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You might be considering a career in web development, but aren’t sure of the best way to turn your aspirations into a reality. It’s a varied professional field that can be accessed through a variety of routes, whether through university degrees, online courses or independent learning.
It can be hard to work out how to become a web developer with so many options available. Postgraduate study is an increasingly popular choice for aspiring web developers, and this article is dedicated to providing all the information you’ll need to get onto the right course, develop essential professional skills and secure a role in the industry.
Read on to get the answers to all your questions, whether you’re wondering what kind of courses are out there, where you could study, the skills you’ll build or the criteria for admission onto a postgraduate course.
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Web development is a fast-growing, dynamic and competitive field that focuses on continuous innovation, agile working and the effective combination of creativity and technical skill. As a result, many graduates from the fields of computing and design are drawn to it.
At its heart, web development is a profession ideally suited to individuals who are creative, enjoy problem solving, and think in a logical manner. This career could see you working on a diverse range of products and tasks, across all kinds of sectors. Nearly every organisation and business today has an online presence, and being able to communicate and market products or services through well-designed webpages and apps is essential to their operations.
With the right skills and experience, you could expect to benefit from a strong web developer salary, as many tech and web companies are high growth organisations and reward the talented professionals who are instrumental to their success.
There are different routes towards securing web developer jobs, but due to the increasingly competitive nature of the industry and its high growth rates, being able to develop strong skills and knowledge and stand out to employers is more important than ever.
Postgraduate study is a great way of achieving this, whether building on previous experience at undergraduate level or studying alongside a professional role with support from your employer. While you don’t necessarily need any formal qualifications to qualify as a web developer, studying at postgraduate level allows you to build a strong and comprehensive technical knowledge base. Not only that, but many courses include independent and group project work, case studies and even professional placements, helping you graduate with excellent professional prospects.
Studying a postgraduate degree in a number of areas, from web development to UX design, informatics, computer science or IT can all be helpful in qualifying as a web developer. Studying specific areas and industry niches, such as certain programming or web development for mobile, can help you further distinguish yourself from other graduates.
Whatever your qualifications, professional experience is often the highest priority for employers, particularly for mid-level and senior roles. As a result, you’ll want to make sure you pursue all the opportunities you can to get real-world experience and build a strong portfolio of work.
There are plenty of different web developer courses out there at postgraduate level, each accepting students to study depending on its own admissions criteria. The entry requirements for each course can vary depending on the level of study it’s at, whether it’s a taught or research course, its subject matter focus, and the university offering it. As a result, it’s always sensible to check individual admissions criteria on our site before applying.
In general, taught master’s degrees ask for a 2:2 or above at undergraduate honours level. This may need to be in a relevant area, such as computing or IT, but not always.
Applicants for research courses are typically asked to have a 2:1 at undergraduate level, and/or a previous master’s degree in a relevant area.
Applicants can often apply with lower or alternate academic qualifications if they have relevant professional experience or qualifications.
Web development is a competitive industry, particularly at the junior and graduate levels. As a result, you’ll want to be mindful of the key technical and personal skills you should be developing from day one of your postgraduate studies.
One of the main benefits of your postgraduate web development qualification will be the opportunity to gain a thorough base of technical knowledge across leading programming languages, web development frameworks, operating systems and common client-side infrastructure.
Gaining experience of designing and delivering your own projects, accounting for key factors such as web security, encryption, user experience (UX) and efficient web architecture will help you prove your professional worth to potential employers.
A number of transferable skills will help you thrive in the web development sector, as well as parallel tech and computing roles. Having a keen eye for detail, a logical mind and an affinity for problem solving are essential to succeeding in – and enjoying – your career. Being able to work under pressure, collaborate effectively with a team of technical and non-technical colleagues, effectively using development methodologies and communicating results and issues are also key skills.
Computing, IT and web development is a broad, growing and highly diverse professional field. As a result, there are many postgraduate courses in computer science and IT across the UK. With loads of universities to choose from for your web development qualification, having a tool like our search tool is essential. You can use it today to easily browse, select and apply to your perfect courses.
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