most web designers/developers are either a) self employed or b) freelancers. thus pay varies from month to month. one month you might a few grand on a big corporate job and only a few hundred from small projects the next month. actual full time gigs vary heavily in pay as well.
one my friends worked for a small web design company in alberquerque new mexico and didn't even make 10 bucks an hour. at the same time their are people making 60k plus a year in the field as well. just jump on monster.com and see for yourself.
What are the education requirements for your job?
their are very few educational programs out their that i deem worth while. many in the field have backgrounds in other fields in the IT industry, but their are also many that come from entirely unrelated fields.
i am all for school, but unless you choose one of a select few programs, it's a waste of time. your best bet would be to major in a related, more established fields.
for the most part it has been my experience that clients don't set educational requirements, but rather select their designers based on a mixture of interviews, job experience and portfolios.
my resume is a mess, but my portfolio kicks ass and i guess i am fairly likable guy. the last job interview i went to i arrived almost 2 hours late, because i got lost in an unknown (to me) city and still, at the end of the day, out of all the people that were interviewed that day, i was the only one to walk away with a job. my interview lasted 1.5 hrs vs. the 15-20 minutes of other applications and my new employer was very impressed with my portfolio.
my portfolio is on a cd and an application of its own. i can only recommend, if you are applying for a job, take the time to make your portfolio the best it can possibly be. it is well worth the time and effort.
What are the advancement possibilities of your position?
i am presently a freelancer and soon to be self-employed. so, the sky is the limit. i also have a day job.
What are the work conditions and location?
i work from home.
What type of people interaction is there?
i have direct contact with all my clients as well as a variety of other people, from colleagues to suppliers and the occasional web host.
at my first gig as a web designer, my interaction was limited to my colleagues within the department. i never had direct contact with any clients.
Do you regularly use and electronic tools like: pagers, cell phones, etc.?
not professionally, but i do have a cell phone, unfortunately.
Are there any other comments you have about this profession?
this is a field that you have to have a pation for. especially when it comes to the design element. this fields is compilation of a variety of fields and to truly be successful, you must have a least a basic understanding of each area.
i know some of my answers are very open ended, but i tried to be honest.
i am a web developer with 8 years of job experience.
