Someone interested in breaking into information design contacted me to ask about the field, whether a degree or certificate would help, and the tools and skills used. It’s a very broad question as information design covers everything including print. But I answered the question from the online perspective and thought others may benefit from this information.

This field includes information design, user experience, Web design, publication design, graphic design, information architecture, etc. Looking at the Web sites and locating a nearby chapter in the following organizations makes a good starting point:

• STC (Society for Technical Communication)
• UPA (The Usability Professionals’ Association)
• SIGCHI
• ASIS&T (American Society for Information Science and Technology)
• IA Institute (The Information Architecture Institute)

STC, for example, has different SIGs (special interest groups) that could also provide valuable information. But of course, you want to narrow down your interests before joining SIGs or else too much information will come your way.

The following sites provide conference proceedings:

• Usability Professionals’ Association
• Society for Technical Communication
• Usability and User Experience Community of the Society for Technical Communication
• American Society for Information Science and Technology
• SXSW Interactive

What would you recommend to someone interested in the field? What do people need to break in the field? How valuable (or not) is a degree or certification? What area should the degree or certificate be in?

Thanks to Elisa Miller for her input into the response.

[tags]web design,careers,Meryl K. Evans[/tags]