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Light Speed wrote:

Are you looking to improve your UI design skills, site architecture skills, front end or back end programming skills or all of the above?

Yoda wrote:

Do not try.
Do!

Actually I already studied most books on web design and apps and I am a freelancer web designer but feel limited because I dont have a degree, I just need to get a diploma or a degree since a lot of jobs out there want to see that in my resume...

OH and I need to learn Programing and database stuff...

Last edited by jcxp360 (2006-02-11 9:44 pm)

After you're done with Liz's book Zeldman's book would be a good one.

A degree from an online school means exactly smurf.  As someone who hires designers, I can say what matters is experience and portfolio.

Note: this thread locked and redirected here.

Web design is a technical skill, which is why you see online outfits and "ITT Tech" sort of places offering "degrees" in it. I started doing web design commercially before I had a high school diploma, and it didn't slow me down. You're much better off with a degree from a real university in anything from computer science, marketing, graphic design, or something like that.

Don't take this the wrong way, I often come off too harshly.

But when you say that web dev is your passion, do you mean that in the "I just watched Top Gun and I'm gonna join the Navy" sort of way, or more like, "Every time I build a new page, I am fascinating by _____."

Web dev isn't something you just a degree in, it's something you do.  If you've been at it a while, and you want to get better, then consider a course of study.  If, on the other hand, you're enjoying using iWeb and think that it's what you want to do for a living, then advise you stop using iWeb because it's deluding you.

My daily tasks as a web dude vary from writing / debugging javascript, working in Photoshop on a layout, writing / debugging a php application, cursing at .NET, trying to pull off new feats of CSS, and trying to optimize my HTML.  Nota Bene:  There is no WYSIWYG in my routine at all.  No Dreamweaver, no iWeb, no GoLive.  Anyone who is seriously interested in web development will nearly never use a WYSIWYG editor.

So, anyway, before you go dropping a chunk of change on some BS certification, I strongly recommend that you wait a few months before you write any checks.

Last edited by registered_user (2006-02-12 1:53 pm)

Graphic design is simply the process of visual communication.  'web design' is an application of graphic design.  'web design' is also new and transitional.  5 years from now delivery may evolve.  The capabilities constantly change.  They are tools, tools are easy to adapt to.  It would be like going to school to learn how to master a video camera vs. going to school for cinematography.  It  is much more important to learn and understand a discipline vs. a toolset or application.

You aren't going to find a real degree in web design because it is 1) too new, 2) transitional and 3) just an application of a real skill set.  It would be like trying to find a degree in Brochure design.

People with degrees/diplomas in narrow areas make great interns and data entry folks.  It won't help you get work because they aren't taken seriously.  You have a better chance if you have a Masters in Music and a strong portfolio.

CurtisS wrote:

I am with Scott on this one. You would be doing yourself a big favor by studying graphic design because so much of what we do crosses over to other media forms. In reality, laying out a web site is like creating an online brochure in most cases.

I agree that studying graphic design is better but what I don't like is when schools offer a Graphic design degree and only teach basic web design and that's where they will stop, I would then need to take more classes or read more books on web design after I graduate in graphic design.

What do you guys think about the idea of getting 2 diplomas, one for web design and the other for Digital Design, that way I see myself learning more than getting a BFA for graphic design in less than a year.

Thank you..

I'm with Scott, too. If you want to be a photographer, you don't study "Digital Photography" or "35mm Photography". The laws of optics and the principles of composition don't change because you've changed your tools. Would you trust a mechanic who said he was "an expert with SnapOn tools?" When your car breaks, you want someone who knows how to fix cars, not someone who knows about tools. It's the same with design.

I've never heard of anyone offering a diploma in "Digital Design." I think if you showed that to prospective employers, they would have a hard time keeping a straight face.

It should be noted that I'm not a pro, but I think  that those who are would agree with what I wrote above.

That looks OK to me, but like I said, I'm not a pro. You might want to try to find out how their graduates are doing. Asking some ad agencies and print shops etc. around Miami what they think of the school would help you find out if they do a good job.

jcxp360 wrote:

I would then need to take more classes or read more books on web design after I graduate in graphic design.

The long and short of it is that web design is really freaking easy.  Good design is where the skill set comes in. 

Stan's photography analogy is much better than my lame film one.  If you learn photographic principles like light and composition, learning to use a digital camera is easy.

The problem with schools and web design, at this point, is that that it is constantly evolving.  What you will learn at school for web design is techniques that will probably be outdated long before you finish (if not before) and current trends based on current technologies.  Which also will be dated probably before you finish.  What doesn't change with design are it's basic principles.  And as time goes on and technologies improve they apply even more.  When I first started in web design the options were much more limited.

Having said that it is important to make a distinction between design and development.  Depending on your focus, as mentioned before by Stan, if you go the development route, a background in CS is important. 

I went the Art Institute of Seattle.  I loved it.  (of course when I was there, we were just beginning to use computer for print, web was just born then).  What is important to note (assuming they all operate about the same), is that they aren't useful if you know nothing.  If you cannot draw, you won't learn to draw there.  They are trade schools that teach you what you need to get by in the commercial world.  The instructors are industry professionals and very up to date.  But there is no hand holding.  They are competitive and you have to want to get what you need.   I had a strong art background and they refined it for the commercial world.

If you want to do web design, then simply do it.  Do not rely on someone teaching you how.  Refine your skills school.  Creative fields are not like other fields, where you simply learn a skill and apply it.  You have to go above and beyond.

Ralph the Dog wrote:

In my 30 some years as a professional illustrator/cartoonist/animator, I've NEVER been asked for a degree.

That's because you are a Dog Ralph. Hardly anybody thinks Dogs can have degrees so they forget to ask.

Last edited by Light Speed (2006-02-23 3:08 am)