Web Design Classes That Can Enhance Your Skills
Even the most talented web designer has room for improvement – one should never get so self-assured that he thinks a class or two couldn’t benefits his skills and his career.
You don’t even need to shell out any of your cold, hard cash to take these classes, though you certainly can if you want to. With the proliferation of online video tutorials, free university web classes (see websites such as Coursera and EdX, which are open to international students) and the like, there are plenty of options that won’t bust your budget.
Refresh your career by taking a web design class.
Additionally, think outside the box when picking the classes – you know that “Introduction to Dreamweaver” is a web design course, but other courses, such as typography and communication, can make you a more employable web designer as well.
Typography
Ask a designer – graphic, web, or print – their views on the font Comic Sans, and they’ll likely enliven the conversation with some very strong opinions.
Fonts matter, even in the digital era, as the majority of items viewed on a website are text, not graphics. In taking a class, you’ll learn more about baseline rhythm, readability issues, effects of text sizes, and advanced technologies such as SIFR and Cufon, as well as the tools to make and choose better fonts.
Back to Basics
The “basics” of any industry are constantly changing, particularly when you’re talking about technology. Therefore, it’s always a good idea to go back and refresh your memory, particularly if you’re a self-taught web designer who might have skipped over a lesson or two.
Look into courses such as “Design Principle,” “Color Theory Basics,” “Essential CSS techniques,” and you might find a primer worth your time.
You might learn about some new tools available for web design.
Technical Design
Design might seem like an art form, but it has a fair bit of math and technicality behind it. If you look at a design and it just seems a bit off, it’s probably the mathematics of the design that’s not working.
Look for classes that teach you about technical design, including geometry for design, the Golden Ratio/Divine Proportion, Sine Wave Design, and so on.
New Platforms
The field of web design just keeps growing, and as a designer, you should grow along with it. If you’ve focused on desktop designs, consider branching out into designing applications for mobile devices, such as iOS apps for iPhone and iPads. Online courses at CodeSchool.com can get you started.
Communications
Acquiring design jobs is about more than just your web design skills. Becoming a more effective communicator can help you work better with clients or employers, not only in figuring out their vision for the design, but also solving any problems or simply winning them over in the initial bid.
A communications course can help you improve your written and oral communication skills, as well as write proposals for freelance projects.
Rather than let your career stagnate, refresh it with a few web courses – the revitalization it can bring your career will be worth any money you might invest.
Kelsey Castle is a freelance writer and editor who has dabbled in web and graphic design to determine the best-paying careers. She has taken classes at her local community college in design skills.
