When Rachel Frank ’16 (Graphic Design B.F.A.) was researching art schools, she was attracted to MICA's well-rounded program. She relished exploring different mediums before homing in on one. Today, she is grateful for how that education supports her day-to-day responsibilities at one of the world's largest suppliers of athletic shoes and apparel.

The holistic training at MICA really prepared me well for the competitive, fast-paced environment at NIKE," said Frank. As a color designer at NIKE, she collaborates with product and material designers to develop women's footwear. "I find myself drawing on graphic design principles and concepts to develop structures and systems for telling stories through color,"

added the 23-year-old, who is based at NIKE's headquarters in Portland, Oregon.

Frank started at NIKE as an intern in 2016. She was thankful her interviewer then was a MICA alumnus. "Because we both went to MICA, we established a rapport quickly," Frank recalled. "It was so comforting to be able to talk to someone who went through the same program. I felt confident that she was familiar with the rigorous MICA training that I had undergone," she added.

That training, in particular, the critique model, helped Frank to develop an independent voice and points of view, something her NIKE colleagues appear to value. Her internship would become the critical stepping stone to her current full-time role.

"My internship experience at NIKE was positively overwhelming," Frank shared. Work in a multinational corporation was challenging, but despite being new to the footwear industry, she was given a lot of guidance and a good amount of responsibilities. "The team that I worked with was very patient with teaching me all about the field. There are also other MICA alumni in the NIKE design community, and I continue to feel supported by an amazing network that extended from MICA into my working life."