will need CAD, or Computer-Aided-Design skills. Where an ability to sketch and build accurate three-dimensional models was once highly regarded by design firms, today these skills are taken for granted. With most design work being carried out with the latest three-dimensional modeling software, without knowledge of at least one professional software program, a new designer will quickly find himself left out in the cold.  

Fortunately, says Garelik who has designed a number of successful museum exhibitions, industrial designers are a versatile bunch and can shift easily between different design fields. "Many people who don't find a job in industry design Internet sites," he explains. "They have a good sense of 3D and once you have a design way of thinking, you can work in a lot of areas."