Paula graduated UCSD in 2014 with a major in Cognitive Science with a specialization in HCI and a minor in Computer Science. Currently, she is a UX designer at IBM, working on cybersecurity products. In her free time, she enjoys making things out of clay and parenting her dog and hedgehog to be good citizens.
How did you get into design?
I’ve always loved making things growing up. I would draw or do art projects with my younger sisters (one of them is also a UX designer!). I knew I enjoyed making things but didn’t know what kind of job I could get that would allow me to do that (but also make enough money so that I don’t have to live with my mom).
While I was studying at UCSD, I saw a video by IDEO where they tried to redesign the shopping cart experience. This was the first time I was exposed to the concept of human-centered design — making things that solve problems and help people. I knew this is what I wanted to do.
Not long after, I discovered what UX was and that this was an actual career path. I picked classes that would help me become a designer, took online courses to get familiar with tools such as Illustrator, did a lot of side projects and then ended up majoring in Cognitive Science since it was the closest program that UCSD had that aligned to my career goals.
What does your typical day look like?
It definitely varies, but usually, my mornings involve coffee and then syncing and collaborating with my extended design team and my stakeholders (product managers and developers) to make sure we’re all moving towards the same goal and hitting deadlines. When I’m not in meetings, I am auditing competitors and best practices, understanding requirements and user needs, mapping out user flows, rapidly exploring screens, or creating prototypes. All the UX things!
In the afternoons we’re usually doing feedback sessions as a broader design team where we are sharing our work or giving feedback on work. After work, you can find me at a yoga class, the pottery studio, or taking a nap.
What’s the biggest difference in designing at a company versus at school?
It will depend on what kind of company you work at. Designing at an agency versus being an in-house designer is different.
In general, I will say the biggest difference is that in school, you do projects and you can basically design without any limitation — you’re encouraged to shoot for the moon and come up with the best design possible. In school group projects, your team is usually other people from the same major, rather than people from different expertise such as business or development.
However, at a company, you need to consider technical constraints and business requirements unless you’re working on a concept car project where the objective is to set a future vision. Your design, no matter how awesome it is, will be irrelevant if it can’t actually be built or it doesn’t match the business goals.
What’s a design challenge that you recently faced?
My team and I recently designed the “Getting Started Experience” for our application so that we could set our users up for success.
In our case, there were a bunch of nuances in getting started since users had different entry points into our application or different permission levels. It was helpful to create a map to see where these moments are needed so we can make sure we catch our users where they may fall.
What tips do you have for new designers?
If I could talk to college Paula, an aspirational UX designer, these are some of the tips I would have for her:
- I think in this field, having experience is more valuable than good grades (although they are important too). Just remember that you are going to be competing for a position with other candidates who also will also be a student studying some branch of design at some university. Make yourself stand out by getting as much experience as you can through side projects or freelance work.
- Your portfolio is going to be the key to getting your foot in the door for interviews, so make sure that it’s up-to-date and showcasing your best work. A good rule of thumb is to have 2–3 in-depth projects that show the entire process.
- Your design is going nowhere if you aren’t able to communicate well. Being able to articulate your design and tell a story behind its value to the user is critical in winning over your stakeholders and getting your designs executed. These soft skills are just as important as your technical skills.
- Don’t be afraid to fail! This is something I learned at IBM. Fail fast and often so that you are constantly learning and iterating. When you fail, you are learning what doesn’t work, and therefore you’ll find your way to what does work. Everything is a learning process and it’s helpful to keep that mindset so you can remember to be kind to the part of you that’s still learning.
Where do you find inspiration?
I’m so lucky to be surrounded by amazing designers who are passionate and driven in what they do. They are my inspiration on a day-to-day basis.
Other than that, I find inspiration by following other designers on social media and reading articles online. If we’re talking about design inspiration, I usually audit other products or look at Dribbble, Pinterest, or just Google.
What product have you recently seen that has good design?
I was at Trader Joe’s the other day shopping for ingredients to make chicken noodle soup. Trader Joe’s actually sells a container with onions, celery, and carrots all chopped up and ready to use. I think it’s technically called mirepoix? I appreciated how thoughtful and full of intent that was! Thank you to whoever came up with that amazing idea. It was perfectly proportioned so I didn’t waste any food and also saved time and money.
What was one thing that you learned from UCSD which helped you in your post-undergrad life?
I was at UCSD before they had any official design classes or the design minor. My first introduction to the design process and design thinking was through Scott Klemmer’s class. I believe it was COGS 120. I definitely apply what I learned in that class in my day-to-day job such as learning how to do heuristic evaluations, conducting interviews, and the importance of prototyping.
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