What I did to transition into UX design: Practical tips and learning opportunities
There is no lack of resources or opportunities out there, but you need to be the one to put yourself out there and build your credibility as a UX designer.
If you’re reading this because you’ve transited into UX design from another career or are thinking of doing so, I applaud you for taking that first step outside of your comfort zone 👏🏼
As humans, we tend to get comfortable with our routines and are often reluctant to try something new, especially when it comes to our careers. The idea of leaving behind a stable job and taking a leap of faith can be daunting, but the benefits of a career transition are numerous for both your personal development and professional growth.
In today’s ever-changing job market, the ability to adapt and embrace career transitions is crucial to succeed in your professional life.
If you’re considering a career in UX design, you’re not alone. With the rise of digital products and services, there is an increasing demand for UX designers who can create user-friendly and engaging experiences.
As someone who has gone through the transition (and frankly, still learning to develop my new career in UX), I hope to provide practical tips and resources to help you get started.
I want you to know that you have enough resources and opportunities out there to get into UX design so there’s really no need to be worried or anxious about that. I do want to emphasize though that they would not miraculously fall into your lap, you need to actively seek out opportunities to learn and practice your skills.
Be it through online courses, network with your local design/product communities, or pick up freelance projects, you need to be the one to put yourself out there and build your credibility as a UX designer.
Build Your Foundational Knowledge
Before you dive into UX design, it’s important to build your foundational knowledge. Here are some resources to help you get started:
- Books
Don’t let books become a lost art. This day and age you can read either a physical book or an e-book, so what’s the excuse?
👉🏼 The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman: Don Norman is THE Grand Master of user-centered design and this classic book on design principles is a must-read for anyone interested in UX design.
👉🏼 Don’t Make Me Think by Steve Krug: A personal favorite of mine. It’s a book about web usability, a super easy read because he simplified a lot of complex web design concepts for us.
👉🏼 Well-Designed: How to Use Empathy to Create Products People Love by Jon Kolko: A very practical book that breaks down the product design process into 4 key steps. You also get a sense of how design thinking is applied in the industry leading to successful products.
- Bootcamps
I personally benefited a lot from bootcamps as I picked up my basics from there. That said, I’m not here to tell you which ones to go for, but what to look out for:
👉🏼 Live instruction: Whether remote or in-person, go for those with live instructions so that you can participate in group activities and ask questions. You don’t get bored so easily and you learn from your peers in the bootcamp.
👉🏼 Up-to-date content: Check if the curriculum is up to speed with the latest methods, software, industry tools and trends. This ensures that the skills you gain are highly relevant to the industry you’re about to enter.
👉🏼 Opportunities beyond the bootcamp: It’s definitely a huge plus if the bootcamp also provides you with networking events or other opportunities to broaden your horizons and seek out job opportunities.
Whatever you choose, please DO NOT be misguided by the marketing tactics out there and think that a bootcamp will guarantee you a job. Rome is not built in a day, so is your career not built by just one bootcamp.
- Courses
There are literally SO many options out there that it might trigger decidophobia (yea, this is a real word) in you. I’ll just highlight a few prominent ones here:
👉🏼 Interaction Design Foundation (IxDF)’s courses and masterclasses
I would highly recommend IxDF because they’ve catered their courses to design-related professionals of all level and expertise. The mixed use of video and texts instructions throughout each course made learning a lot more dynamic. I also like the fact that there are quiz questions/discussions that I can engage in after every section in the course.
👉🏼 Google UX Design Professional Certificate on Coursera
I took their foundational courses and found it to be very practical and rather career-oriented as well. I would encourage you to complete all parts of the course and you would’ve developed a case study for yourself.
👉🏼 NN/g UX Training courses and IDEO U’s design thinking online courses
I’ve not personally tried these before but they are highly reputable organizations and many senior designers take their courses to polish their skills.
Learn from the Experts
Following leading UX designers on social media, reading their blogs, and listening to their podcasts is a great way to stay up-to-date with the latest trends and best practices in the field.
👉🏼 Nielsen Norman Group: If you don’t already know them or read their stuffs, start NOW!! It’s a wealth of knowledge and one of the few highly reputable UX consultancy providing research-based advice on user experience.
👉🏼 Medium: I read stuffs on UX Collective and UX Planet etc. They are easily accessible and many of these posts are written by experienced people in the UX/product industry. I love how practical and down-to-earth some of their perspectives and advice are.
👉🏼 UX Podcast: For the auditory learner, you get to hear insights from interviews with UX designers and researchers on UX Podcast. A new podcast comes on twice a month so don’t miss it!
Develop a Problem-Solving Mindset
UX design is all about solving problems for users. In developing a problem-solving mindset, you should:
👉🏼Focus on user needs and motivations and observe where your users’ problems exists.
👉🏼 Use design thinking methods, such as empathy mapping and user journey mapping, to help you better understand your users.
Build a Portfolio
Start creating a portfolio of your work early to showcase your skills to potential employers. It doesn’t matter if it’s work-in-progress, it’ll save you from having a churn up an entire case study from scratch later on. Do up a first draft and keep iterating — that’s the spirit of design thinking!
👉🏼 Highlight your design process clearly by having sections on user research, ideation, prototyping, and usability testing.
Don’t forget to include learnings/reflections as you can expect hiring managers to ask you about them.
👉🏼 Make sure your portfolio is visually appealing and easy to navigate. Use images to illustrate your points where it makes sense.
👉🏼 Have an “About” section to introduce yourself.
Write in your own voice and feel free to talk about things you enjoy outside of work or volunteer for, your strengths, your values. These are what differentiates you from the tens of thousands of designers out there.
You can find inspirations at Bestfolios, Dribbble and Behance and learn how other designers showcase their works and portfolios.
Get Hands-On Experience
Building your skills and gaining experience is key to transitioning into UX design. You don’t need a full-time, paid job to do that.
👉🏼 Volunteer to design a website or app for a non-profit organization.
I volunteer at better.sg in Singapore because I care about doing #TechForGood. Find a local non-profit or community that you care about and contribute in your own capacity.
👉🏼 Participate in hackathons or design challenges.
You could definitely do the Daily UI Challenge or UX Challenge to get some practice. In my opinion though, I would rather go for design/product challenges that companies like Apple run annually as you’re working directly on their product and it increases your chance of getting seen by them.
If you’re game, start your own initiative by redesigning a company’s app or website, connect with the company’s leaders and share it with them. This sends a signal of your strong interest in them and your ability to improve their product.
👉🏼 Take on freelance projects to build your portfolio and gain experience.
Upwork, Fiverr and Freelancer are a few platforms where freelancers and contractors look for projects. They might be a good starting point for you to build credibility by working for real clients.
Network
Always look out for opportunities to attending industry events, meetups, and conferences to meet other professionals in the field, gain insights into the industry, and learn about job opportunities. In fact I think having that network around you is really your first step into the field — you learn to speak the language of the industry, hear expert opinions, get introduced to jobs that others might not be privy to.
👉🏼 Join your local design groups on Meetup or Interaction Design Association (IxDA).
You can also check out this professional association for UX designers, User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA) International, that hosts conferences and events around the world.
One really great advice that I heard was to join adjacent groups (i.e. product groups) or other interest groups that you care about. Why? When you hang out in these groups, you’ll be one of the few UX designers they know and when people ask for one they’ll refer you!
👉🏼 Find a mentor on ADPList.
I’m grateful for some of my mentors’ help to work through my resume and portfolio with me earlier this year. It gave me more confidence to showcase my work/experience out there. So don’t be embarrassed to reach out to people, especially those whose work you admire!
I recognise that career transitions can be challenging, and there will likely be some hurdles along the way. The recent massive layoffs by numerous tech companies and changes in industry trends are making the job market more competitive than ever.
Be willing to learn and adapt is becoming increasingly important, and those who can do so are more likely to succeed in their careers.
To make your transition in UX easier, it’s important to do your research and have a plan in place. This may include taking courses or certifications to develop new skills, networking with professionals in UX/product management, and building a strong resume and cover letter.
By being open to new opportunities and taking calculated risks, you can achieve your career goals and find a more fulfilling professional path.
I hope you find this article insightful for you. Consider clapping 👏🏼 to encourage more content like this!
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