Degree Earned:
Associate Degree of Applied Science in Graphic Design with Emphasis in Web Design
Campuses for this program:
Jackson
Introduction
If you're like most people, you probably have a handful of favorite Web sites that you visit on a regular basis; maybe a news site, a sports site, some shopping pages, and your email account. However, this is only the tip of the iceberg. Cyberspace extends far beyond what you or anyone else could ever visit in a lifetime. There are billions of web pages out there and this number goes up drastically every day. The ironic thing is, each one of them was designed by someone. Web Designers focus on designing attractive and useful web pages, and creating the navigational path that allows users to move around within the site.
Program Overview
The Associate Degree of Applied Science in Web Design program prepares students for successful careers in web design, web management, web development, or web administration in the areas of web applications, web site design, web services, and related areas of distributed computing. Graduates should qualify for entry-level careers as web designers or web developer assistants. The program covers the terminology and use of computers, graphics applications, programming language concepts, as well as, web applications, site development, management and design. Studies provide the opportunity for students to learn current related industry standards.
Career Outlook
Not only will more businesses and organizations need web pages, but they will also need a professional web presence to compete with the saturated market. Making an organization's web site stand out amongst the masses is an industry in and of itself. That's why anyone who is serious about a career in this field studies the basics first. Basic layout concepts, color psychology, search engine optimization, and e-commerce will be as important to your study as the actual design itself.
20 years ago, the vast majority of homes did not have a computer. 15 years ago, you were something special if you had an email account. 5 years ago, people realized how to transfer large packets of information online. What will be the next big leap? You don't have to be a quick study to understand that technology grows exponentially. As a Web designer, you'll have a front row seat to whatever revolution happens next.
Career choices in Web Design include:
Web Designer
- Create web sites
- Use web authoring software or an HTML editor to create the actual pages
- Partner with a programmer to design the overall look and let a webmaster do the actual coding
Web Administrator
- Oversee all of the technical aspects of a web site including log analysis
- Create and maintain web accounts, web security and content management
- Investigate errors, perform backups and ensure user accessibility and site performance
