Web design jobs/careers.

[watts]

Hi, I just wanted to see if anybody could answer a few questions I had. First of all, I've just recently started playing around with html and very basic coding and I am interested in starting to do web design professionally. What are some good ways to get started? Would I need to have some kind of certificate on my resume, or could I simply explain that I taught myself? If I learned HTML, XHTML, CSS, PHP, would that be enough to begin doing web design professionally? What are some good ways to get entry-level professional experience? Sorry I have so many questions, but I'm pretty clueless, as you can probably tell. Thanks in advance.

 

[LeetPCUser]

I would start with word of mouth. Start by designing a website for a friend, get him/her to refer people. Eventually you can get big projects just by having a great looking portfolio. Although classes wouldn't hurt, they are not required imho.

 

[Jonny]

First things first being a professional webdesigner is more than just having the software and having some tricks up your sleeve. Being a professional webdesigner means that you adhere to standards of the profession, show great skill in it and make a career out of it. If you only just got started then I think its probably unfair to say your already professional at it.
What im trying to get across by this is not to stop, just to slow down. Take your time to learn and then and only then you can call yourself a true professional.

Teaching yourself is one way, and with a portfolio of work put together your clients probably won't mind. Go into an office building of a big multimedia firm on the other hand saying you taught yourself and only a few websites under your belt might raise a few eyebrows and get yourself a few laughs.
I guess it depends how serious you want to be about it. It is always good to have a education background in ICT, Computing, Art, Media etc. before going into webdesign as these subjects will help.

Short courses are also an option, many universities and colleges will run night classes on webdesign, development and how to become a webmaster. They will always look great on your C.V.

The reason most people teach themselves instead of going through courses is because it's easier for them and because a career in web design doesn't really require any background knowledge, self teaching can be enough.

Having had a background in ICT, Computing, Media, Art and English and completed several short courses I would say it is easier to get a job then if I didn't have these skills, but would have I have still found jobs? Probably. Might they pay as high? Possibly but that's not for me to say.

Onto your second question, learning XHTML, HTML, CSS and PHP is not sufficient enough if you want to be taken seriously. Coding is only half of the web development process. If you don't know how to design your shooting yourself in the foot, "your pissing in the wind".
How a website runs, to a lot of companies and people, isn't important. Most people just care about how it looks and if it loads nice and fast, which is more the graphics side than coding.
I don't think anyone would take you on to make a website for them if all you can do is code, the coding im sure will be excellent but the design could well be severely below standards.

Entry level professional experience you ask? Work Placements. Work placements are by far the best way to get experience in this industry, but they will require some background in the placement you apply for. It will be unpaid, and require you to do free work for them, but it looks great on a CV.
Before I got into this career part-time I completeted work placements in a range of areas for a month (4 weeks, 4 different companies). A law practice, general reception work, a design firm and a software engineering firm.

Putting work placements on your resume show you have taken the time to see if you fit in with this profession and show you have general skills as well as possibly specific. Sometimes you will even be lucky enough to get paid for the work you do, or they may offer you a contract at the end of it if they are impressed. They will at least provide you a reference will be very useful later on.

Any more questions? Feel free to ask.

Regards,
Jonny.

 

[TeviH]

The best way to get a job is to show your work. You will need a portfolio and beyond that, nothing else is required. If you have good work, you'll get a good job.

If you really want to go pro at this and are really serious, I would recommend learning all the stuff you already listed - html, xhtml, css, php, js, etc. - as well as web graphics. Coding is great, and very necessary, but to be a pro designer, you need to know how to design.

Some tips:

1. learn to code in notepad - thats the free basic text editor in windows. If you can show the source code to a prospective employer and say you did it all by hand in notepad, they will be impressed. Any employer can tell (or should be able to, anyway) if your code was output by frontpage or dreamweaver. This will also really help your skills in code, as well as lower your overhead before starting out - you won't need to buy dreamweaver.

2. learn graphic design/ web graphics - understanding color, page layout, how to make a logo and other custom graphic work is really necessary if you want to be a good designer. Get photoshop, and also illustrator if you can.

3. learn design concepts for web - information architecture, usability, gif vs. jpg vs. png, "heavy" sites, flash - when to use it, streaming media, etc. - get into the nuts and bolts

Then you'll be ready to take on a few projects and/or make up a few projects to create your portfolio. Then you get a job.

It will take time, but if you want a career, keep in mind people go to school for years to do this. Doing it on your own can cut that time down to a year, and if you do it right, you'll be way ahead of the game.

Good luck!

 

[watts]

Thanks for all your replies, guys. Just want to reply to some of what you've written. I have been doing all of the coding in notepad, I suspected that it is probably good to know how to code inside and out, although I will probably learn to use Dreamweaver and/or Frontpage just for the hell of it, and because it seems so commonly used.

Although I have largely taught myself the basics, I do intend to take some kind of courses on web design just to make sure I know it cold and to be able to put in on my resume.

Another Question:
It seems like you guys are urging a strong knowledge of design/art concepts. Would these basic principles of color coordination, logos, ect. be commonly covered in a standard web design course, or would you recommend additional schooling on this? Again, I thank you all for your help.

 

[Dan]

removed

 

[hostingdiva]

watts:

Are you looking to get a job or start your own business? What a company would look at in terms of hiring you as an employee is different than what a person would look at when hiring you to build their website.

A company is going to want someone college educated and with years of experience. The market it is quite saturated with "professional web designers."

Your best best, imop, would be to start your own business. I have customers who use my system - http://pagebuzz.com - to design websites for small businesses. They're e-commerce ready so people can start selling right away. The hosting is only $9.99 per month so that's no a huge expense. And small businesses are not looking for something like web design firms. They generally need something simple that will provide them with an online presence. If you have questions about this, you're welcome to pm me.

But again, what you do depends on what your ultimate goal is - job or self employment. It also depends on who you want your audience to be - small businesses or larger businesses? People who need custom programming? Will you be providing e-commerce? Will you be providing website maintenance or giving them a way to maintain the website themselves? So many other things....

 

[arsenicnet]

A few more thoughts

In addition to knowing code and design, I've found it really helps to have a good understand of marketing and advertising, and the importance a good website can have for a business.

You've got to be able to make the site fit within their marketing campaigns and style, as well as make sure it appeals to and reaches the demographic the company is aiming for.

I agree with the thought above about work placements or internships. That will allow you to work on a few projects and be part of a team. Rarely, if ever, is a designer or developer left to their own devices on a project, they're part of a team. As part of a team, you get to interact with all the phases of a project, sales, inception, design, development, assessment, etc.

 

[tmax]

The only thing I can add (they all said good stuff).
It's just like any other things in life.
If you like to fight, you will eventually become a good fighter.
If you like to play guitar all day, you will be good without taking any lessons.

If you really love web design, you should have some cool websites to show.

It's all about motivation, competition, and luck. Just like any other things in life.

People with no education can find good jobs if they are good enough.
But the fact is that a lot of companies would only hire college grads.
I know a lot of you would say "I would only look for talents. screw bureaucracy"
But, when you have two identical resumes to chose from... and one has a degree from UCLA and the other from Pine Tree High School...

You just want to pick the best person to work for you. That's all.