Your Guide to a Career in Web Development

Web development is an exciting, relatively new field that has arisen in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. It continues to be one of the more popular and profitable career paths a person can choose from. Here are some facts about web development and why you should think about pursuing a career in this field.

Table of Contents:

laptop on a table with someone working on web development

What Is Web Development?

In order to become a web developer, first, you must have a clear understanding of what web development is. Web development is the development of websites. These websites go on the internet and/or an intranet. A website can be as simple as a static, no-frills web page with plain text. It can also be as complex as a business website, a social media site or some type of application.

There are a variety of tasks that are associated with web development. These tasks include web design, web content development, network security configuration, web server configuration, client-side/server-side scripting, e-commerce development, web engineering, and client liaison.
person and a cat looking at a computer researching web development education

Do I Need A Web Developer Education?

Education requirements vary by employer. There are many employers who only require a high school diploma and knowledge of the subject, though there are some employers that require certain levels of college degrees. It is more common for employers to require people on the back-end of web development to have a bachelor’s degree in subjects like computer science.
web developers without a degree working at a computer

How To Become A Web Developer Without a Degree?

While some companies may require a Computer Science degree or equivalent, a new form of coding education has become an easier and viable option. Coding Bootcamps offer students the ability to learn all the skills necessary to become a web developer in a shorter amount of time. Here at LEARN academy, we also provide our students with a guaranteed internship program, and career coaching to help students with job placement after graduation.
a web developer at a computer holding a sticky note that says code on it

What Does a Web Developer Do?

The day of a web developer consists of meeting up with coworkers to discuss projects, working on coding by oneself and working with coworkers. According to Emily Stevens, a woman who wrote an article about what the typical day in the life a web developer is like, 25% of her time is spent on general communication and meetings with her coworkers, 50% of her time is spent working on projects and 25% of her time spent on fixing bugs and requests.

Web developers work in a number of different work environments. According to collgegrad.com, 16% are self-employed; 4% work for advertising, public relations and related services; 5% work for management, scientific and technical design services; 17% work for computer systems design and related services; and 5% work for publishing industries (except for internet).
a web developer doing code at their desk

What It’s Like To Be a Web Developer?

People who pursue web development have to be able to sit down, look at a computer screen and think critically about the code that they see in front of them. They must write code, test that code and fix any errors that pop up. Fixing errors requires a certain level of focus and patience because the answer to a problem may not be that obvious.

Many times, web development also involves making notes about your coding and writing a report about what the coding will entail. This is important because months later, you may not remember every single detail about the coding, or what you even coded. If you ever have to pass your work onto someone else, they need to know as much as possible about the work that you have done.
web developer working on skills at his computer

What Web Developer Skills Should You Know?

Web developers need to know HTML, CSS, JavaScript, product management, frameworks, Git, Test Driven and Behavior Driven Development, JSON APIs, caching and background tasks. HTML is the code that is used for the framework of a page’s design. CSS is the code that aesthetically spruces up that framework. JavaScript makes it more interactive. Product management has to do with making great products, having good time management and coding well. Different programming languages have certain frameworks that have been invented to get more work done in less time. It is wise to learn these frameworks and to keep using them. Git is great to go to if you want to collaborate, keep records and get involved in “social coding.”
a web developer coding at his computer

Why Should You Become A Web Developer?

It is a good idea to be a web developer because experts project that there will be an increase in demand for people in this field. It is projected that from 2018 to 2028, there will be a 13% increase in demand for web developers. This makes sense because the internet has exploded in use and continues to grow. Reliance on the internet and various types of applications and pieces of software are also growing. The expansion of the population will also lead to more demand for web developers.

Web development is the type of industry that is present in a number of different places, which gives you the opportunity to live in a number of different locales. Some of the biggest tech cities include Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, San Diego, Minneapolis, St. Louis, Tampa, San Francisco, Miami, and many others. In fact, this is the type of industry that tends to be situated in urban areas.

In conclusion, these are the things that you have to know about being a web developer. As a web developer, you have to know about a number of different types of coding for web design and programming. Many times you don’t really need formal education, but sometimes you do. Many times, people gain employment based on showing skills. You have to be able to sit still and focus on coding and figuring out errors. Web development is a great field to get into because of the fact that it is constantly growing and it is projected to grow for the next 10 years. The industry exists in many places, though it largely exists in urban areas.