L.A. Web Developers Lead Computer Science Vocations
Accelerated by an increase in the number of consumers who depend on mobile devices to search the Internet, employment prospects for educated web developers are on the upswing. By 2022, more than 28,000 additional website designers will be gainfully employed, projects the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Those that are knowledgeable about multiple programming languages will have the best opportunities.
"The job market in the Los Angeles area, from entertainment and defense industries to small businesses, has a very high demand for web developers," said Dr. Chengyu Sun, an associate professor in the computer science department at California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA). In fact, an analysis of job announcements in L.A. indicates that web development is at the crest of all computer-related positions.
In addition to creating websites for desktop computers, developers are required to construct sites that translate well on handheld computing devices with varied screen sizes, leading to more work. In L.A., developers earn an average annual salary that exceeds $70,000. Top technical artisans bring home more than $93,000 per year, according to current economic data.
What defines a champion developer?
"Web developers must have good critical-thinking skills and computer science fundamentals.They must also have a good feel for user interface and user experience, as those often determine whether a web application will be successful or not."
How is CSULA inspiring career-minded developers?
"We use real-world applications as examples and exercises in our web development classes. When students see that they can create web applications, like Wikipedia, Kickstarter and Stack Overflow in their class projects, they become a lot more interested and motivated."
What is the best way to prepare for a sustainable career?
"I encourage my students to focus on the fundamentals. Web technologies have evolved and advanced at a rapid rate. Good fundamentals allow a developer to adapt quickly to, and master, technologies."
What is your message to determined web designers and developers?
"I advise them to learn JavaScript. Whether they work on the front end or the back-end of a web application, JavaScript skills are highly useful right now and in the foreseeable future."
Sharon Raiford Bush is an award-winning journalist who covers topics of social interest in greater Los Angeles. Some news articles she has authored have been archived by the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. Sharon also contributes to Examiner.com.
