Should Web Designers Have Coding Skills? Whether or not web designers should have doing skills has always been a contentious issue with most people arguing that indeed coding skills are necessary. However, an opposing side of the argument is that coding skills are required more in the programming and web development fields as opposed to web design. The phrase web designer is subject to different interpretation by different people. In most cases, web designers are equated to graphic artist in that they are more involved with the physical appeal of the website. In other cases, the argument is that designing a website requires front-end coding including some basic skills in HTML and CSS layouts. Arguments for coding skills in web design.
Most of the resources required to learn various web development applications can be accessed for free. It therefore makes no sense why a web designer should not have basic coding skills. Since the process of creating a website requires the collaboration of a web designer and a web developer, basic coding skills allows the designer to have the same language as the developer. Coding skills can help web designers avoid elementary mistakes. It is important that people working in website design and development to understand the mediums they are working with. A web designer with coding skills brings more value to the process than the one who doesn’t.
Arguments against coding skills in web design.
It is argued that a good web designer does not require coding skills. The argument here is that such a designer is capable of doing great things on your website even without any coding knowledge. Time has always been a constraint in the web world. This means that web designers have no time to learn new coding skills while at the same time keeping up with new developments experienced in their field. Lack of coding knowledge does not mean that a person is in any way constrained in web design. Such a person can push the limits in his or her area of specialization which is designing websites and not coding.
What has changed? Web design and development is a dynamic field which is unceasingly becoming highly specialized. About a decade ago, there was a general term used in both design and development of website which was ‘webmaster’ Webmaster describes a person who had collective knowledge in both designing and developing a website. However, jobs within the industry are becoming increasingly specialized with new roles emerging. Some of the new roles that have emerged include digital strategist, SEO copywriters and social media specialists. The specialisation in certain roles is the reason why different experts should specify their knowledge instead of multitasking. Since web design and development is highly labour intensive and time consuming, there is no enough time for a single person to do everything by themselves. However,
some knowledge in related fields adds value for people in a certain profession and make them more attractive in the job market. It is therefore important that web designers to have some coding skills.