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Internet/Web Professional

Do you want to become a Internet/Web Professional? Here is some information to help point you in the right direction:

Job Description - Print Page

An internet/web professional may perform one or all of the following roles:

• a web designer, responsible for the design, layout and coding of web pages
• an information architect, who plans how the content will be managed and displayed
• a webmaster or web developer, dealing with the more sophisticated websites that handle online enquiries, search engine optimisation and web hosting
• an account/project manager, co-ordinating all these aspects over different projects.

As employees, internet/web professionals might work 37 to 40 hours a week, Monday to Friday, and possibly some evenings and weekends. Self-employed professionals work the hours necessary to meet their workload. The work is office-based.

Earnings range from around £17,500 to £40,000 or significantly more. Income for self-employed professionals or contractors may be higher, according to their ability and reputation.

Internet/web professionals should:

• be creative and imaginative
• have good written and verbal skills
• enjoy working with computers
• have a good knowledge of how the internet works
• enjoy solving problems
• be able to meet deadlines
• be able to work in a team.

This is still a new and rapidly developing area of work, with growing opportunities in fields such as 'e-commerce' (eg online shopping). Typical employers include specialist and internet service producers, publishers, graphic design companies, private companies with in-house websites and public sector organisations.

Most internet/web professionals have a degree, HND or HNC. A degree requires at least two A levels/three H grades and five GCSEs/S grades (A-C/1-3). An artistic background with a relevant qualification in IT can be very useful. It is important to build up a strong portfolio of experience in designing web pages and this may compensate for lack of formal qualifications. There is no upper age limit for starting in this work.

The majority of training is done on the job, with short courses (in-house or external) to cover technical training on specialist new systems and new code.

In large companies and organisations there may be opportunities for promotion to project manager level. Many internet/web professionals work on a freelance or contract basis.

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