What I learnt from Google’s “Foundations of UX design” course
A brief but concise summary of how I’m learning to be better at UX (and you could too) by leveraging what I learnt from a course on Coursera
Whether you’re new in the field of UX or have been here for a while, you’ve probably heard of Google’s new UX Design Specialization on Coursera.
It is a professional certification consisting of applied learning projects, practice-based activities and assessments that would help gain one in-demand skills for an entry level job in the field of UX.
I decided to take up the course and brush up my understanding of fundamental concepts and I’m glad I did. It has covered the basics really well and now that I’ve completed it, I’m excited to share my learnings here.
The course content is structured week wise (consisting of 4 weeks) and each week covers a few topics which are then assessed in between the lectures as well as at the end with the help of quizzes, practice activities, discussion forums etc. I think it’s a great way to learn and keep track of what you’re learning by actively participating and sharing your ideas with the rest of the learners.
Week 1 - Introduction to UX Design
Topics covered —
- Various Jobs/Careers in the field of UX - As a beginner, I would often wonder what exactly the different job titles in the UX design industry meant. Visual designer? Interaction designer? Motion designer? UX Researcher? The list goes on. This part of the course explores these different careers within the field of user experience to give a clearer understanding of what each of these people do at their respective jobs.
- Product Development Lifecycle - It is also important for a UX designer to know how UX fits in each stage of the product development cycle and what role designers play in the cycle.
- Identifying good and poor user experience - What is it exactly that makes a product effective to its users? The Google design team helps you discover great examples of UX in everyday objects through this very interesting article — Is It Good Design?
- Job and responsibilities of an entry level UX Designer - Junior designers and beginners are always curious about what work a UX design career might actually involve. This part of the course explores just that.
- Specialists, Generalists and T-shaped Designers - As you get further along your career, you can choose to specialize in a specific area of UX design or keep your skill set broad. This part of the course differentiates between specialists, generalists and T-shaped designers to let learners find what works for them best.
- Types of companies that hire UX Designers - Depending on where you want to work, your job as a UX designer can be very different. This part of the course lets you know some of the pros and cons of working at startups, big companies, design agencies, advertising agencies and freelancing.
- Working in a cross functional team - It is also important for a designer to be able to function in a collaborative environment with other professionals. A typical team that a UX Designer might work with may include engineers, UX Researchers, Program Managers, Product Leads and other UX designers.
- A UX design career journey - This week ends with a discussion forum prompting students to reflect on their interests and list goals they have in mind for exploring the field of UX Design.
Week 2 - Getting to know common terms, tools, and frameworks in UX design
Topics covered —
- Prioritizing the User - Focusing on the power of user-centric design, this part of the course discusses common terms like user, end-user, user experience etc. and successful products in terms of UX. Learners are encouraged to think and discuss about one or two products that have been successful in the market because they were designed keeping the users in mind.
- Key Frameworks in UX Design - Most UX designers follow a specific framework or process when approaching their work, from the first idea all the way through to the final launch of a product. This part will dive into more detail about the user-centered design process, the five elements of UX design, the design thinking process, lean UX and double diamond.
Read more about some of these frameworks below —
UX — A quick glance about The 5 Elements of User Experience
The UX Design Process: Everything You Need to Know
- Universal design, inclusive design, and equity-focused design - Universal design is the process of creating one product for users with the widest range of abilities and in the widest range of situations.
Inclusive design means making design choices that take into account personal identifiers like ability, race, economic status, language, age, and gender.
Equity-centered design focuses on designing for groups that have been historically underrepresented or ignored when building products. This part of the course helps learners understand why it is important to consider the needs of not just most users but all users. Every designer should know why creating products for those who are underrepresented and excluded is a must. - Importance of accessibility in Design - Accessibility in design allows users of diverse abilities to navigate, understand, and use your UI. This part of the course emphasizes on the importance of accessibility in design. Review the Accessibility Guide for Google Material to get more insight.
- Designing for the next billion users - The Next Billion Users are the future generation of internet users. For example, a first-time internet user in rural India has very different needs and wants than a techie in Los Angeles. To understand this better read how designers can be more empathic and effective when creating products for emerging markets.
- UX Design Toolbox - Here we learn about the different tools UX Designers use in their day-to-day work.
Some of the popular ones are —
Figma, Adobe XD, Sketch, Framer (Wireframing and Prototyping Tools)
Google Slides, Microsoft PowerPoint, Keynote (Presentation Tools)
Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop (Image Manipulation Tools)
Lottie, Adobe After Effects (Animation Tools)
- Designing for all platforms - A platform is the medium that users experience your product on. When designing a product for different platforms, a designer has to consider screen size, interactions, content layout, functionality etc. to maintain consistency across all platforms.
- Assistive Technology - The term assistive technology(AT), is used to describe any products, equipment, and systems that enhance learning, working, and daily living for people with disabilities. Some examples of AT are prosthetics, pointing devices, electric wheelchairs, power lifts, eye gaze and head trackers. This part focuses on understanding how people with disabilities would use a product and why it’s critical to the UX design process.
Week 3 - Joining design sprints
Topics covered —
- Understanding Design Sprints - This week’s content is focused on making the learner explore the world of design sprints, including the phases of a design sprint and how to plan and participate in one. Read more about design sprints in this interesting article.
- Planning Design Sprints - Learners are made to participate in an exercise wherein a template is provided to them and they need to create a design sprint brief with it. This little exercise aims to helps the student when they’re in a similar situation at their first UX job.
- Participating in Design Sprints - Designers at Google give us an insight into a typical design sprint at Google and also help us figure out what an entry level designer’s role is at a sprint like this.
- Retrospectives - A retrospective is a collaborative critique of the design sprint. The goal of a retrospective is to make sure everyone who took part in the sprint has the chance to give feedback and think about opportunities for improvement. With the help of a practice quiz and discussion prompt, learners are made to think about the retrospective for a previous project and test their knowledge about the same.
Week 4 - Building a professional presence
Topics covered —
- Learn about UX Design Portfolios - A good design portfolio showcases your best work and highlights your top skills as a designer. It is helpful to get inspiration from the portfolios of already established designers in the industry. 3 of the portfolios I reviewed and explored as part of a course activity were —
1. Kartik Rao (Product Designer at Google) — http://www.kartikrao.in/
2. Josh Lucas (Product Designer at Google ) — https://joshglucas.com/
3. Maggie Banks (Hardware Interaction Designer ay Google) — http://pennybanks.com/
- Planning your own Portfolio - It is a good idea to actively work on your portfolio and update it each time you learn something new or have a new piece of work to show off your abilities as an user experience designer. This part of the course helps students with a list of elements to keep in mind when building their personal portfolio —
- Name and personal logo — to establish a unique identity for yourself
- Navigation Menu — simple and intuitive
- Work Samples — choose a layout that highlights your best work
- “About Me” — a place where people can find out about your personality more- your interests, hobbies, passions etc.
- Contact Information — links to your resume, professional online profiles, so recruiters can contact you for work opportunities
- Color Scheme — one that reflects your personal brand or personality
- Developing an online presence - Some of the popular online profiles UX designers use for networking, publishing work or finding jobs are LinkedIn, Twitter, Behance, Dribbble and Medium. Learners are encouraged to create or update their online profiles to become an active member of the UX Design community online.
- Networking - Networking is an important part of finding your first job and building your career in any field and not just UX. Learners are encouraged to find a mentor as well as reach out/keep in touch with other professionals in the field to expand their network which could be valuable to them in the future.
Final Thoughts
So far, I feel like this course has helped me gain a better understanding of what the day to day responsibilities of an entry level UX Designer are. It was a good learning experience and the activities made it the more fun. I would recommend anyone taking the course to complete it earnestly since all assignments are self graded or optional, it’s easy to skip them and move ahead but that would defeat the purpose of taking it up in the first place.
Thank you so much for reading!
If you liked this article make sure to leave a clap and if you looooved it, leave 50 claps. I’d appreciate any feedback or questions. I will be publishing a follow up article with a short summary of the second course in the specialization as soon as I finish it.
I’m always up for a chat and love talking about all things design, connect with me on LinkedIn.
