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Desktop Publishing Specialists


Overview

Desktop Publishing Specialists

Introduction

Desktop publishing specialists prepare reports, brochures, books, cards, and other documents for printing and digital publication such as on the Internet and CD-ROM. They create computer files of text, graphics, and page layout. They work with files others have created, or they compose original text and graphics for clients. There are approximately 12,600 desktop publishing specialists, who are also known as desktop publishers, employed in the United States.

Quick Facts


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Median Salary

$42,910

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Employment Prospects

Poor

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Minimum Education Level

Associate's Degree


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Experience

On-the-job training


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Skills

Computer
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Personality Traits

Artistic
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Earnings

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, median annual earnings of desktop publishers were $42,910 in May 2018. The lowest paid 10 percent earned less than $22,770, and the highest paid 10 percent earned $75,120 or more. Wage rates vary depending on experience, training, region, and size of the company. Freelancers can earn from $15 to $100 an hour. Benefits for salaried desktop publishing sp...

Work Environment

Desktop publishing specialists spend most of their time working in front of a computer, whether editing text or photographs or laying out pages. They need to be able to work with other prepress professionals, and deal with clients. Hours may vary depending on project deadlines at hand. Some projects may take just a day to complete, while others may take weeks or months. Projects range from desi...

Outlook

Employment for desktop publishing specialists is projected to decline by 16 percent from 2018 to 2028, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. It reports that "companies are expected to hire fewer desktop publishers...as other types of workers—such as graphic designers, web designers, and editors—increasingly perform desktop-publishing tasks. As organizations increasingly publish their mater...