Getting a Web Development Job For Dummies

Chapter 13

Exploring Certificate Programs and Advanced Degrees

In This Chapter

Building your own program

Continuing your education

Learning from Stanford’s example

Getting an advanced degree

Web development is constantly changing. Although it’s true that formal community college, college, and university degrees are very valuable, as described in Chapter 12, they’re not entirely necessary, and they’re not always sufficient.

Degrees are not entirely necessary because web developers are in such high demand, and because the work that you do can be “self-evidencing.” That is, public-facing websites that you’ve helped create or modify, your portfolio site, and colleagues’ recommendations can add up to a powerful argument for your value on a web development team, almost regardless of formal education level.

However, as we mentioned previously, we do recommend getting a college degree. It’s very easy for the people who shuffle papers in the hiring area of a company to only put resumes in the “yes” pile if they list a college degree. Even for relatively savvy hiring managers, a person with ...