Perfect Web Design CV

In order to win the ideal web design job, candidates need a stand out CV with knowledge of the top skills and tools, as well as the necessary experience. We have looked into the trends that have emerged over the past few years, with some suggestions for how you can develop your credentials and CV at the same time.

HTML

HTML will normally be considered as a tool of the web developer, but top web design candidates are gaining experience to know what is possible in terms of the functional elements of a project. The cream of web designers need a breadth of knowledge so that they can be adaptable to work with developers, avoid mistakes and deliver a project on time. Research that looked into the most in-demand skills based on web designer jobs for 2014 found that the most sought after skill was HTML, followed by CSS. Code Academyand HTML.net have free classes on both HTML and CSS for beginners.

Responsive Web Design

Today, 63% of people are using their phones to browse the internet, with a mobile device being the preferred choice for browsing 34% of the time. It is therefore important for web designers to think about the usability of websites on multiple devices and screen sizes. Responsive design eliminates the different URL and HTML that is needed when creating a mobile version of a website, and is now also a Google recommended practice.

There are a number of free resources available for those who want to get to grips with responsive design including a ‘Responsive Web Design Fundamantals’ course from Google that features instruction videos, exercises and mini projects. For those of you who want to develop your existing skills, there are also a selection of tutorials and tools available.

User Experience

In 2015, ‘UX and experience design will be key,’ according to design skills predictions by Hyper Island; a creative business school that based their predictions on a survey of industry leaders. The research found that 73% of brands were planning on conducting user experience testing within the next year in order to differentiate themselves from their competitors. To be a top candidate in today’s market, you should therefore equip your CV with these skills to take advantage of the gap in the talent pool.

In addition, it was predicted that formal design education will be increasingly important, with formal qualifications standing out on a designers CV as well as experience in the field. There is a wide selection ofonline courses available to help you master the skills and certifications can be gained from theInternational Usability and UX Qualification Board, or via the Microsoft Virtual Academy that provides a range of courses tailored to Microsoft products.

Prototyping Tools

As websites become more advanced and incorporate more complicated functions, prototyping is becoming a bigger trend. This is because websites are incorporating fully interactive experiences that cannot be described with a static mock-up. Prototyping tools are used by designers to demonstrate what a specific digital experience looks like and to give a demonstration of what the user can do with it. The tools can be used for web and app design; animation, transitions and multiple device support allow the design process to be more integrated with the development of the architecture.

Examples of tools used for prototyping include Origami, created by Facebook, which has been used to design modern interfaces such as Facebook messenger and Instagram. InVision is another useful tool to know and allows static screenshots to be made interactive at a simple level.