How to get a career in UX/UI design

SpaceCowb0y

Hi all

Sorry if anyone has already read this post as i already asked the question in the design forum but didn't get much of a response so just thought i'd ask here instead!

Just wondering if anyone out there working in either of these fields has any information on how exactly one would go about finding/starting a career in either of these areas!

I am currently a 27 yr old final year computer science student and work part time as a web designer as well as doing some of my own freelance stuff when i get the opportunity. My course however is geared mainly towards programming and software development which unfortunately after near 4 years of college i realise really isn't for me.

I have been doing a lot of reading though lately on UX/UI design (books on HCI & blogs etc) and feel this is an area i would really like to get in to but there isn't much info on how to get your foot in the door so to speak.

Nowhere really runs courses that are realistic i seen one in Dublin offered that was €750 for 2 days!!!

There are post grad courses run in the UK but those are crazy money!

I just joined the IxDA website yesterday and seen they run events from time to time and there is a "defuse" even on next month which i am thinking of attending although i dont know if this will be of any benefit to me yet considering i have had zero exposure really to the industry and what exactly it involves although sites like uxmastery.com have been really helpful!I also feel like i add little value to these type of events as i used to attend a lot of start up events and always felt lost for things to say when inevitably i would wind up speaking to someone from a start up who seemed to already have a wealth of experience.

Any constructive information anyone can give me would really be appreciated!

Thanks!

zoobizoo

check out www.prosperity.ie

They deal with those types of jobs. Chat to one of the people in there and tell them it's an area you want to get into.

They might be able to advise on where to go from there.

Ray Palmer

I am not sure you understand how this will work in a working environment. It is basically a part of development meaning you will work pretty much the same as any other developer. That means little control over what you are doing. You won't really get to design anything as you will be told what they want. In fact you may do a little work and after that it just gets brought back into the standard development cycle with developers using templates.

Doing websites may have given you some insight on how this is done but you are given a little more of a free reign to design then.

User interfaces are generally very straight forward unless for advanced specialised customers like video game users. Lots of UI in the commercial world looks like windows 3.1 still with a little extra but you are still talking basic website look and feel.

I worked on a project and they weren't even willing to round the corners on the buttons or give them shading.

General consumer interfaces aren't really going to give you much employment opportunities IMHO.

Eoin

SpaceCowb0y wrote:

there is a "defuse" even on next month which i am thinking of attending

That's in the Sugar Club, right? I'd go to that and see what it's all about.

Ray Palmer wrote: »

I am not sure you understand how this will work in a working environment. It is basically a part of development meaning you will work pretty much the same as any other developer.

It's sometimes outside the R&D department - sometimes product management (but working with a dev team), sometimes it's own department altogether. It depends on the organisation. Graphic design and UX design are overlapping skills, but not the same thing.

The level of influence a UX designer has will also depend on the organisation.

Ray Palmer wrote: »

User interfaces are generally very straight forward unless for advanced specialised customers like video game users

Not really - many look straight forward because of good UX, not because there was no need for it. Many applications will have their own workflow, so it's not just about designing the layout of a screen, it's about a user's journey through the application to carry out what they need to do. This extends to consumer facing applications too.

Ray Palmer

Eoin wrote: »

It's sometimes outside the R&D department - sometimes product management (but working with a dev team), sometimes it's own department altogether. It depends on the organisation. Graphic design and UX design are overlapping skills, but not the same thing.

The level of influence a UX designer has will also depend on the organisation.



Not really - many look straight forward because of good UX, not because there was no need for it. Many applications will have their own workflow, so it's not just about designing the layout of a screen, it's about a user's journey through the application to carry out what they need to do. This extends to consumer facing applications too.

What you are saying there doesn't match any of my 18 years experience of software development. I even did UI design for 4 years.

Mostly non consumer based products but I just have not seen anything like you are suggesting. Not saying it doesn't exist just it isn't a particularly big market in this in this country and even in software itself.

You would be talking about particularly high end products willing to try new interfaces. After that most is pretty basic stuff. So Google and Facebook do it but none of the banks do and there are more jobs in the banking industry for software and it is much more likely to be working there.

Maybe it should exist more but I don't see that happening or people willing to pay for it. It is a real luxury to be able to afford it financially or time wise. Most UI doesn't even have shortcut keys which is a step back on usability.

Eoin

Perhaps we have worked in different IT sectors then, because it's been my experience. There may be a difference in priority between companies whose business is software, and companies who write software to support other activities. I'm not too sure why you're focussing on banking; it's hardly the only IT game around.

StickyIcky

I'm looking for a UI/UX designer. How do I go about finding one who isn't going to cost me a fortune?

Also if anyone is interested please pm me. Thanks

beauf

A lot of places don't seem to know what a UI/UX designer is. In some places its graphic designer, in others the front end developer/programmer. Unfortunately in the majority of places I've worked, a programmer, or a project manager, or the client dictates the UI/UX design. Then they wonder why users struggle. I've had a similar experience to Ray, the vast majority of places I've worked simply didn't do it. Any time I've done it, its been for a project I've been able to control the UI myself, or build it myself. I've never worked in a large purely development company though. Maybe its different there.

Phoebas

Anyone interested in UX design (not the technical bits or the 'creative' bits, but the process bits) should read this book.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Smashing-Design-Foundations-Designing-Experiences/dp/0470666854

SpaceCowb0y

Thanks I'll definitely add that to my "to read" list

Ray Palmer

beauf wrote: »

A lot of places don't seem to know what a UI/UX designer is. In some places its graphic designer, in others the front end developer/programmer. Unfortunately in the majority of places I've worked, a programmer, or a project manager, or the client dictates the UI/UX design. Then they wonder why users struggle. I've had a similar experience to Ray, the vast majority of places I've worked simply didn't do it. Any time I've done it, its been for a project I've been able to control the UI myself, or build it myself. I've never worked in a large purely development company though. Maybe its different there.

I worked in pure development houses and haven't seen it. Even products bought didn't have UX designers. That is business software so I can only see it coming in on consumer based products.

Standards documents covering look, feel and shortcuts tend to be written at the start and then followed. So even with a UX design the life span of the involvement would be quite small. Again I haven't seen a specialist used. Managers often override others for the design too.

The Red

Ray are you only referring to a specific industry for your experience? Or have you experience in app design for the likes of online casinos or social apps? Just wondering as I would imagine they rely heavily on UI design.

Mr. Loverman

Ray Palmer just likes to disagree with people. Look at his post history, it's his hobby. :pac:

Spacecowb0y, would you consider working abroad? For example, there are plenty of UX / UI position in Beijing, and they like hiring foreigners.

experiMental

SpaceCowb0y wrote: »

Hi all

Any constructive information anyone can give me would really be appreciated!

Thanks!

Don't want to disclose much on a public forum, but I have been working in a company that was driven by UI and UX. First of all, having an interest is great. However, one thing to bear in mind : if you want to be good at it and create value, you really need a grounding in psychology, user behaviour and social science. One thing that differentiates user experience person from a developer or a designer is an ability to acquire a user and incentivise him/her to use a product. That means having a knowledge in marketing as well.

From my experience, the best UX people designed games, because those are the ultimate test of an ability to create a compelling experience.

So having said this, a lot of businesses need to acquire users and incentivise them to use products. In fact, a lot of businesses in Ireland are driven by human users, so in theory there should be a lot of opportunity for user experience professionals. Unfortunately, the reality is, that many businesses in Ireland use sales and marketing to acquire users and customers.

Here are your options :
1.) find work with a startup company that requires your skills - here's a list of some that have exposed themselves to the outside world : http://makeitinireland.com/tech-map/

2.) Pitch yourself to businesses that you would like to work for ( can be an extremely difficult route )

3.) Find work in progressive Irish companies ( e.g Intercom - http://intercom.workable.com/ or several design consultancies

4.) If you're thinking of Holland, Germany, Italy, France or Sweden, the competition is tough, but there are related jobs.

5.) If all those fail, there are opportunities in Beijing and Bangalore. The living conditions may not be great, but there is a lot of related activity going on.

beauf

A lot of courses contain modules on a range of related subjects. I know a good few who did masters courses etc. Coming from courses with ergonomics etc.

But at the end of day it's the company and management have to drive it.