The Web Designer career guide from BrainStation is designed to assist you in taking the first steps toward a prosperous Web Design profession. Continue reading for an overview of Web Designer job pathways and how to make the crossover from related works such as web development and UX design to web design.

Yes, Web Design is a lucrative profession. Employers are currently in high demand for Web Designers, and the area is predicted to grow by 27 percent by 2024. As a result of this demand, Web Designer salaries will remain high in the future.

What Are the Different Web Design Career Paths?

Web design is a dynamic industry, and once you’ve mastered it, you can take your career in various areas.

You could certainly start as a Web Designer and work your way up to a Senior Web Designer, who earns an average of $80,000 per year with bonuses. Alternatively, you may learn to code (if you don’t already know how) and work as a Web Developer. Senior Web Developers earn an average of $88,000 per year.

Another lucrative alternative is to dive deeper into creating user-centric experiences by mastering UX skills and pursuing a position as a UX/UI Designer. The average Senior UX Designer earns more than $100,000 per year, including bonuses of more than $30,000.

How Do You Make the Transition From Web Design to User Experience Design?

Transitioning from web design to UX design might be simple in some cases, especially if you’ve done any user research in your previous work. Don’t worry if you’ve never done user research before in your Web design career. Once you’ve spent time studying UX and practicing certain UX skills within your web design work, you’ll be able to leap.

Here are some pointers on how to make the transition:

Take a look at your transferable skills.

Leveraging your transferable abilities is the key to a successful career shift. What’s the good news? Much of what you learned as a web designer will transfer to your work as a user experience designer, which is the most significant advantage of making this change.

Speak with UX Designers who are currently working.

You almost likely work with a UX Designer if you work in a software company. Have you ever sat down with them and grilled them on how they got to where they are now? If you don’t have any UX Designers in your professional network, consider contacting them using LinkedIn.

Educate yourself.

There are numerous choices for learning UX design, ranging from online tutorials to courses and credential programs. UX design boot camps are popping up all over the country, offering you all the technical and theoretical knowledge you want in just a few months. Although you don’t have to have a formal degree to learn the needed abilities, it may impress potential employers. For example, 95% of BrainStation’s UX design graduates find work within six months of graduation – and your web design skills would make you much more enticing to companies.

Improve your prototyping abilities.

You may have some prototyping abilities (for example, generating native prototypes). Still, prototyping in UX design differs from prototyping in web development in that you’re no longer focused on creating a final product but rather on iterative prototyping.

Begin with a pen and piece of paper. Sketching is an important aspect of the user experience design process, and it will also assist you in communicating your thoughts.

Work on your design talents.

It’s time to get your hands dirty on a real project now that you’ve learned UX design’s core theories and techniques. After learning the core theories and practices, you’ll need to obtain some practical experience. If you’re already employed as a Web Designer, you may have opportunities to participate in the UX side of a project at your existing workplace. That’s an excellent method of learning.

If that isn’t the case, work on your projects for practice or look for a freelancing job.

Create a portfolio of your UX design work.

Employers mostly examine two factors when recruiting UX Designers: your portfolio and work experience. Getting a job in UX design requires a polished portfolio. Each element in your portfolio should have contexts, such as project goals, target audience, and time estimate. Your case studies should demonstrate how you approach difficulties. Tell stories about the projects you’re working on.

Make connections with UX designers.

In UX design, as in many businesses, networking is critical. Look for UX design networking events and meetups in your area. If you decide to seek a formal degree, keep in touch with your classmates and professors and let them know you’re looking for work. A job will almost certainly follow after you begin building a professional network of UX design contacts.