How to Become a UI/UX Designer: Courses and Other Resources

1. Choose a design career path
2. Learn about design through a UX/UI design bootcamp, self-study, or college
3. Develop and refine your technical skills while building your portfolio
4. Prepare for and start your job search

UX design is the process of designing how users experience a product. They employ programming, visual design, usability testing, and psychology to craft a product that’s easy to use and navigate. UX designers accomplish this by thinking about the potential challenges customers may face with a product. They will also make changes to a design or feature based on their research to ensure customers can easily understand how to use a product.

UI design , on the other hand, are responsible for creating the overall graphic design of a product. They will choose the colors of a site, and make sure the font is easy to read for as many people as possible. They will also consider accessibility features for a product, and the overall style each element will use.

UX and UI designers often work hand in hand to create the entire user interface for a product. In smaller teams, these two roles can be filled by the same person.

UX/UI designers are responsible for turning an idea into a web design that meets a certain set of specifications. After they complete a design, it is passed onto the development team, who turns the design into a functioning application.

UX/UI designers will ensure that a site is easy to use and navigate. They’ll also work with other members of an organization to come up with designs that meet the specifications associated with a product. For example, a UX designer may work with the customer success department to find out what problems users commonly report, which will help inform new designs.

UX Researcher

UX researchers focused on understanding how customers use a product or service. The UX researcher may use surveys, interviews, and other methods to identify problems customers encounter with a product and pass on their findings to UX or UI designers.

UX/UI Designer

UX/UI designers perform both user interface and user experience functions. They’ll assist in designing the UI that a user sees and researching how the design should be structured by using UX design techniques.

Product Designer

Product designers work on all aspects of a product, from designing components to creating site maps. These designers will assist UX/UI designers, and work with other teams, such as engineering, to turn designs into a functioning end product.

• Personal projects
• Freelance work
• Pro bono work
• Internships

• Wireframing and Prototyping

Wireframes and prototypes allow designers to communicate and test their ideas. UX/UI designers should be able to create low-fidelity and high-fidelity prototypes to showcase their ideas without creating a full design.

• User Research

UX/UI designers should be able to conduct user research to find out what customers are looking for in a particular interface. This research may be conducted through surveys, heatmap research, and other techniques.

• Branding

Every company has a unique brand. The UX/UI designer is in charge of developing a brand that represents the company. This involves designing logos, colors, and more. The UX/UI designer should be able to create effective branding materials, which will later be passed on to the marketing department.

• Implementation with Developers.

UX/UI designers do not stop after a design has been completed. A UX/UI designer should be able to work with the development team to help them implement a specific design. During this process, designers may be expected to walk their colleagues through their designs, justify their decisions, and ensure the development team has all the information they need to successfully implement a design.

• Interactivity and Animation

UI designers should be able to create interactive designs that meet user needs. They should also be able to use animation to make designs more aesthetically pleasing for the user. This is important because a good design can give your product a competitive advantage—the better the design of a website, the more likely the user is to look at it. As a result, designers need to be capable of creating an intuitive design.

• Problem Solving

One of the most important skills UX/UI designers need is the ability to break problems down into smaller components. UI designers will often have to create a design from scratch, which will involve a lot of problem-solving. UX designers, on the other hand, need to be able to analyze user problems and come up with ways to solve them.

• Empathy

Empathy is the ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and understand how they are feeling. As a designer, you need to be able to empathize with your target customer and learn what they need. This will allow you to develop designs that meet the exact needs of users and solve any problems they experience.

• Adaptability

Designers need to keep up with the latest trends. As a UX/UI designer, you’ll need to stay on top of design trends and figure out how those trends can be added to your designs. You may also have to adapt to new requirements if a strategic product decision is made.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not track the job outlook for UX/UI designers. That said, they predict that the number of jobs in web development , including web design, will increase by 13 percent over the next decade. This is “much faster than average,” according to the Bureau.

UX/UI designers earn high salaries. The average salary for a UX/UI designer, according to ZipRecruiter, is almost $90,000 per year. Jobs that require more experience offer salaries of up to $154,000.

There’s no way to determine exactly what salary you can expect because many factors are at play. One of the main factors that influence salary is location. The average UX/UI designer in San Francisco can earn an average of over $105,000 per year, whereas the average designer in Atlanta, Georgia, can expect around $90,000, which is the national average.

1. Prepare a resume

   Your resume is your chance to make a good first impression. It’s important to create a resume that highlights your experience and skills.

2. Craft your portfolio

   Your portfolio is what matters most to the majority of hiring managers. Unlike many coding positions, you can demonstrate your skills as a designer with a portfolio. When building your portfolio, focus on projects that show the most skill and cut out the ones that don’t. When it comes to portfolios, four amazing projects far outrank eight average ones.

3. Prepare for a technical interview

   A technical interview gives potential employers the chance to assess your knowledge of the field. While your projects might look good, they want to see how you handle the design and user testing process, and how you will fit into the company’s team.

   If you’ve attended a bootcamp for UX/UI design, these steps will be a breeze. Most bootcamps have robust career services with mentorship, interview prep, portfolio guidance, and resume reviews.

Kenzie Academy (Coding Bootcamp)

Courses:

• UI/UX Design - $11,000 - Online
• Web Development $24,000 - On-campus

Kenzie Academy offers a variety of courses. Its part-time courses include a six-month design program, an on-campus course in Indianapolis, and a 12-month online design program. In all of these options, students learn a wide range of web design fundamentals and coding languages.

Thinkful (Bootcamp)

Courses:

• UI/UX Design Flex - $7,000 - Online
• UI/ UX Design Immersion - $12,150 - Online

Thinkful has an incredible range of coding bootcamps and other useful courses for those interested in web design. Topics include digital marketing, data science, data analytics, web development, and full stack development. The two web design courses above are between 20 and 24 weeks long and are well worth the time and money investment.

Springboard (Bootcamp)

Courses:

• Introduction to Design - $350 - Online
• UX/UI Design Career Track - $10,000 - Online

Springboard offers students a four-week introductory course on web design. This is a great alternative if you’re unsure about investing in a full bootcamp. If you decide that web design is for you, they have a 36-week UX/UI design bootcamp and a 26-week course for those interested only in UX design.

Webflow University

Courses:

• Ultimate Web
• Design Course

Price: Free

Level: Beginner to intermediate

Format: Online

With more than 100 videos on their website, Webflow University students will learn the basics of HTML, Webflow CMS, and CSS. Page design construction—with elements like containers, DIVs, flexboxes, and grids—is also part of the curriculum.

SkillShare

Courses:

• The Basics of Web-Design Layout: Learn How To Describe Your Design With HTML & CSS
• Javascript: Gentle Introduction for Beginners
• Digital Design: Creating Design Systems for Easier, Better & Faster Design
• How to Design a Website in Photoshop

Price: Varies

Level: Beginner to intermediate

Format: Online

SkillShare offers an array of courses for different skill levels. This platform is a great tool for complete beginners who want to get to grips with design and for those who want to add skills to their CV. SkillShare even has some free basic web design courses.

University of California San Diego

Courses:

• Graphic and Web Design
• Introduction to Web Design

Price: $14,500

Level: Intermediate to advanced

Format: On-campus

UC San Diego has courses on advertising campaign development, digital illustration and photography, and Adobe software. You can also study web design, HTML and CSS coding, UI design, and content management systems.

Gnomon School of Visual Effects

Courses:

• Foundation in Art and Design

Price: Contact admissions@gnomon.edu

Level: Pre-BFA degree/ certificate program

Format: On-campus

Gnomon is for web design students that are more artistically inclined. The school is focused on art and game design. In this program, students will learn Photoshop for digital production, digital painting, color theory and light, life drawing, character sculpture, character drawing, and much more.

Brigham Young University-Idaho

Courses:

• Web Design & Development

Price:$4,018

Level: Bachelor of Science

Format: Online

This online course with Brigham Young University in Idaho combines web design and web development. This is an excellent option for students who want to create aesthetically pleasing and responsive websites while improving their coding skills. This course will help you in the real world when applying for jobs.

• Designmodo
• UX Planet
• UX Movement
• XD Ideas
• UXmatters

• A love or knack for visual design
• An interest in how other people think
• Humbleness and a willingness to learn and grow
• The ability to present or sell
• A passion for technology