Why did I enroll in the program?
I didn’t enroll in the program last year. But it was a year before when I wasn’t sure what I should do or want to do. I wanted to do something more meaningful than sharing my artworks in the gallery. I felt like the art and gallery is too limited to the audience. Only the minority people who are interested in art goes to the gallery. But I wanted to do something big and ambitious that could help people universally.
Then I found out about UX design. I was fascinated by the topic that it’s not just designing to look pretty. But the data and the research behind the design have a rationale that could help people ease to use.
Few months of studying by myself and going to the free events and workshops from the General Assembly and Interaction Design community, I’ve wanted to pursue my career in this direction.
With a connection from the previous workspace, I got an internship as a digital media production intern. The person who introduced me was a UX designer, and I was excited to oversee her work and work with her.
After three months of internship, I’ve got an offer to work as a full-time UI UX designer. I had to decide if I should go to school or accept a full-time job. I deferred the enrollment and accepted the position. I believed there will be another chance to learn at school, but working might not. And if I gain trust and show my skill, I was sure that the company would let me learn if I want to. Then it did. Year after, I decided to go back to school. There are many reasons I enrolled in the program.
- Skeptical on my skills and knowledge on UX design.
- Yes, a Master’s degree is better than a certificate.
- School is where I can learn, work is where I can grow.
- Clients are not guinea pigs, I don’t want to take my risks on them.
- Real-life work is mundane, I want something fun and creative.
- 3D printing, AR and VR, coding, and more UX skills.
- Networks.
What was the experience like for you?
Due to COVID, we had physical classes until the second week of March, and then it all transferred to all online. Overall, there was no difficulties in-between transition from physical to online.
Individual class experiences
Design Leadership
Design leadership was a little strange at first but the most memorable experience.
It was strange because I didn’t know what the design leadership meant and couldn’t understand its purpose in the first place. But during the class, I was considering my inner core values in the organization, things that I would value most. Then expanding these ideas to a workspace, groups, and furthermore, to the company values.
Critical Making
Critical making class was intense, but a lot of interesting topics to learn that I want to continue learning.
The one reason that Critical Making was intense is that we had to learn different software every week and execute something. Most all the tools were new and unfamiliar. We started with the basic HTML, but later in the semester, we had to use Arduino, Grasshopper, and Raspberry pie. I know it’s to understand the general basics of the program. But, I wish we had more time to explore and troubleshoot during class time.
In the spring semester, I choose the immersive design. During the class, we were exploring AR, VR, XR, MR. We went over the tools to build the 3D space using Unity and Cinema 4d. We were also able to export the 3D files in ios developer tool, which was great. During the semester, I wasn’t sure what I can do and want to do with this software. Now, I know the tools, and where I can start, I will continue to learn and explore after the program. Even if I can’t develop, I’m excited to learn AR and VR experience design.
RE — Entrepreneur
RE was broad and ambiguous but great experiences. Unlike other classes, the RE project started in August 2019 and ended in August 2020. Because we had a long time to accomplish, I wish we had a fundamental structure or scope of work laid out at the beginning of the project.
RE — Lab
RE Lab, we had the lab hour in between early and afternoon RE classes. When we were in class, a few of the previous students and professionals came and shared their experiences. But due to COVID, we missed a lot of great workshops.
UX Design
The main reason I enrolled for the program is for UX design. So I didn’t take any brand design courses. Structure-wise, there were some repetitions. It varied by the teaching style by the instructor.
During the class, I’ve enjoyed most learning about terms and privacy, black patterns, conversational interface, accessibilities, and data visualization. It’s essential to know about it, but there aren’t many people who talk about it in the industry.
Sprint
Sprint class was abbreviated, but fun to work with different students in class and see their strengths. It was intense three weeks and three various projects. We had a similar approach to Google design sprints. The reason why it’s different is that we are all UX designers. There were no developers or any other professionals. Also, we had to develop a pitch deck while we are in each phase.
Overall
I’ve learned and experienced a lot from the program. I had a fun time working with other people and discovered that we all have different talents.
I thought I like to do everything by myself. But during the program, I enjoy working with other people than working by myself. Considering other’s opinions, thoughts, and directions that I’ve not thought of.
And as I work and study simultaneously, I could incorporate the skills in a real work environment. At work, I’m leading a project based on data visualization that we have learned in class, conducted sketch sessions like how we do in every project, and presented my thought process with clients.
What did you learn?
- I know the difference between AR and VR.
- UX design tools. Card sorting is the cheapest and easiest way to solve.
- Figma is THE tool for designing. At least for now.
- Miro is the tool for whiteboarding.
- Slack is not the best tool for tracking the assignments.
- Communication doesn’t mean the language barrier.
- Everyone has different strengths.
- I know my strengths, and I know what I want to be after I graduate.
What did you find challenging?
Coding? Nope. I know I’m not the only one struggling, so it was okay.
Zoom learning? Not exactly. It was more about class structure. I prefer there is more interaction in small groups and keep engaging with peers than work time.
Sitting in one place over 12+ hours? Maybe. When I’m in the zone, I’m fine sitting all day every day. As long as I know what I need to work on.
COVID? Maybe. We lost physical interaction for the Design Leadership program, workshops for the RE lab. But it’s not just us that we lost physical interaction.
Having one project for the entire program? Maybe. Some of the projects were two or three weeks but for RE, we had one project for the entire program. Without knowing the scope of work, in the beginning, was challenging.
Tools? Not at all. I used great collaborative tools, including Figma, Miro, Trello, Slack, and Zoom.
Instructors not responding? Yes. I understand they are busy. But sometimes, I wish I knew when they are available and when they are not.
Network? No. With the CMCI Alumni network and workshops, I’ve talked to many professionals about their experience and received great feedback on where and how I could improve.
Time managing? YES.
The most challenging part throughout the program is me working and studying at the same time. At the beginning of the semester, I struggled with how I should manage my time. When I’m at school, I was thinking about work and checking emails. When I was at work, I was constantly thinking about my assignments.
After a couple of weeks, I figured I have to focus on one thing at a time. I had to consider the priority at the moment. For the whole program, I did not want to be the person that doesn’t do the work on time, even at work.
During the sprint was worst. I had to manage my time more strictly. We had a group meeting every day. There was one time that I had two meetings at the same time. Then I opened up two computers on Zoom, hoping one would finish early.
How are you different now than when you started?
Before the program, I was skeptical of myself. I self-affirmed that I can do it. Now, this week is the last week of the program. I had so much fun collaborating, ideating the project. Now I know I’m not doing anything wrong, and I just need to keep going. Also, in any circumstances, I learned that my north star is to help people with ease of use and accessibility.
What’s next?
Continue learning. If I go back to school and learn, I’d thought I would not want to learn anything new. But no, I want to learn more. I found out so many opportunities in the UX design and AR/VR environment. Even though it will take practice and might be hard to motivate myself, but, at least now I know people I could reach out for help.
Thanks for reading!
