Hi, I’m Ben!

I’m a freelance graphic and website designer based in New York City. I first became passionate about design back in high school when I obsessed over PowerPoint to mock up websites and design graphics.

Since then, I’ve engaged in a variety of design projects, from developing Vanderbilt University’s student government website to leading the marketing strategy of my sustainable clothing startup. I also worked as a Junior Developer at One of One Design, a design studio serving nonprofits and social enterprises across the country.

Fast forward to today, I continue to work with different types of clients and organizations to address any unmet design needs, with a focus on designing with a mission-driven, human-centered lens. 

My Design Principles

Human-Centered Design.

Design informed by collaboration – with clients and stakeholders – leads to ultimate success.

Iteration & Re-iteration.

No design project is completely linear. Ambiguity and challenges serve as design springboards.

Diverse Thinking.

Over-communicate to generate as many ideas as possible. Different perspectives and viewpoints are key.

More about me

What I study – I graduated from Vanderbilt University in May 2022 as a Peabody Dean’s Achievement Scholar with a Bachelor of Science in Human & Organizational Development and Molecular & Cellular Biology, along with minors in Business and Chemistry. Merging my academic interests in both the social and natural sciences has prepared me to solve a variety of problems within any context.

My professional experiences – To me, exploration is key. Most recently, I was a Generalist Intern at the D. E. Shaw Group, where I will be returning as an Associate in August 2022 as part of the Talent Assessment & Performance Team. I also worked at Merck & Co. in Global Vaccine Operations in 2020. On campus, I’m President of Vanderbilt Students Consulting for Nonprofit Organizations and conduct research in the Advanced Therapeutics Laboratory.

Other interests & passions – Propelling Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) is super important to me, along with environmental sustainability. In my free-time, I enjoy whitewater rafting, recreating family recipes, curating Indie Pop playlists, and exploring a new coffeeshop in town. I also love debating the future of gene-editing and astrobiology.

Design Background

Coursework

Vanderbilt University Peabody College of Education & Human Development
Department of Human & Organizational Development
  • HOD 2100: Understanding Organizations through Human-Centered Design
  • HOD 2500: Systematic Inquiry
  • HOD 3210: Leadership & Change in International Organizations
  • HOD 4950: Organizational Partnership
  • HOD 4951: Systems Thinking & Critical Reflexivity
  • HOD 4952: Mapping Future Development
  • HOD 4953: Analysis & Contribution
The Owen School of Management at Vanderbilt University
Department of Undergraduate Business Studies
  • MGRL 2200: Data Analysis & Presentation
  • BUS 2700: Principles of Marketing 
Vanderbilt University School of Engineering
Department of Engineering Sciences
  • ES 3890: Rapid Prototyping 

Experience

BVW Design Co.
Founder
  • Provide collaborative strategic design services and consultancy to clients from a multitude of industries and areas, from higher education and nonprofits, to health professionals and case competitions.
One of One Design Co.
Junior Developer
  • Led back- and front-end maintenance and design of website for national nonprofit. Collaborated with three blog contributors to ensure timely updates on website’s blog.
muda collection
Co-Founder & Chief Operations Officer (COO)
  • Oversaw development of the branding, marketing, and external communications of early-stage start-up. Managed back- & front-end development of sales channels on Shopify, Instagram & FaceBook.
  • The SyBBURE Searle Undergraduate Research Program
  • SyBBURE Searle Intern 
    • Leveraged systems thinking and human-centered design to ideate, iterate, and implement programming surrounding mental health support.

Let’s connect.

Shoot me an email at benjaminvowong@gmail.com.