Junior Graphic Designer

Description

The Cato Institute seeks a Junior Graphic Designer to join the Design team and produce a high volume of visual work that carries Cato's ideas to a broad audience.

This role is approximately 80% digital design, including social media graphics, web assets, email graphics, and presentation design, and 20% print design, including brochures, fliers, one-pagers, event materials, and more. The designer will work from established brand systems and templates while contributing original concepts and collaborating with designers, producers, social media staff, marketing and program teams, and policy researchers across the Institute.

Cato's Design department is responsible for the visual identity of the Institute and its related properties, including Sphere Education Initiatives, Cato University, and Libertarianism.org. The department produces daily social graphics, web assets, event collateral, marketing materials, and printed publications.

This position is well suited to a designer early in their career who seeks volume and variety in their work. The designer will produce work for immediate publication, receive guidance and art direction, and expand their range across a multi-brand system.

The Junior Graphic Designer is a full-time, non-exempt position in the Design - Digital department and reports to the Digital Design Manager.

This is a hybrid position based in Washington, DC.

The projected salary range for this role is $54,000 to $64,000 per year. Compensation is based on the successful candidate's educational background, experience, and skills.

About Cato

The Cato Institute is a public policy research organization — a think tank — dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets, and peace. Its scholars and analysts conduct independent, nonpartisan research on a wide range of policy issues.

Founded in 1977, Cato owes its name to Cato’s Letters, a series of essays published in 18th-century England that presented a vision of a society free from excessive government power. Those essays inspired the architects of the American Revolution. And the simple, timeless principles of that revolution — individual liberty, limited government, and free markets — turn out to be even more powerful in today’s world of global markets and unprecedented access to information than Jefferson or Madison could have imagined. Social and economic freedom is not just the best policy for a free people, it is the indispensable framework for the future.

The Cato Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Key Responsibilities and Duties

Digital Design (approx. 80%)

• Design social media graphics across platforms, including feed posts, quote cards, carousels, event promotions, data-driven graphics, and cover images sized and adapted to each channel's specifications.
• Produce web assets, including page banners and graphics, article headers, thumbnails, and icons, in collaboration with the web and marketing teams.
• Build and adapt graphics for email campaigns and newsletters.
• Design event background graphics for LED screens.
• Design and format panel graphics for events using established templates.
• Resize, adapt, and version approved designs across formats and channels while preserving visual integrity.
• Apply and extend existing brand systems and templates, flagging gaps and inconsistencies as they arise.

Print Design (approx. 20%)

• Lay out and produce brochures, fliers, booklets, one-pagers, and event signage.
• Prepare print-ready files, including bleeds, color spaces, and export specifications.
• Assist with the layout and production of longer-form publications and reports.

Collaboration and Workflow

• Contribute ideas during brainstorms and concept reviews.
• Track assigned projects in the Institute's project management system, keeping tasks, due dates, and file versions current.
• Incorporate feedback from art direction and stakeholders into revised designs with care and attention to detail.
• Maintain organized working files, asset libraries, and naming conventions so work is easy for the team to find and reuse.
• Balance concurrent requests against firm deadlines.

Requirements

Experience

• Bachelor's degree in graphic design, visual communications, or a related field.
• At least one year of graphic design experience within an organization, such as an in-house team, agency, nonprofit, or comparable setting. Substantive internship experience will be considered.
• A portfolio demonstrating strong use of typography, layout, hierarchy, and color, with examples of both digital and print work.
• Ability to work within an established brand system and follow art direction.
• Strong attention to detail and the ability to manage several concurrent projects against deadlines.
• Clear, professional communication with colleagues outside the design team.

Required Technical Skills

• Advanced knowledge of Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.
• Proficiency in Microsoft PowerPoint and Word.
• Working knowledge of project management software such as Wrike, Asana, Monday.com, Basecamp, or a similar platform.

Preferred

• Motion graphics skills and experience.
• Basic familiarity with user interface and user experience principles.
• Experience with Adobe After Effects.
• Experience with Adobe Premiere Pro.
• Familiarity with generative AI image tools such as Adobe Firefly, DALL-E, Nano Banana, or Midjourney, including sound judgment about when AI-generated imagery is appropriate for published work.
• Comfort using AI assistants such as Claude or ChatGPT as part of a routine workflow.
• Email design experience using Mailchimp or Stripo.

To Apply

Please submit the following materials:

• Resume
• Cover letter describing your skills and interest in the position
• Portfolio link, such as a personal site, Behance page, or PDF, with at least three projects. Please identify your specific role in any collaborative work.
• Optional motion graphics or video work
• Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. Portfolio review is the most heavily weighted part of the selection process.

Benefits

Cato offers the following benefits:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Employer contribution to a Health Savings Account (HSA)
• Generous vacation and sick days
• Paid parental leave
• Employer-provided life and disability insurance
• 401(k) employer match
• Transit/ Parking benefits
• Pet discount plan

Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. This position does not offer visa sponsorship.