Visiting the Guinness storehouse during a graphic design internship in Dublin

Graphic Design Internships in Dublin

Dublin designs at the scale of a town with the reach of a capital. Signs, packaging, books and app screens here often have to work in two languages, and a walk across the centre links tech campuses, print workshops and art college studios.

Design work in the city falls into a few strands. In-house teams at the technology companies clustered around Grand Canal Dock produce product screens and marketing for users across Europe. Google established its European headquarters in Dublin in 2003, and other multinationals followed. Independent studios create labels, logos and campaigns for Irish whiskey, food and tourism brands that sell abroad. Publishers, theatres and museums keep editorial and cultural design active in a city UNESCO named a City of Literature. 

Whether you're a university student, recent graduate, gap year student or career changer, our graphic design internship program in Dublin places you inside a working team and leaves you with finished pieces to show for it.

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24Guaranteed Internship
Vetted placements with Dublin studios, agencies and in-house design teams. 

14Complete Overseas Support
Visa guidance, Dublin housing, airport pick-up, social events and a local team on call around the clock.  

22Global Career Network
Join 15,000+ alumni with dynamic workshops, networking events, and employer references.  

Example graphic design host organizations in Dublin

Our interns have joined Dublin studios, agencies, publishers and in-house design teams. The following examples show the kinds of workplaces our participants have joined; your placement is matched to your skills and interests.

Why do a graphic design internship in Dublin?

Dublin's size changes how design gets done. One designer here might handle identity, layout, social assets and print files in the same week, where a larger city would split that across four job titles. As an intern, you see how the pieces connect from brief to delivery.

Three strands run side by side. Design teams at technology firms around the Docklands build interfaces and campaigns for many European markets at once. Independent studios work on labels, identities and campaigns for Irish producers heading to export shelves. Publishers and cultural venues sustain the editorial side, in a literary city that still commissions a great deal of printed material.

Language adds another layer. Irish appears next to English on public signage, government materials and arts programming, so layouts must handle fadas and lenition dots as well as longer word lengths. Dublin is especially active in product and UI design, food and drink branding, editorial layout and bilingual typography.

Experience design where tech, tradition and two languages meet

In-house scale
Watch how multinational design teams adapt one campaign or interface across several markets.

Independent range
Move between identity, packaging, editorial and digital work in studios small enough for everyone to touch every stage.

Bilingual typography
Set text in English and Irish and learn how diacritics and line lengths reshape a layout.

Close-knit networks
Meet art directors, illustrators and developers at events where the whole scene fits in one room.

Sightseeing during a graphic design internship in Dublin

Explore graphic design internships in Dublin

Dublin's design work is spread across independent studios, agency creative teams, publishers, tech company design departments, drinks and food producers, and more. Your placement shows you how one of these groups turns a brief into finished work.

Brand & Identity Design

Dublin's identity studios work with start-ups emerging from the city's accelerators, family-run food producers, arts organizations and tourism bodies, often on tight budgets that reward clear thinking over lavish production. Your internship might involve supporting a rebrand, building out a logo suite or preparing a client presentation.

You could work on: Logo variations and lockups · Brand guideline pages · Social media template sets · Client presentation decks

Digital & UI Design

Product and marketing design teams around the Silicon Docks work on apps, websites and email systems used in dozens of countries. You could help keep components consistent, prepare screens for developers or check how designs hold up once translated.

You could work on: Screen mockups · Component library upkeep · Localization checks · Icon and illustration assets

Advertising & Creative Agency Design

Agencies in Dublin serve Irish consumer brands, public information campaigns and multinational accounts that need Irish-market versions of a global idea. Interns often help adapt a single concept across outdoor, print and social formats.

You could work on: Campaign adaptations · Outdoor and print layouts · Storyboard frames · Pitch visuals

Packaging Design

Food, product, and gift producers rely on labels and boxes to stand out on export shelves and in airport shops. You could help with label layouts, mockups and artwork checks before files go to the printer.

You could work on: Label layouts · Pack mockups · Print-ready artwork checks · Gift-set concepts

Looking for graphic design internships beyond Dublin? Explore our international art and design internships to see opportunities in other destinations. 

Example graphic design internship roles in Dublin

Depending on your skills and interests, you could take on a role such as:

  • Graphic Design Intern
  • Creative Design Intern
  • Branding & Design Intern
  • Digital Heritage Design Intern
  • Gallery Operations & Digital Design Intern
  • Art Gallery Design Intern
  • Digital Content Designer
  • Creative Video Production Intern

Your exact role will depend on your host organization and placement.

Explore more example Graphic Design roles >

Visiting a traditional Irish pub during a graphic design internship in Dublin

What can you gain from our graphic design internship in Dublin?

A Dublin placement puts you inside a team that ships work, whether that's a social template, a label proof or a set of app screens. You'll finish with a clearer sense of which kind of design suits you.

  • Add a European design placement to your CV

    Show employers you've worked in a design team in an English-speaking country inside the EU. 

  • Contribute to live client work

    Deliver artwork that gets used, from campaign resizes to packaging files, depending on where you're placed. 

  • Meet people across the city's design circles

    Build contacts with designers, developers and account teams at your host and at local events, alongside fellow interns from other countries. 

  • Design for more than one language and market

    Learn to build layouts that survive translation, Irish accents and regional variations. 

  • Test which part of design fits you

    Small teams let you follow a project from sketch to print file, so you can see which stages you enjoy most. 

Sightseeing during a graphic design internship in Dublin

What's included in the Dublin internship program?

Your program includes vetted accommodation, regular cultural events, airport pick-up, visa guidance, a Dublin team available 24/7, career workshops and a CV improvement tool.

Explore the full Dublin internship program >

Hear from our Dublin interns

Sarah Swenseid
Sarah Swenseid
Watch their story
Maria Grazia
Maria Grazia
Watch their story
Pedro Borin
Pedro Borin
Watch their story

"I actually took a gap year and chose to spend my time in Ireland. Even though I was only there for two weeks, I still had an amazing experience. I got to know the team there and they were all absolutely amazing people to work with." - Sarah Swenseid, intern in Dublin

"Last summer, I participated in the customised internship in Dublin. I chose this destination because I wanted to connect with nature and explore the Emerald Isle, since here in Milan we don't have as many green landscapes. The match with the organisation was perfect because The Intern Group was able to really understand and capture my interests." - Maria Garzia, Dublin intern

Exploring the Emerald Isle during a graphic design internship in Dublin

Is a Dublin graphic design internship right for you?

A Dublin placement suits you if you'd rather be trusted with real files in a compact team than watch from the edge of a large one. Whether you're a university student, recent graduate, gap year student or career changer, you can apply to set your international graphic design career in motion.

You'll leave with more finished pieces, a reference and a set of contacts, plus a firmer idea of where you want your design career to head.

What is it like to live as a graphic design intern in Dublin?

Most interns are based in the Docklands, where the LUAS stops outside the door and the Silicon Docks offices are a short walk from Grand Canal Dock. Cross the Liffey to the Liberties, home to NCAD, or browse exhibitions at Temple Bar Gallery + Studios, the Hugh Lane Gallery and IMMA in Kilmainham. The National Print Museum in Beggars Bush is worth a lunch break if you want to see letterpress equipment up close.

Weekends are easy to fill. Take the DART out to Howth or Dalkey for a coastal walk, photograph the colours of the Georgian doors around Merrion Square as palette references, or spend an evening at a traditional music session with your fellow interns.

Apply now

Hanging out with other interns during a graphic design internship in Dublin

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  • 1

    Apply online

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  • 2

    Interview

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  • 3

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