Transitioning into the UX design industry from a different field can seem like a daunting task considering the amount of varied information one finds on the Internet.
What should you know, what should you be able to do and should you go back to school to start a new degree/course?
Obviously, getting some training is a good start in any field.
In this post we will focus on what UX design courses UX professionals wish they had taken before starting their job.
This will serve as a great point to start from if you are considering User Experience Design as a field to work in.
In order to give you the most reliable information, this is not just my opinion but from a survey study conducted by the recognized Nielson Norman Group of 963 UX professionals already working in the industry.
Background of participants
To begin with here is a breakdown of the UX professionals that participated in the study.
Survey Participants’ years of experience in user experience (UX)
Now to the more interesting part.
Participants were asked what UX design courses did they wish they had taken that would have prepared them for a UX position. The results were as follows
Understanding the responses
Many said their education had served them well, but many also indicated there were subjects/courses in which they wished for more education. All of these courses represent topics useful to UX (HCI, social sciences, design) and / or very competitive job skills (Computer Science, marketing, JavaScript, drawing).
- Some respondents said that many of the wished-for ux courses they mentioned had been unavailable at the time, unavailable at the university, unavailable in their country, or unavailable in the degree
programs they pursued. - Others said they had taken some courses in the topic, but now they want to take more-advanced UX design courses.
- Many people mentioned that business, organizational behavior, and persuasive techniques courses were not included in their design training, and in retrospect it would be a huge practical advantage to have those in the workplace.
- Several people said the courses they want to take would help them be more competitive in the job market now or would help them be much more effective in their current roles.
Action items for you:
Identify what you maybe be missing from your skillset
Find short UX courses or general courses online that cover some if not most of these subjects and do them
Alternatively find books around these topics
