About Me

Designer. Strategist. Systems thinker.

Paulina Aler

Hello, I'm Paulina

A graphic designer who loves layout and systems thinking. I want to design parts of a whole: materials that stand alone and still communicate with each other.

That's what pulls me toward brand systems, editorial design, and print. There's a satisfaction in getting the logic right; when every piece knows its place and the whole thing holds together. From there I work between instinct and function, exploring broadly and then pulling back to interrogate: is this actually doing what it needs to do?

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How I Work

Every project starts with a question, not a sketch. I spend time understanding the problem—who it's for, what it needs to do, what already exists—before I open a single program. That thinking shapes everything that comes after.

From there I move between instinct and logic. I'll explore directions quickly and broadly, then pull back and interrogate them: does this actually communicate something? Is it doing the work it's supposed to do? That push and pull between feeling and function is where my best work tends to happen.

Work with me and you get a designer who can explain every decision—and change it if the reasoning calls for it.

Experience

August 2024 - May 2026

Graphic Designer

West Virginia Water Research Institute: Brownfields Division

As the in-house designer for two federally-affiliated environmental programs, I direct the full visual identity of both the WV Brownfields Assistance Center at WVU and Mid-Atlantic TAB—from brand systems to production. That means managing two distinct identities simultaneously: different audiences, different tones, different deliverables, all under the same roof.


The work spans conference suites, educational publications, outreach templates, and event collateral produced for regional and national audiences—all in compliance with EPA branding guidelines. I've built both programs' visual systems from the ground up: typography, color, layout grids, and reusable templates that hold up across rotating staff and shifting deadlines. Every deliverable moves from stakeholder brief to print-ready file taking art direction and brand consistency into account.

August 2025 - December 2025

Bold Rock Campus Brand Ambassador

Artisanal Brewing Ventures

Brand work isn't just visual—it's experiential. At Bold Rock, I was the brand on campus: the person in the room making sure the product felt right, the event ran smoothly, and the audience left with a genuine impression.


Each week I planned and executed on-premise activations for 21+ audiences at key accounts, coordinating across marketing, sales, and distributor contacts to make every event feel seamless. I managed venue relationships directly—working with bar managers to secure placement, build rapport, and keep accounts engaged long-term. The through-line was consistency: showing up the same way every time so the brand could build real equity with a growing audience.

August 2024 - May 2025

Pentel Student Brand Ambassador

Youth Marketing Connection

Pentel put a product in my hands and asked me to make students care about it. I did that through presence—6+ student engagement programs, direct outreach to 300+ students, and social content that reached 1,000+ students across the WVU community.


The work was peer-to-peer marketing. Students don't respond to brand messaging from brands—they respond to people they trust. My job was to be that person: someone who actually used the tools, could speak to them honestly, and created moments where the product could prove itself.

October 2023 - May 2024

Layout Designer

The Daily Athenaeum

Editorial design is design under constraint: someone else's words, someone else's photos, a fixed grid, and a deadline that doesn't move. At the Daily Athenaeum, I produced 10+ layouts per week for the university's independent student newspaper—covers, spreads, and recurring sections—while coordinating with editors and photographers every cycle.


Beyond the layouts themselves, I built and maintained the section templates the whole team worked from. Getting the system right meant faster turnaround for everyone and a more consistent paper, week over week.

October 2023 - May 2024

Max Campus Brand Manager

Wasserman Next Gen

Managing brand presence for a streaming platform on a college campus means competing for attention in one of the noisiest environments imaginable. At Max, I planned and executed 2 large-scale activations with 200+ students in attendance, ran ongoing weekly events to sustain engagement, and produced 30+ pieces of social content targeted to the WVU audience.


The role was equal parts strategy and execution. I had to think about what would actually get students into a space, what would make them pull out their phones, and what would make the brand feel relevant to their lives—then go build it, often with limited resources and a tight timeline.

Clifton Strengths

How I show up — in a room, on a project, and in the work.

01

Ideation

I find connections others don't see. New angles, unexpected combinations, reframes that make a familiar problem feel solvable again.

02

Analytical

I need to understand why something works before I'll commit to it. Every decision has a reason — and I can tell you what it is.

03

Command

I'm comfortable taking the lead. When a project needs direction or a room needs someone to name the obvious, I'll do it.

04

Communication

I can explain a design decision to a creative director and a client in the same meeting — and make both feel heard.

05

Self-Assurance

I trust my instincts. That confidence doesn't close me off to feedback — it means I can take it without losing my footing.

Education

West Virginia University

Bachelor of Fine Arts: Art and Design–Graphic Design

Minor in Marketing

May 2026

Affiliations

Omega Phi Alpha

Membership Director

January 2022 - May 2026

Skills

  • Adobe InDesign
  • Adobe Illustrator
  • Adobe Photoshop
  • Figma
  • Dreamweaver
  • Premiere
  • HTML
  • CSS/Sass
  • JavaScript
  • PHP
  • WordPress
  • Brand Systems & Identity
  • Print Production & Prepress
  • Typography & Editorial Layout
  • UI/UX Design
  • Inbound Marketing
  • HubSpot CRM
  • Brand Management
  • Content Creation
  • AI-Assisted Design Workflows

Certifications

Inbound Marketing Certified

HubSpot Academy

March 2025 - March 2027

Certified Content Creator

Her Campus Media

May 2024

Abbreviated Social/Behavioral Research Training

CITI Program

Jan 2024 - Jan 2029

Let's work together

I'm available for internships, freelance projects, and full-time opportunities.

Email Me View My Work