Multimedia and Web design professionals create websites, animated movies, television shows, video games, and advertisements. Because these all represent areas in demand in today's society, multimedia and Web design professionals are also in demand. Businesses spend top dollar on creating and maintaining Web sites, advertising, branding, and communications.

Exciting Careers in Multimedia and Web Design

Multimedia and web design professionals work for private businesses, newspapers, magazines and other publishing houses, the video game and animation industries, computer design services, and in education. According to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), multimedia and Web designers fall under three categories: network systems and data communications analysts, multimedia artists, and graphic designers. In 2008, there were 405,400 of these professionals in the U.S., with anticipated growth into the next decade, divided as such:

• 41,300 network systems and data communications--expected growth of 95.6 percent
• 79,000 multimedia artists--expected growth of 14 percent
• 285,100 graphic designers--expected growth of 13 percent

According to the BLS, salaries for multimedia and Web design professionals varied according to the employer and focus of the work. Median 2008 salaries were as follows:

• Network systems and data communications: $34.18 per hour
• Multimedia artists: $27.08 per hour
• Graphic designers: $20.39 per hour

Multimedia design schools should prepare you for work in all of the above fields, with courses in Web development and in learning design and animation software programs. Degrees include those in Media Arts, Graphic Design, and Multimedia and Web Design.