Specialised Design Services Workers

How to become a Footwear Designer

Official Chinese title (2022 occupational classification): 鞋类设计师

Designs shoes and the processes for making them.

Main tasks

Researching footwear fashion elements and market trends
Designing the shape and structure of lasts, uppers and soles based on foot shape and movement, design principles and the properties of shoe materials
Designing on computer and making handmade patterns
Setting the manufacturing processes for footwear
Controlling costs at the design stage
Managing production and processes for footwear
Helping set the company's product technical standards and quality inspection rules
Choosing, inspecting and accepting raw and supporting materials for footwear

Ways in

University: Creative Arts & Design degrees, Offered by 87 universities in China Related undergraduate subject classes in the Ministry of Education catalogue (2025): Design (1305); Drama, Film and Television (1303); Fine Arts (1304); majors such as Visual Communication Design, Film and Television Cinematography and Production, Fashion and Apparel Design, Product Design, Painting, Fine Arts. Matched to the occupation by Peernovo.
Vocational majors: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Ethnic Fine Arts (550302). Vocational major 550302 Ethnic Fine Arts (民族美术), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Digital Creative Modelling.; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Footwear Design and Technology (480104). Vocational major 480104 Footwear Design and Technology (鞋类设计与工艺), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Leather Goods Making and Craft (480108). Vocational major 480108 Leather Goods Making and Craft (皮具制作与工艺), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Footwear Design and Making.; Secondary vocational school (中职) major: Computer Graphic Design (710210). Vocational major 710210 Computer Graphic Design (计算机平面设计), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Interface Design; Digital Image Processing.; Vocational bachelor (职业本科) major: Fine Arts (350107). Vocational major 350107 Fine Arts (美术), 4 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Digital Creative Modelling.

Pay · AI and this job

Median pay in China: CN¥67,400 a year (2025).
Middle half: CN¥49,200 to CN¥96,500. One in ten earn less than CN¥38,000 and one in ten more than CN¥140,900.
This is the figure for the mid group Technical Support Services Workers, not for this job alone.
National figure: wage prices of enterprise employees from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) enterprise pay survey. The public sector and the self-employed are not covered.
Guangzhou only: median CN¥82,191 a year (2025), middle half CN¥62,019 to CN¥124,843.
This is the figure for the minor group Specialised Design Services Workers, not for this job alone.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

The census group Technical Support Services Workers holds 0.75% of everyone employed in China; 36.7% of its workers are women (2020 Census).
64.4% are under 35, 33.1% are 35 to 54 and 2.5% are 55 or older. The middle age band is 30 to 34.
Census figures for the whole mid group (2020 long-form sample), not for this job alone.

Questions people ask

How do I become a Footwear Designer?

Ways in include: Creative Arts & Design degrees; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Ethnic Fine Arts (550302); Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Footwear Design and Technology (480104).

How much does a Footwear Designer earn in China?

Across China, the median pay of enterprise employees is CN¥67,400 a year (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS), 2025). The public sector and the self-employed are not covered. It is the figure for the mid group Technical Support Services Workers. In Guangzhou alone it is CN¥82,191 a year (2025).

Will AI change the work of a Footwear Designer?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS): 2025 enterprise pay survey information: wage prices of enterprise employees by occupation mid group, and digital occupations (P10 to P90 annual CNY) (2025 (published 2026-07-08)), retrieved 5 October 2026
Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau: Guangzhou 2025 labour market wage prices (P10 to P90 annual CNY by occupation) (2025 (enterprise pay survey)), retrieved 4 October 2026
National Bureau of Statistics of China: China Population Census Yearbook 2020, long-form tables 4-6 and 4-7 (employed by occupation mid group, sex, age) (2020 Census long form (10% sample)), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

Sources: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition, public consultation draft), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Bureau of Statistics; Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, 2025 enterprise pay survey information; Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, 2025 labour market wage prices; National Bureau of Statistics of China (www.stats.gov.cn), 2020 Population Census yearbook; Ministry of Education, vocational education major profiles (2022 revision) and undergraduate major catalogue (2025); Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, national vocational qualifications catalogue (2021); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Figures processed by Peernovo. English text, translations and the matching of occupations to ISCO-08, majors, degree fields and qualifications by Peernovo.

Descriptions and tasks are Peernovo's own words, written from the facts in the Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition). Job titles and work types are the classification's own.

Updated 5 October 2026