Salary Survey Extra is a series of periodic dispatches that give added insight into the findings of our most recent Salary Survey. These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.

When turning our attention to the CIW Web Design Specialist credential earlier this year, we noted that it is a precursor certification to the more advanced CIW Web Design Professional. We also noted at the time that web design, while not as glamorous as other IT specializations, still has its place.

There's a lot of web design templating software out there, but most businesses and organizations of any size still need someone in house whose skill set is deeper than what can be automated via the likes of Squarespace or Wix or Sitebuilder. CIW Web Design Professional (No. 61 on our most recent Salary Survey 75 list) is a great credential for anyone who wants to be that in-house specialist.

As is the case with a number of credentials in the Salary Survey 75, we didn't field a strong international response here. Hence, we only have data to report from U.S. credential holders. Here's what the salary picture looks like for CIW Web Design Professional holders who responded to the Salary Survey:

All U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $89,540
Median Annual Salary: $84,170
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 16.7 percent
Very Satisfied: 16.7 percent
Satisfied: 33.3 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 22.2 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 11.1 percent

By and large, most of the CIW Web Design Professional holders who responded to the survey — 92 percent of them, to be exact — are men, though there are a handful of women in the group. There's not a lot of youth in the profession, at least to judge by this particular certification: Less than 10 percent of those surveyed are younger than 35, either between the ages of 19 and 24 (4.3 percent) or between the ages of 25 and 34 (4.4 percent). That leaves 34.8 percent of respondents between the ages of 35 and 44, 39.1 percent between the ages of 45 and 54, and 17.4 percent between the ages of 55 and 64.

Roughly 83 percent of CIW Web Design Professional holders who participated in the survey have an educational background that includes time spent at a college or university. The highest level of education completed by most is either a bachelor's degree (52.2 percent of respondents), master's degree (26.1 percent), or associate's degree (4.3 percent). The rest either topped out with a high school diploma (4.3 percent of respondents) or left behind the formal education realm after completing some level of post high-school technical training (13.1 percent).

Among all CIW Web Design Professional holders in the survey, 92 percent have full-time jobs, with 4 percent on sabbatical and 4 percent out of work. Among those who have full-time jobs, most are putting in either the standard 40 hours per week (43.5 percent of respondents) or find themselves at work between 41 and 50 hours per week (39.2 percent). The rest have a weekly schedule that calls for them to put in either more than 50 hours per week (4.3 percent of respondents) or between 31 and 39 hours per week (13 percent).

In terms of workplace standing, the largest single group of CIW Web Design Professional holders in the survey are at the senior specialist level (29.7 percent). The rest, in descending order, are either specialists (25.9 percent of those surveyed), managers (22.2 percent), employees (11.1 percent), senior managers (7.4 percent), or directors (3.7 percent).

Roughly 40 percent of the CIW Web Design Professional holders who participated in the survey are veterans, having worked in a role that directly utilizes one or more of their certified skills for more than a decade. The rest have plying their certified skills for either between zero years (1 to 11 months) and 2 years (26 percent of those surveyed), between 3 and 5 years (22.2 percent), between 6 and 8 years (3.7 percent), or between 9 and 10 years (7.4 percent).

Finally, here's the view of CIW Web Design Professional holders on key questions from the survey about how certification impacts job performance:

At my current job I use skills learned or enhanced through certification:
Several times a day: 26 percent
Several times a week: 22.2 percent
Several times a month: 7.4 percent
Occasionally: 29.6 percent
Rarely: 14.8 percent

Since becoming certified, I feel there is greater demand for my skills.
Strongly agree: 25.9 percent
Agree: 40.7 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 7.5 percent
Disagree: 14.8 percent
Strongly Disagree: 11.1 percent

Becoming certified has increased my problem-solving skills.
Strongly agree: 29.6 percent
Agree: 22.3 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 29.6 percent
Disagree: 14.8 percent
Strongly Disagree: 3.7 percent

Becoming certified has increased my workplace productivity.
Strongly agree: 26 percent
Agree: 33.3 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 18.5 percent
Disagree: 18.5 percent
Strongly Disagree: 3.7 percent