When it comes time to choose a career, whether it's your first or a mid-life switch, you will find that there are many options. By taking university or college courses you could become a registered nurse, pursue mechanical engineering in the Yukon, or teach first grade. However, don't forget that there are also some careers that can still be accessed through a side door without a formal education. Web design is one of those careers. You can learn more about it here.

So what does a web designer do? Web designers are responsible for creating the layout and programming web sites for clients. Depending on whether the client they're working for sells accessories, matches up prospective lovers, or simply provides information on government programs, web designers will use different tools, templates, and layouts to make the website user friendly, functional, and easy for search engines to find and catalog.

As a web designer, you will take specifications from clients and design websites that fit the client's needs. Since it is the client who will have ultimate control over whether or not the designs are approved, web designers have to be flexible, willing to work with people on a project, and not too proud to spend weeks or months of their life serving the industry. Web designers also need to be creative, as you will continually be asked to come up with designs that set a company's page apart. Creativity is as important in this job as it is with a position with a clothing apparel company or web design.

Some web designers are employed by other companies, such as larger design firms or a company, who might see the wisdom in keeping a designer around to keep their website fresh and updated. However, many web designers work for themselves, which gives them control over their hours and workspaces but places the burden of finding clients and collecting their commissions on their own shoulders. Many people who have to stay home with young children find they are able to do web design part or even full time.

To become a web designer, you must be proficient in several programming languages, such as HTML, XML, Java, Flash, PHP, CSS, and have a good eye for color, flow, and navigability. These languages can be learned on your own while working for a retail company or in an art or computer college program, but credentials are not always necessary for employment as people tend to hire designers on the strength of their portfolio.