As for the options available in my country I'm considering BCS and http://www.idm.lk/component/content/article/86. (if you can, please take time to consider the modules mentioned in link). Both courses are worth I know, but which would be the best to specialize my career in web designing or you have some better thoughts? I really need some suggestions. thanks!

Edited March 16, 201412 yr by ollie99

Take a look at TeamTreehouse website, Not sure what country you are from to determine costs but for Europe and USA at least something like Team Treehouse would be far cheaper than following a university or college course and they teach more up to date material. Certainly worth a check out anyway.

It really depends on what kind of learner you are, what time commitments you have, what your budget is, your age, all kinds of things.

 

Some people find that the academic route is best for them, as it provides a highly structured curriculum with regular testing and access to tutors who will be able to work with you on a one-to-one level, as well as the opportunity to network and make friends etc. However, it is very expensive in the UK now and you will find that much of the teaching material is years out of date compared to what it being used in the industry.

 

Alternatively, online resources like Treehouse and Codeschool offer very targeted and up to date courses that you can get through in your own time, while keeping a roof over your head by doing other kinds of work. The downside is that they do not offer anything like the same deep background in the fundamentals of computing and software development that will enable you to study more complicated subjects and work in different sectors of the IT industry.

 

If 'web designing' is your main career goal then much of what is taught on the BSc Business IT course you reference would not be immediately relevent to you and you might find it frustrating. On the other hand, web development is getting more complex all the time and, unless you want to specialise in the graphic/design end of things, you will need to have a good grasp of how databases, servers, and networks work to get into the more techical aspects of it.

 

The most important thing is to figure out what you want to acheive and what kind of education you are best suited to. Also, if you haven't already, start looking at job adverts for positions that might interest you - what qualifications and experience are they looking for?

 

I'm fortunate enough to have done full-time and part-time academic courses and been on a graduate IT training scheme, and had a few years working as a software engineer before getting involved in web development. I'm still studying constantly and things like Treehouse work very well for me as I don't have the time to commit to any more academic stuff.

 

Good luck with making your decision - I'm sure that with hard work and perseverence you will achieve your goals whatever route you take.

Thanks! Would you please tell me what you think about BCS (British Computer Society)? (below are the details of modules and duration for all three levels < 2 years).

 

Level 1 - Certificate in IT:

• Information Systems
• Software Development
• Computer & Network Technology

Level 2 - Diploma in IT:

Core Module

• Professional Issues in Information Systems Practice

Optional Modules (Minimum of 3 to select)

• Computer Networks
• Database Systems
• IT Project Management
• Object Oriented Programming
• Systems Analysis & Design

• Principles of Internet Technologies (April only)
• IT Service Management (April only)
• Software Engineering 1 (April only)
• Principles of User Interface Design (April only)

Level 3 - Professional Graduate Diploma in IT

Optional Modules (minimum of 4 to select)

• Advanced Database Management Systems
• Management Information Systems
• Software Engineering 2
• Computer Services Management
• Distributed and Parallel Systems ( April only)
• Knowledge Based Systems (April only)

 

The BCS are an organisation that represents and offers services to IT professionals. They also moderate and consult on a number of university computing courses. They were pretty well thought of when I worked in the business IT world 10 years ago.

 

What you have posted is a pretty standard syllabus for a degree level computing course. It looks pretty similar to what I was studying in 1998, although I'm sure the course material will be more up to date.

 

As I said above - much of that material is not directly relevent to front-end web design. If your plan is to study full time in a UK University there are a number that now offer courses specifically based around web development, for example:

 

http://www.northumbria.ac.uk/?view=CourseDetail&code=UUSWDD1

http://www.uclan.ac.uk/courses/bsc_web_design_development.php

 

There are many others. I don't know anybody who has done one though.

 

You'll need to give us some more information about yourself and your goals if you want more advice.

 

Dorian

thanks a lot Dorian. I really appreciate for taking your time on this!

 

Currently I'm an employee of SEO company in Sri lanka and I want to expertise my knowledge and skills in web designing. My goal is to be a web master. I do not have any degrees or diplomas yet, so I'm looking forward to do recognized course that can provide me with the required knowledge on web industry. Here in my country, options available for web designing is very limited. Almost every direct web designing courses are 6 month programs which I already have done one.

 

No, I do not plan to study in UK or abroad. Only local. Since there are no direct local courses in web designing (recognized), now I'm in a position of selecting the best suitable course for my requirements. That is why I'm considering BCS.

 

I would like to mention few other options I have. (since there are many programs I mentioned link to particular page. In a page there can be few IT degree programs. please consider if you have the time. )

 

1. http://www.sliit.lk/prospective-students/ - carrer path : http://www.sliit.lk/undergraduate-programmes/

 

2. http://www.nsbm.lk/target_cs.php?eid=undergraduate - here they do not conduct BSc (Hons) in Web Design and Technology program.

 

3. http://bit.cmb.ac.lk/bit_syllabus_2013-14

 

4. Again the BCS.

Edited March 20, 201412 yr by ollie99

Thanks for the additional information.

 

All of the links you supply are to what I would consider to be 'traditional' computing courses. If your eventual goal is to be involved in back-end, heavy duty server side coding then this kind of stuff is essential. Major tech employers like Google, Facebook, Microsoft etc. always look for people with these kind of qualifications.

 

If your main interest is in front-end web design/development then these courses are not going to meet your expectations. This is a very common issue that comes up on forums and podcasts all the time. The reality is that there are no serious recognised qualifications in front-end web development - as a subject it is too new and too fast moving for the academic world to catch up with. I did this course a few years ago:

 

http://www.open.ac.uk/global/webcertificate/webdev.shtml

 

It is no longer being offered, partly because people kept complaining that all the course material was so out of date (the server side programming module used Cold Fusion, for example).

 

If these university qualifications are highly respected where you are, and may open doors for your career, then that might make it worthwhile. However, my understanding is that in the web design business people are more interested in what you can do, rather that what your qualifications are.

 

I would recommend you take out a free trial subscription at https://teamtreehouse.com/ before making any decisions - see if what they are offering is useful to you.

 

Also, make a point of listening to this podcast: http://shoptalkshow.com/ as they talk about this subject all the time.

 

Good luck! Let us know how you get on.

 

Dorian

I am currently taking a BA(Hons) degree in web design, it runs alongside graphic design with coding, responsive and dynamic web as as part of the course.

 

If you simply want to design and don't really need to know the coding parts you could take a graphic design degree.. Might be another option if you cannot find exactly what you want