The advent of expansion in technology has given rise to an increase in people learning digital skills. Tech skills like UX design, Product management, Front end development, Software engineering, etc. are gaining prominence on job charts worldwide, especially UX design.
A recent report by Glassdoor shows that UX design is one of the top ten sought-after skills around the world. Another report also revealed that 87% of hiring managers prioritize hiring UX designers in their organization. This stat indicates that the demand for UX designers is on the increase.
However, as the demand for UX designers increases, a significant question on the mind of an intending UX designer "Is it hard to learn UX design?". I am sure you must have asked this question as well. You have probably heard about how some tech skills can be demanding and hard to learn, so you wonder if UX design is in that category.
Starting a career in UX design is not for the fainthearted, but it becomes easy with commitment, passion, and a lifestyle committed to lifelong learning.
In this article, I will share tips on learning UX design, options to explore for learning UX design, the UX design process, and how to build an excellent UX career.
Tips on how to learn UX design
Learning UX design can be a bit challenging, but the rewards of being a UX design expert are enough to motivate you to brave the odds and give yourself consistent training.
There are three ways you can learn an in-demand skill like UX design: You can either learn on your own, attend a Bootcamp or attend a college to study UX design.
Learn UX design by yourself
There are several stories of self-taught UX designers who have incredible design skills and have even become industry leaders in UX design, so don't think it is an unachievable feat. Learning on your own allows you to learn at your own pace, but it might take a while before you understand the core principles of UX design.
Here are a few tips on how you can learn UX yourself
Read materials on UX design
UX design is broad, so it is better to start early by researching and reading any material you can find on it online. As an enthusiast, it is better that you first have an adequate understanding of UX design. It would be best if you didn't start with rumors about UX design.
Get a good grasp of the basics of the UX design process, read up on user research to understand the importance of understanding users, also read about the usability and usefulness of design, design thinking, prototyping, and wireframing. Also, it would help if you learned the difference between a UX designer and a UI designer because you may get them mixed up since they are primarily written or described together.
Also, you can take a random check on UX jobs, the salary range, the roles and responsibilities of a UX designer, and the requirements that companies want in a UX designer; knowing these will guide your learning process.
Starting a new career requires that you have enough information to be well convinced and make objective decisions. Reading about UX design will further strengthen your conviction to become a UX designer or make you understand whether it is the career you desire to pursue.
UX design is broad, so it is better to start early by researching and reading any material you can find on it online. As an enthusiast, it is better that you first have an adequate understanding of UX design. It would be best if you didn't start with rumors about UX design.
Have you read these articles?
Take free online courses.
There are free courses online that can get you started in UX design. You can learn a lot by subscribing to UX design channels on YouTube. Also, you can access free courses by typing "UX design free course" on search engines.
The good thing is that you can learn on your schedule, which gives you time to pause to reflect on the previous items you have learned and practice them before moving to the next stage in your study.
The downside of free online courses is that you'd have to do the learning on your own, there is little or no room for questions and answers, there is no room for mentorship, and you might not have the chance to work on real-world projects.
Learn how to use UX design tools
There is a tool for each design process in UX design, and you must learn how to use these tools early enough in your design career. Now, you might not learn all the tools at once, but you can learn at least one tool and know how to use it effectively as a starter.
These are some of the tools you'll need as a UX designer
UX research tools
There are specialized tools for each aspect or type of UX research. These tools make it easier to record observations, record deductions
Tools for user interviews and surveys
Ethnio
Lookback
userzoom
DSCOUT
Tools for usability testing
Maze
Userlytics
UsabilityHub
Prototyping tools
Adobe xd
Figma
Marvel
Principle
Balsamiq
Axure RP
Webflow
Avoid tutorial hell; build personal projects
One of the things that keep learners stuck is being in a tutorial hell. Tutorial hell simply means being stuck with watching tutorials and just following along.
It is always good when you start the tutorials, but many people fall into the trap of thinking, I don't know this thing very well, I need to watch another tutorial and practice along with the instructor, till they spend months just watching tutorials.
One way to break out of tutorial hell is by building your projects. You can redesign an existing product, offer to design for friends and family for free, and design a product from scratch.
Leverage UX communities on social media to advance your learning
You can join discussion forums on social media to learn from other designers. Learning user experience design on your own can be a bit taxing, you might struggle with a concept for a long time if there is no one to help you understand it.
Thus, you can leverage social media platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter to learn from industry leaders and also get inspiration from other designers. In fact, you can also get your first job as a UX designer through these communities on social media
Create your UX portfolio
Your UX portfolio is an important part of your UX career. Your portfolio is a collection of your designs, which serves as proof of the authenticity of your skills.
Your portfolio should be simple and detailed enough to impress potential employers. Research has shown that design managers spend 5 minutes on a design portfolio, so you don't want to make it look bulky.
You can add two to three case studies. Include the design process for each case study. Watch out for common mistakes. Make the portfolio look attractive.
Take certification courses
Certification courses are usually for those who desire the detailed and theoretical understanding that an institution provides, but are not available to attend physically or afford the fees. Certifications are undoubtedly expensive, but they are not as expensive as the cumulative amount you will spend attending an institution.
Moreover, certifications gain a lot of recognition from industry professionals and provide a higher chance of getting a job. This is because certificate courses are believed to be detailed and well-structured Your course certificates are proof that you have been tutored and found worthy of the skill you learned.
Get a design degree
You can also learn user experience design by attending a design degree awarding institution. This seems to be the best option, only if you can afford it. Getting a degree is expensive but it is worth it.
You can be sure that you will be taught by professionals when you attend an accredited institution. You will also have full access to the school library where you can study more materials for further learning.
Attending a UX Bootcamp
UX Bootcamps are immersive, intensive online or physical training on UX design, which only lasts for a short term. UX Bootcamps are created for those who desire an institution's quality of education but have limited time to learn.
UX Bootcamps are designed to teach learners from zero experience to being skilled enough to get their first job in UX design. It is also perfect for those willing to upskill in their career path.
Bootcamps are also expensive but relatively cheap compared to getting a degree. Moreso, there are Bootcamps that have solved the "high cost" issue for you. You can check for a highly subsidized UX Bootcamp that offers quality education without holding anything back.
Have you read five reasons to consider an online Bootcamp?
Vital areas to learn in UX design
User research
User research is an integral part of UX design. User research allows you to understand users' pain points and motivations. UX design is about satisfying the user's needs, and you can't do that without a good grasp of how to conduct user research.
Understanding user research will help you make good design decisions to design products that solve users' needs.
Design thinking
Design thinking is iterative process designers use to solve users' problems. Design thinking has five non-linear steps which are: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test.
Interaction design
Interaction design is focused on creating interaction between the product and the user. Interaction design is an essential aspect of UX design because the user experience of a product is heavily dependent on the seamless interaction between the product and the user.
Thus, creating a usable product won't be easy if you don't understand how to make the user communicate well with the product.
Some courses separate interaction design from UX design and treat it as a whole topic, but that does not remove the fact it is still part of the user experience of a product.
Responsiveness for mobile apps
Research revealed that 70% of digital media in the USA comes from mobile apps. This is enough reason to prioritize creating responsive apps for mobile devices.
Most users will access the product from their phones, and if you don't have them in mind, you are ignoring the needs of a more significant percentage of your user group. It would be best if you should learn how to design responsive apps early.
Usability testing
You cannot learn UX design without knowing how to conduct usability tests, otherwise called usability studies by some. The actual test of the user experience of your product is how usable the product is for users.
Conducting a usability test implies testing the prototype version of your product on a representative user group. The feedback from this test will help you make adjustments to the product before the final launch.
UI design
UI design is different from UX design as a career, but it is still part of the user experience of a product. This is why some organizations define it as UI/UX design in their job description. UI design is a mix of graphics and visual design. So, it is easy for a graphic designer to upskill into a UI designer.
Conclusion
There is presently a high demand for UX designers in several industries. This. Still, many are due to the need to create products that resonate with human needs, pain points, limitations,, and expectations. Thus, there is no better time to learn UX design than now.