What a UX Designer should be: Generalist or Specialist or T-shaped?

You must be familiar with the phrase, Jack of all trades, master of none. It is generally used to describe a person who might have many skills but doesn’t have expertise in any of them. But did you know that this is not the original phrase? Yes, the original phrase, Jack of all trades, was used to compliment someone with a broad knowledge and was good at fixing things.

UX design is a prime example of a role that has evolved from interdisciplinary thinking in the design field. It incorporates elements of research, psychology, visual design, content strategy, business analysis and usability testing. It is a profession where the greatest strength is the ability to integrate broadly across the organisation.

In a UX designer’s role, one would ask, Should I be a UX generalist or a specialist? To answer this question, you need to understand how these terms define a UX designer.

Who is a UX Generalist?

Many companies combine user research and design into a generalist, UX designer role. This role is usually responsible for a combination of the following activities:

• user research
• interaction design
• information architecture
• usability testing
• visual design
• fast iteration management
• Copywriting and editing

There are a lot of benefits to being a generalist UX designer. There is an opportunity to up skill in many different types of UX work and try a variety of responsibilities that makes the job feel fresh and new.

Who is a UX Specialist?

A UX specialist is someone who dives deep into one type of UX design, like interaction, visual, or motion design, and becomes an expert. Specialists are more common in larger companies that have a large UX team and can afford specialization.

The benefits of becoming a UX specialist are, being focused on one type of design of your choice and gaining deep knowledge of it. Having expertise in a particular type of design gives you visibility as an expert in the industry.

In a gist, while a generalist has broad knowledge and wears many hats of responsibility, a specialist has more depth of knowledge in one type of UX design. So, coming back to the question of whether to be a UX generalist or a specialist, the role should be transitional from a generalist to becoming a specialist.

The UX designer role should be transitional from a generalist to becoming a specialist.

The truth is that for the initial years of your career, you’re going to be a general design practitioner. And, Should I be a generalist or a specialist? is a wrong question. The right question is, Should I specialize after I become a generalist?

Being a UX generalist can be your superpower: Your position within a team is to be a problem solver, to fulfil and deliver a requirement. How do you make yourself marketable? The more problems you can solve, the more value you can bring to the team. When you focus on being a UX generalist first, the breadth of your experience makes you more eligible for getting into a position. The power of a generalist mindset helps to connect the dots to form a complete picture from the otherwise independent sources of data you may have.

But you may ask, is being a UX Specialist the final transition in the UX Designer role? Well, the answer is no. There is more to it.

Who is a T-shaped UX Designer?

A T-shaped designer is a specialist who also has a lot of capabilities in other areas. The stem (or vertical line) of a T represents the designer’s expertise in one area, while the top (or horizontal line) symbolizes their related skills in a broad number of areas. T-shaped designers come with the benefits of both specialists and generalists.

Each designer tends to have a little T-shape in their abilities, even at the beginning of their career. You can even direct your T-shape by developing specific skills that can open up future job opportunities.

Having understood the different roles of a UX Designer, it is important to acknowledge that as a UX designer, there is always room to grow and opportunities for change. There are so many different paths you can take within the field of UX design. There are many benefits to being a generalist, specialist, or T-shaped designer, so it is all about finding what works best for you!

All the best with your journey!

~by Nikita Jaiswal