ADVICE GIVEN BY UX SPECIALIST, LEXIE KANE ABOUT PORTFOLIO SITES:
Take a user centred approach
user = a hiring manager
keep this in mind when deciding what types of projects to include, and research deliverable in the portfolio
if you’re a student then focus your attention on class and group projects. this is because these types of projects really reflect skills you’ll need at work
focus on research process, learning, and how you worked with others
write about how you brought user centred design into your past projects
talk about projects outside of just your class work (personal projects), and maybe even volunteer projects
strong portfolios, tell a story. if you made a presentation about your projects, include excerpts from that presentation to have a narrative throughout the case studies.
if you made a study plan, include it
sketches, early concepts, and wireframes tell a story
quotes from study participants throughout are extremely compelling throughout a case study and are very useful for project development, they show that you take on board what your users are saying, and even if its a short sentence of two you can find use in it
ADVICE GIVEN BY RACHEL KRAUSE, A UX SPECIALIST ABOUT UX CASE STUDIES:
STEP 1: Talk about the design problem and the design hypothesis that you came up with to solve it
what problems did you observe when watching users, what were you asked to build, was there a difference from what you heard compared to what you saw?
STEP 2: Talk about your specific role and talk about others on your team/ how you collaborated with them. in the workplace its rare you’ll have to work on a project by yourself, and so employers want to hear about how your skillsetintegrates in with a team.
STEP 3: Introduce your solution and how you came up with it. This is where photographs come in – use pictures of your design process to explain how you came to the decision that this was the solution for your users
STEP 4: Talk about how your solution solves the problem, how does this impact their life, and change it from what it was before?
STEP 5: Talk about challenges you faced: were there additional design concepts you came up with? Give a sneak peak into the nitty gritty of your process even it its messy. (photos from workshops or usability testing, sketches, journey maps)
STEP 6: Communicate how this project affected users, and the business. Did you notice an increase in user satisfaction? or adoption and engagement? use tangible numbers where you can. Finally, talk about what you learned – you personally or else the team and how you’ll work differently in the future.
