This is also your time to showcase any unique hobbies or things that make you, well, you. In these cases, consider volunteering as a team or doing pro bono work as part of a nonprofit hackathon. It begins with a nice overview, detailing her responsibilities and the project goals. CarbonMade : Andrea Azcurra: Andrea is a seasoned UX writer and content strategist with a love of design thinking and user experience. A UX design portfolio is a collection of design case studies that showcases your skillset and your approach to the design process as a whole. 7. But its also an opportunity to let your creativity shine., Portfolio example: Jeremy Stokes - Cultivate, Jeremy Stokes is a former Google UX intern and current product designer at Duolingo. Your homepage should include a compelling headline introducing who you are and what you do. 2. UX designersnewbies and experts alikewill often share a case study on a portfolio website as a great way to get hired. Attending a hackathon gives you the opportunity to design a real app while collaborating with a real team of other designers, developers, and engineers. Design leads or recruiters will not read through 10 case studies, so its better to curate your best work only, like Nuwanthi does. They also ensure that the end-to-end journey with their products or services meets desired outcomes. I'm a former teacher transitioning into a career in UX. Work through the entire process, including user research (your friends and family can be your first test subjects). What are some key companies or brands you have worked with? It comes with templates and a repeatable structure that you can use to knock out UX case studies and portfolios. When reviewing candidates, design leads always check their portfolios first. Use emotive language to show empathy. Where teams create the worlds best experiences at scale, powered by the leader in creative tools. Build a concise, clean, portfolio. But many designers abuse the format. Your portfolio website is itself a demonstration of your skills. This is particularly important when giving background on the problem you set out to solve. If you've never written a UX case study, don't worry. Since Denise has experience in UX as well as UI design, she included more projects in her portfolio than the average designer would. But, since they are under his own domain name on a dedicated website made with UXfolio, they have a more portfolio-ish aura to them. Emi Lantz Emi Lantz's portfolio website opens with a simple statement, "Hi! You want to select projects that demonstrate your UX process, your problem-solving skills . A project from his experience as a documentary filmmaker bolsters his UX portfolio and speaks to his capability to perform as a professional. Offer helpful resources ~~~~~ Ready to pivot into UI/UX design? But each section is important for an effective UX case study. In Danielles portfolio, the spotlight is on the UIs. Recruiters and UX professionals have to look through dozens of case studies each day. Dont be afraid to use the same for your case studies. Jared Bartman. Avoid signing a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) for unpaid work. Documentary is, after all, a quintessential form of user research. She includes the tools and skills she used in each, to help future clients/employers see what she brings to the table. His solution? In a goal to improve accessibility of Xbox content outside of desktop use, he lay outs the issues that need to be solved and clearly highlights the objectives of his case study. Writing case studies for your UX portfolio can feel opaque and overwhelming. This can be a good tactic if you have NDA-protected work that you want to showcase without exposing it to the whole world. Get XD Ideas delivered weekly to your inbox. In this article, well walk through seven types of portfolio case studies you can add to your portfolio that dont require you already having a job. The UX Portfolio Case Study template has 8 critical sections that recruiters are looking for. The thumbnail generator takes your case studies hero section and your images (with or without device mockups) and offers you various thumbnail options. This is a common theme in the best UX portfolio examples. UX portfolio and case study templates in a click In UXfolio everything's just a click away: UX portfolio templates, UX case study generator, stunning galleries for your UIs, auto-generated device mockups, copywriting help, community and expert feedback and much-much more! Thats because Nicola experimented with the device mockups arrangement on each thumbnail. You could borrow this technique and present iterations based on user research to tell the story of a project. The Prescription tracker case study uses UXfolios sticky navigation section to help the readers comprehension of the projects stages: interviews, user journey, sketch, iterate, prototype, release. This technique gives a sense of closeness and raises the credibility factor of a case study. Most of her info is reserved for the About page, allowing her work to take center stage. There is just enough text to act as preambles to each step of the process. Long case studies work only if the project calls for it. They want you to explain your decisions and to tell why you decided to go with those specific solutions. Refresh the page, check Medium 's site status, or find something interesting to read. . Here are the most common user research methods: As you explain the process for your methodology, answer these key questions: A comparative and competitive analysis is a good way to describe the results and what you learned, as shown below: Or, you can include your key takeaways in bullet points, as shown in this example: Next, walk the reader through your design phase. Sarah arranged the case study into 5 main sections: Under each section, we get further details, arranged into smaller sections. He begins on a personal note in his description, pointing out that the Boulderr App was a passion project that he worked on with his friends. Its because he used the same text styles and naming formulas on each. You dont have to reinvent the wheel in order to create something unique. Give riders more control over their time and money. The course teaches you how to create a solid UX portfolio in record time. Try to include at least one live case study. In 2021 weve been seeing more and more dark UX portfolio examples. Heres the proof that you dont have to overthink your UI/UX portfolio to achieve something great. You may not have a huge budget (or any budget at all) when working on a passion project. If you are creating case studies solely for the purpose of populating your portfolio, I guarantee those won't be competitive enough. For one, your story should be at the heart of your case study. The final section includes your Case Studies. Getting started with Pixpa is relatively simple. If you can tell an effective story while integrating human-computer interaction principles throughout, youll come across as a great UX designer that any company would like to hire. What you need is a nice introduction, carefully selected fonts, and a nice, harmonizing color palette to create something beautiful. To give recruiters vital insights, designers tell compelling stories in text and images to show how they handled problems. How to write a UX writing case study A step-by-step guide to breaking down the UX writing approach of a user experience and improving upon it. Its up to you which one you chose! Knowledge of UX methods and their application. There are a few ways to do this. Keep the same tone as in the rest of your design portfolio's copy, in order to form a clear personal brand and consistent browsing experience. Case studies aren't just for UX portfolios or for consulting proposals: they provide a narrative to describe your work to friends and colleagues. The first thing we see when landing on the portfolio is a high-quality photo of Bjorn, with a friendly smile on his face, alongside a short design manifesto. Youll find plenty of benefits to working as an interneven if youre unpaidincluding: Portfolio example: Ricardo Hernndez Prez, Adobe, Ricardo Hernndez Prez, a product designer with Google, got his start with an internship at Adobe. Resist the urge to simply redesign the interface. Next, call attention to the research you and your team completed. It is her case study thumbnails that tie the whole portfolio page together visually by featuring mockups on grey backgrounds. Include a section outlining next steps if you were to continue the work. The course assignment Sometimes, the first project to go into your portfolio will be a UX project you worked on as part of a design course, UX bootcamp, or degree program. You can also provide in-depth case studies that communicate how you facilitate a user experience. Her case study titles and subtitles are effective too. Joshs portfolio is a great example of a project-focused portfolio. In UX, case studies are what design leads and recruiters are looking for. How are they different from UX portfolios? First consider the overall structure of your UX portfolio, which should demonstrate your skills and value as a designer. UX writing & relevant articles. Tie your project to business results if possible. In the Mimic case study Josh decided to showcase the final designs by focusing on challenges and user needs. Recruiters and readers dont have hours to review your portfolio, so feature only 3-5 of your absolute best projects. This way she avoids an overload of information upon the first impression. If youre wondering what a senior UX designer portfolio should look like, check out Nuwanthis! Meanwhile, the subtitle describes the scope of the project. GitHub community articles . We dont understand the copy in Hyks Moje Osiedle case study, but we can see that he included plenty of visuals alongside the text to help his readers comprehension. Sidney drops a relatable, personal paragraph about distraction then moves on to takeaways that shell be able to use in other projects too. Remember: Outcomes are evident for you, but not for others, since they didnt work on the project with you. Feel free to link externally to any documents that may be too lengthy for your portfolio site. She showcases her expertise and skills in 4 impactful case studies, focusing on. Include any positive feedback from the judges, even if your project didnt ultimately win. I have completed 1 full case study for my portfolio so far and I'm beginning the next. To begin, break your case study into these main sections: The bulk of your material will be in section two, when you talk about your process. Get free online user experience lessons at uxtraining.net. You can link your case studies directly from this page too. Her custom thumbnails use the same mockup styles, yet they dont feel repetitive at all. This allows recruiters to instantly recognize what she has experience in. Youve seen some of the best portfolios and youve probably realized that they share many similarities. Refresh the page, check. Therefore its understandable that UX leads and recruiters want to see your approach and process. For Julia Feld, nothing brings a community together quite like a hot plate of fresh homemade pasta drizzled. Nicolas UX design portfolio is a love letter to minimalism. It creates a sense of cohesion even when some of your visuals include colorful pictures. Standard Standard Package. Make clear that this was a design challenge so recruiters are aware of the limitations, such as time constraints. His favorite medium is photography and he is a lover of UX because it means constantly helping people. Play an active role in our thriving, inspiring, and fun UX Design practice and culture. 1. One important feature is the "Back to Top" button on the right-hand side of the case study pages. Such thumbnails alongside a concise and intriguing introduction make for a winning combination. Outline that problem and how you went about solving it in your case study. Another way to add real client work to your UX portfolio is to complete one or two small projects pro bono. Choose projects that are fun or interesting to you and that youd be proud to display in your portfolio. In addition to walking through the entire UX design process step by step, Clayton offers insights into how he and his team responded to the urgency of the process, lessons learned along the way, and the results: three days after launch, the number of volunteers had increased from 100 to 1,200. Just remember: When youre writing your UX case studies, show how your users influenced your design decisions. Justin Morales is a Senior UX designer currently working at Signify Health, a B2B Healthtech company, based in Los Angeles. Dorons case studies resemble the style of Behance. For example, sometimes a contextual inquiry is appropriate while other times it is not. 5. He grew up in Texas, matured in Colorado, and spent his late 20s living in Australia, New Zealand, and Asia. 3. Writing a case study is the way a UX researcher demonstrates their value. Thats where you can utilize Shubhams technique: create a thumbnail template that can be used for any project with only a few tweaks. Switch branches/tags. They utilize a great formula for naming UX/UI case studies: The Mise case study follows a great structure. When it comes to storytelling and case studies, it is crucial to explicitly connect the research and the final outcome. Jeremy begins his case study by introducing the service, then takes you behind the scenes to see his design process. Consider including the following: Of course, youll dive deeper into some of these in later sections, so keep it brief for now. Perhaps theres a non-profit organization, school, or small business in your community that could use a website or app redesign.. Of course, the number of iterations you present is not set in stone. This is reflected in his stunning UX design portfolio. As leaders, its up to us to start fostering and empowering new design talent now. Be respectful of the original designers, and try not to insult their work. Though their backgrounds are color-blocking, the thumbnails are tied together by the style and positioning of the screens on them. Where are you from? Valeries is a good example that your thumbnails can diverge from the color scheme of your showcased projects if those dont fit together on your home page. More or less, the case study . and capitalize on it. Case study What do you love most about design? Hyk shows that there are more options to presenting UIs than device mockups: you can also experiment with placements and shadows. Let's break down how you might do that. Whenever you are showcasing design changes or insights from users, think about how would you present the same things for your clients or boss. The idea is to have a functioning piece of software by the end of the competitive event, usually constrained to 24 to 72 hours.. You should also highlight and tease any emerging technology that you used (such as AR, AI, or VR) to pique your readers attention. Youve actually thought about what youve learned that you can utilize in future projects as well. main. Though putting one together might seem like a huge undertaking, once you get an idea of what makes a great portfolio itll come easier. This is where youll select and showcase projects youre proud of and explain your design process from start to finish. 14 UX designer portfolio examples Let's check out these 14 UX portfolios to help you create your own design in a way that captures the spirit of your work, as well as a sense of who you are. Sagars case study ends with a section about How is the app performing? and another one for reflections. Bjorns hero section is simple and welcoming. Short videos present user task flows in a way that doesnt rely on big blocks of text. They add a touch of personality to your case studies and also some credibility. However all UX design portfolios need to balance an engaging visual experience with one that enhances usability. Here is an example of next steps for a minimum viable product (MVP) for a wine-pairing app. Nobody wants to look at a cramped portfolio and as much as you want to squeeze everything into a thumbnail you need to make some cuts to keep it simple. Sarah put together a beautiful UX portfolio that emphasizes case studies above all else. You'll also have the opportunity to participate in a Capstone project to build the front end of a web application. The intro is kept short, instead, he uses an About me to list the personal information a recruiter might be interested in. If youve never written a UX case study, dont worry. A good case study explains your design process from start to finish, providing reasoning behind each decision leading up to the final design. He paired these descriptions with rough sketches trying to solve those particular challenges. When we hover over Natalies project thumbnails, you can read project subtitles like. You can also create a GIF to showcase certain user flows like this: Or, feel free to take a simple approach with mockups like this: After you blow the reader away with your impressive final design, you can address the next steps in your design process. Both analytical data and learnings would be impactful closures for a case study, but combining the two is even better! Give examples of great case studies + how to write one. Four UI/UX case studies for your portfolio Up to 7 design screens. Your Cover Page should include a hero image, as well as your name and current job title. Melysias case studies showcase what a difference a well-chosen accent color makes. There is no better way to show how much work and consideration is involved in the design process. Meta Front-end Developer Professional Certificate: Throughout this program, you'll manage a project in GitHub using version control, Git repositories, and the Linux terminal. UX Case Study template A UX case study is a detailed but summarized presentation of a design project, its goals and objectives, the research methods used, the process to find a solution and the results achieved. Learners are advised to conduct additional research to ensure that courses and other credentials pursued meet their personal, professional, and financial goals. Sometimes one sentence, an image, and a clear navigational menu is enough., Your About page is the place to go into a bit more detail about who you are and how you got started in UX, especially if youve switched from another career., Early on in your UX journey, you may not have a ton of design work to include in your portfolio. What is a UI & UX Design case study? 2. 1. User flows and customer journey maps. Also, pay mind to your introduction. Daley Wilhelm Jun 10, 2022 Writing effective agency case studies It's harder than it looks, and why film posters are a good start. Reflecting on a project shows that you didnt just move on to the next one after delivering the design. He begins by setting the scene: we learn about his role, the problem, tools, and his approach/ideas. This is a good way to encourage visitors to get in touch. Her project got her an internship, as well as a stellar portfolio piece. It's not rocket science, but there are certain guidelines to follow to make your portfolio a success. If you still need projects to fill the gaps in your portfolio, you have plenty of options. Be clear about the scope and limitations of your project. Thus, it is a great template for you if you dont feel like creating separate sections for the research insights or simply want to showcase final UIs as soon as possible. She also elegantly solves the issue of how to present small projects that don't merit a full case . Many UX designers use it to ensure that the data in their case studies remain confidential. As we know, the UX design process is not linear, and every design calls for a different methodology. Stockwell agrees as they put it, "WebFX's services have impacted our core business by assisting with the brand awareness . The Pain Points and User Motivation section gives a detailed description while remaining easy to follow thanks to the content structure. If well designed, small illustrations, nice flowcharts, redesigned deliverables can elevate a case study immensely. The Storytelling Approach in UX Case Studies An essential part of the portfolio of a UX designer is the case studies that pack a showcase of the designer's skills, way of thinking, insights in the form of compelling stories. This type of project is great for: Establishing familiarity with the design process, Shu Jiang, a product designer at Google, includes an excellent example of an unsolicited redesign of the app Houzz in her portfolio. For her thumbnails, Marthe opted for the same mockups to create visual consistency. Problem: Important notices were getting lost among the flood of other messages, with half of the information becoming irrelevant by the time it reached students.As a result, students had to rely on word of mouth to stay informed. Hyks is a very simple yet impressive portfolio home page, mostly because of his eye-catching thumbnails. After all, the point of a case study is to reveal your process, through which your readers can better understand you. 4. Our job at UXfolio includes talking to world-renowned design leaders to find out what theyre looking for in portfolios. Pick an app or website that youre familiar with, and make it better through your design process.. Hiring managers want to be able to see the process, including times where you made design decisions and why. Nuwanthi prefers her case studies on the shorter side. A good overview can consist of the steps of your design process. When choosing projects for your portfolio go for impactful ones that. Throughout the previous years, long case studies have been the standard among UXers. Present the right work, summarize your findings, and communicate clearly to showcase your skills. It could be attributed to the combination of the amazing illustration on his homepage and his bold choice of colors. Competitive UX analysis. However, if you take the time to visualize your process and UX decisions, its more likely that it will get them interested. Regardless of the platform you use, setting a password for your case studies doesnt take long. The rest of the content follows Rachels design process, including research, sketching, and prototyping. Created the design for a mobile app, need someone to work on pdf case study so I can use it in my portfolio, I will design screens/images and maybe some videos. Her project choices share this quality as they showcase nothing but digital products. User Experience Strategist @userfocus. Adding pages like About/Bio, Contact, UX designer resum, and social links can make your portfolio more usable, revealing, and personal.