Associate's
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Degree Fields
Business
One of the most versatile degrees available, your business degree will open doors to nearly every industry.
Criminal Justice & Law
Join the movement to keep the streets of your community safe with a major in criminal justice.
Design
Creative minds will find practical and enriching outlets for their artistic passions in this field.
Education
Enrich and inspire others, from young children to adults, and share your passions in the classroom.
Engineering
Engineering is for those who enjoy solving problems and building the technology of tomorrow.
Health
One of the fastest growing industries today, health care is home to some of the most prosperous and in-demand jobs.
Liberal Arts
Expand your knowledge, become more culturally aware, and enrich your life with an education in liberal arts.
Math
Moving beyond simple equations, mathematics is for those who love to solve complex numerical puzzles.
Science
Fight disease and develop solutions to social, environmental, and medical issues in the science field.
Technology
Make science fiction come to life with a degree in technology, where you will be pushing computers into the future.
Online Degree Programs in Design
Popular Majors in Design
When pursuing your online degree in design, you can’t go wrong pursuing majors in either graphic design or Web design, majors that are popular because the emphasis is often on a student’s creativity.
Graphic design majors, also known as graphic art majors, take courses that teach them effective principles of design, visual communication, computer graphics and how to effectively make a page eye-catching, using photos and fonts. Some courses train students how to use the most up-to-date software programs used by graphic designers, such as Adobe InDesign and Photoshop. Learning these various programs teaches students how to digitally lay out a magazine or newspaper page, edit photos and create infographics.
Web design majors take courses in coding so they can learn to create the groundwork of a website. They also learn other ways of building effective and attractive websites, like how to make them easy to navigate and how to use colors and graphics to draw people in to the site.
How a Degree in Design Prepares You for the Real World
A degree in design prepares students for the real world by giving them hands-on training in the programs and techniques that real-world designers use every day. By teaching students the ins and outs of programs like Photoshop and InDesign, online professors teach students how to hit the ground running with projects assigned to them at their first design job. Online design classes will also expose students to some of the best design work out there so that they can learn to emulate proven, successful techniques in their future careers, as well as develop their own original graphic ideas.
The courses you take while earning your online design degree will give you essential preparation for how to build effective Web pages that users will want to return to again and again. You will also receive key training in design for print media, which is helpful for students with real-world career aspirations in advertising, magazines, newspapers and Web design.
Best Jobs for Design Degree Students
Graphic design and Web design are two of the best jobs available for design degree students. Graphic designers, also known as graphic artists, are responsible for visually communicating messages, usually in print or electronic media. They help come up with magazine cover concepts and do the layout (and often production) for newspapers and other publications.
Web designers, also known as Web developers, create Web sites and tailor them to meet a specified purpose. For example, they may arrange flashy Web art to accompany content for entertainment Web sites. Or they may design a Web site for more practical purposes. For example, they may create a series of links to frequently asked questions for governmental Web sites that users scope out to learn about government services.
Not only do online design school graduates get to use the more creative side of their brain at pretty much any job they enter, but they also have the option to freelance their skills, and many designers do. In fact, 25 percent of all graphic designers are self-employed, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Designers may also work on a contract basis as outside consultants.
