| | Meng Li | I am very pleased with the Design Foundation course (with a UX/UI focus) at the Designlab, for the following reasons: - 1-on-1 session with real mentor is precious! I found this component tremendously helpful as I had ample time to ask questions and customize my learning path. And speaking to an experienced professional in the field is an empowering experience. - very organized and well thought out curriculum. The curriculum was laid out in a way that I felt I was informed and guided throughout. For me in particular, I find the instruction videos offered on many online learning platforms are most helpful and I always read a lot in order to compliment those learnings. Designlab's course offered me just that - love the reading material and extended reading prompts. - easy going community with real professionals. I like how mentors are always around in the community, whether in slack channel or in group crits (another great feature I am yet to explore more). I see a group of professionals that really love what they are doing, which is very encouraging. When I searched for bootcamps earlier this year I had interactions with other course providers. Eventually I found Designlab people the most approachable and more importantly, the admission team know the industry (and know what I'm talking about) unlike a few others I spoke with. |
| | Anna | I am a teacher currently looking to transition into the field of User Experience. I have been contemplating this career change for a long time and initially felt overwhelmed with trying to figure out which boot camp or program would help me achieve this goal. In the end, I chose Design Lab UX Academy. The foundations course is a requirement to enroll in the UX Academy boot camp unless you have prior design experience. I found that the course is invaluable in this transition to UX from another field/profession because it sets you up with the skills and confidence needed before jumping into an intensive program. I enjoyed the UX of the Design Lab courses and site overall - especially how it shows you the percent of the course you've already completed - this kept me motivated. The mentor sessions and feedback was also a valuable resource since they can give you more individualized attention and support as you navigate the projects and course materials. Overall, I enthusiastically recommend the UX Academy Foundations course for anyone who is interested in trying out UX or those who have the goal of transitioning into the field of UX. |
| | Jeroen de Groot | I did quite some online courses related to UX but at Designlab I had the opportunity to actually work on assignments and iterate on them based on feedback provided by a mentor. The course is logically build up in 8 units and every unit starts with theory, a copy exercise where you do a deep dive in tool functionality but also learn how landing pages and apps are structured. After a reflection you move into a design exercise where you have more creative freedom. On average every week you have a chance to talk with your mentor for an hour, you can chat about your designs, ask questions and you receive extra tips and tricks. You are encouraged to time-box your iterations to get used to an agile way of working and build confidence sharing intermediate products. The emphasis is on UI but this helps you jumpstarting the UX Academy (you loose less time on learning a tool, UI definitions and UI design). |
