Career
Desktop publishers
Lay out pages for print and screen.
$55,290
Median pay
-14.5%
Job growth, 2025–35
300
Openings a year
Associate's degree
Typical education
2 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Operate desktop publishing software and equipment to design, lay out, and produce camera-ready copy.
- Position text and art elements from a variety of databases in a visually appealing way to design print or web pages, using knowledge of type styles and size and layout patterns.
- Check preliminary and final proofs for errors and make necessary corrections.
- View monitors for visual representation of work in progress and for instructions and feedback throughout process, making modifications as necessary.
- Enter text into computer keyboard and select the size and style of type, column width, and appropriate spacing for printed materials.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on information & systems, then creation & expression?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Operate desktop publishing software and equipment to design, lay out, and produce camera-ready copy.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, Judgment and Decision Making, Speaking.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
2 years of education after high school (associate's degree), for a median of $55,290 a year and 300 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Prepress/Desktop Publishing and Digital Imaging DesignCIP 10.0303
- Computer Typography and Composition Equipment OperatorCIP 10.0308
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Prepress Technicians and Workers$48,690 · -15.3%
- Graphic Designers$62,960 · -1.7%
- Proofreaders and Copy Markers$51,120 · -0.9%
- Web and Digital Interface Designers$104,000 · +6.0%
- Special Effects Artists and Animators$102,030 · -0.3%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.