What Skills D
o Web Designers Need?
Requiring both technical and artistic skills, becoming a web designer can seem like a daunting task. Let’s simplify things and take a look at what it takes for someone to be successful in the field of web design:
What kind of education do I need?
A bachelor’s degree is usually required for many web design jobs. Bachelor’s degrees are offered by many accredited colleges, universitie,s and private design schools across the country. These degrees, usually denominated through fine arts, graphic design or computer science, include course curricula in studio art, design theory, computerized design, commercial graphics production, website design and many more. By completing a bachelor’s degree, web designers signal to potential employers that they have had rigorous training in interdisciplinary web design.
Associate degrees are also widely accepted in the field of web design. Since associate degrees usually take only two to three years to complete, their course curricula are usually geared toward teaching technical skills over artistic skills. With that in mind, many graduates of these programs enter the field as an assistant to a web designer by helping code specific aspects of a website.
What specific skills do I need?
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Be technologically savvy
Knowledge of computer programming is what sets web designers apart from graphic designers. Staying at the forefront of new design programs and coding through both formal and informal means is imperative for a web designer to remain relevant.
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Have artistic sense
It’s very easy to get lost in all of the technical aspects of web design and to forget that having the ability to express ideas artistically is equally important. The National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD) includes a list of about 300 design schools which it accredits through a rigorous list of criteria. If you are worried about your artistic abilities, take a look at any of the schools on the NASAD’s list for a great place to start.
