Web Design as a career

[Elessar78]

Hi all,

I'm headed to college next year and exploring my options and web design is one of the paths that I want to look into.

I was wondering if anyone could give me advice on what I would need to study/know/learn to get my foot in the door after college in the web design profession.

thanks!

[Oldat29]

HTML and CSS would be the basic steps.

Then on to alot more.

[Markasin3]

A lot of employers these days don't just want to hire a basic web designer but they want to hire a web designer who knows his stuff and possibly knows something that their company is lacking knowledge in.

Every web designer should know css and html. You also should know how to manage and transfer files through file transfer protocol (FTP). But honestly a lot of web firms will really consider you for hire if you also have expertise in one or more of the following:

Content Management Systems such as Wordpress, Joomla, and Drupal
PHP programming and MySQL database management
Flash development and ActionScripting
Search Engine Optimization
Javascript, Jquery, and Ajax
E-Commerce Design and Development
And an outstanding portfolio

True, a lot of the programming expertise can be left to the IT Web Developer, but firms rather hire 1 person who can do it all. However, you can make it as just a designer if you have exceptionally great designs.

[Markasin3]

Also, you might consider saving up money to purchase programs such as dreamweaver, illustrator, and photoshop. But I would wait until you absolutely them for your classes so you can be caught up with the latest versions that won't be incredibly obsolete by the time you graduate.

Illustrator and Photoshop will help you design your compositions.
Dreamweaver helps get your compositions ready for the web.
Adobe sells packages that may also include flash and fireworks. If you can get flash, get it. Flash will make your websites much more interactive and eye catching.

[PrintDriver]

Not to mention, once you have the student ID, the Adobewares are far cheaper.

Parroting what I've seen others write here, Dreamweaver is great only because the code is done in color. You don't let it code for you.

And Markasin is right. Web Designers are less than a dime a dozen these days. You need skills that help you stand out in the field. Note I didn't say 'education'. You need real world skills. Most people who think about going into this field have already dabbled in it. I'm kinda concerned you don't know what you're getting yourself into...

[Elessar78]

Originally Posted by PrintDriver

I'm kinda concerned you don't know what you're getting yourself into...

Well, that's kinda why I'm getting info before I choose a course of study/career path right?

Every web designer should know css and html. You also should know how to manage and transfer files through file transfer protocol (FTP). But honestly a lot of web firms will really consider you for hire if you also have expertise in one or more of the following:

Content Management Systems such as Wordpress, Joomla, and Drupal
PHP programming and MySQL database management
Flash development and ActionScripting
Search Engine Optimization
Javascript, Jquery, and Ajax
E-Commerce Design and Development
And an outstanding portfolio

Which one of these areas would you recommend I learn? All?

[PrintDriver]

Do you have any concept of what a web designer does all day? Is there anyone you could observe in your area?

As for what you should learn, that list may be current. Today. What you will need to do is constantly keep up with the ever-changing technology. You need to be prepared to abandon obsolete methods even though it took you years to master them and willing to put in the time to constantly school yourself on new methods.

[Elessar78]

I don't have anyone I can observe.

I don't know the exact terms so bear with me... as far as I know there are web designers that deal more with how the page looks, the aesthetics and there are those that deal more with coding. From how you all describe it, it sounds like most web designers hover somewhere in between both ends. Some with better design skills than programming skills and vice versa.

I guess I understand that I have to stay current with the software/platforms etc, but I need to learn something, right?

Are any of you guys web designers? What was your knowledge base when you got your first gig?

[Two-Toe Tom]

From the coding end, I'd start with:

html, css, javascript (then maybe jquery, but learn javascript first), php

in that order.

[Elessar78]

So it seems like a lot more coding than dealing with the actual aesthetics? Should I instead focus my studies on Computer Science instead of going a more graphic design route?