For many web design professionals, there was no option but to be self taught. Years ago, the academic qualifications simply didn’t exist. Sure, you could study design, but you’d be left to learn the technology by yourself. You could take an I.T. course, but you’d be lacking design skills.
Is it necessary to pay for four years of education in order to make a living as a designer? While some may argue yes, ultimately, employers and clients are more concerned with your talent and passion than a formal education. For example, online colleges resource eCollegeFinder recently published an article on the issue of talent vs. training in design, in which a hiring creative director commented, “A portfolio of great work from a potential employee speaks louder than any design degree can.”
Is it necessary to pay for four years of education in order to make a living as a designer? While some may argue yes, ultimately, employers and clients are more concerned with your talent and passion than a formal education. For example, online colleges resource eCollegeFinder recently published an article on the issue of talent vs. training in design, in which a hiring creative director commented, “A portfolio of great work from a potential employee speaks louder than any design degree can.”
Studying design might not be the hardest thing a person can do on Earth. Studying design is actually quite easy – it’s very practice-oriented, every piece of theory is applied and there is no wrong answer. If you have good reasons for everything you do, there is no way somebody will be able to tell you that you are wrong. Hey, it might actually be one of the funniest degrees possible.
However, getting the most out of your education is something not many are good at, and especially in our business where everybody thinks they know something, finishing high and then getting a good job is something only a handful of people from each class manage to do throughout their life. So you might ask yourself how do others manage to get that dream job of theirs when they have the same education as you – the same degree that hasn’t landed you anything more than poorly paid jobs and difficult clients to handle.
Have you thought about expanding your knowledge by taking some courses? There are several colleges and other sites that offer free online courses, certificate programs, some degree programs, and education resources for teachers and professors.
