Stage 1 of 8 · 6 lessons · ~2 weeks
How product design works
What UX and UI mean, how design work moves from a fuzzy problem to shipped screens, and who does what on a product team. This gives every later stage a place to fit.
Start: UX and UI: what each one coversLessons· one lesson for each topic, in this order
Do this
- Write one sentence each on what UX and UI mean, in your own words.
- Pick a real problem you have seen people struggle with: a university portal, a local delivery app, a government form.
- Write a problem statement that names the user, the struggle and why it matters, with no solution in it.
- Write two "How might we" questions from that statement.
- Choose two success measures you could check before and after a redesign.
- Read three job descriptions for your target role and note which design steps they mention most.
Start with· follow one of these
- GuideFreeInteraction Design Foundation (IxDF) Free Articles
Interaction Design Foundation · Beginner
Free articles on every step of the design process, written for beginners
- CoursePaidGoogle UX Design Professional Certificate
Google (Coursera) · Beginner · $49/month on Coursera (US and Canada)
A paid, structured course if you want deadlines and three portfolio projects; the free articles cover the same ideas
Keep handy
Also worth your time
A clear overview of the stages of a human-centred process, with the common misunderstandings
- Nielsen Norman Group ArticlesGo deeper
The largest free archive of research-backed UX articles; search it whenever a topic here raises a question
Before moving on: A one-page project brief for a real problem you care about: a problem statement without a solution, the users, two "How might we" questions and two success measures.
Beginners want to open Figma on day one. Resist it for a week. The designers who get hired can explain why a screen exists, not just how it looks, and that starts with writing the problem down in plain words.