What is a UX designer?

User experience (UX) designers focus on the experience that users have while using products like websites, apps, and physical objects. UX designers make those everyday interactions useful, enjoyable, and accessible. The role of an entry-level UX designer might include coming up with ideas to address user problems, conducting research with users, and designing wireframes, mockups, and prototypes. If you enjoy talking to and empathizing with people, drawing, thinking creatively, or paying attention to details, a job as a UX designer might be a good fit for you!

What tools or platforms are included in the curriculum?

Figma and Adobe XD are the design tools taught in the seven courses of the Google UX Design Certificate. This course focuses on the early phases of the design process, so both Figma and Adobe XD will be introduced in later courses of the program. Spreadsheets, word processing applications, and presentation applications will also be used. Throughout the program, you will create a professional portfolio, using the platform of your choice, to showcase your UX design work.

Which jobs will this certificate help me prepare for?

One of the most exciting parts about joining the field of user experience is the large number of job opportunities available. Nearly every company needs UX designers to help create their digital and physical products. While the need for UX designers continues to grow, there is currently a shortage of UX design professionals to fill those roles. A career in UX design allows you the opportunity to work as a generalist, finding a role as a UX designer, UI designer, or UX researcher, or as a specialist, like a visual designer or interaction designer. Upon completion of this certificate program, you will be able to search for jobs with all of these titles, and find the role that best suits you.

Do I need to take the course in a certain order?

This is the second of seven courses in the Google UX Design Certificate. We highly recommend completing the seven courses in this certificate program in the order presented, because the content and applications in each course build on information presented and practiced in earlier courses.

When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?

To access the course materials, assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience when you enroll in a course. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid. The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.

What will I get if I subscribe to this Certificate?

When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Certificate, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.

Start the UX Design Process: Empathize, Define, and Ideate

This course is part of Google UX Design Professional Certificate

Instructor: Google Career Certificates

670,326 already enrolled

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4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

16,879 reviews

Beginner level

No prior experience required

Flexible schedule

2 weeks at 10 hours a week

Learn at your own pace

98%

Most learners liked this course

4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

16,879 reviews

Beginner level

No prior experience required

Flexible schedule

2 weeks at 10 hours a week

Learn at your own pace

98%

Most learners liked this course

What you'll learn

Empathize with users to understand their needs and pain points.
Develop problem statements to define user needs.
Generate ideas for possible solutions to user problems.

Skills you'll gain

Details to know

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Assessments

13 assignments¹

AI Graded see disclaimer

Taught in English

91%

of learners achieved a positive career outcome

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Build your Design and Product expertise

This course is part of the Google UX Design Professional Certificate

When you enroll in this course, you'll also be enrolled in this Professional Certificate.

Learn new concepts from industry experts
Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
Earn a shareable career certificate from Google

There are 4 modules in this course

Start the UX Design Process: Empathize, Define, Ideate is the second course in a certificate program that will equip you with the skills needed to apply to entry-level jobs in user experience (UX) design. In this course, you’ll complete the first phases of the design process for a project that you’ll be able to include in your portfolio. You will learn how to empathize with users and understand their pain points, define user needs using problem statements, and come up with lots of ideas for solutions to those user problems.

Current UX designers and researchers at Google will serve as your instructors, and you will complete hands-on activities that simulate real-world UX design scenarios. Learners who complete the courses in this certificate program should be equipped to apply for entry-level jobs as UX designers. No previous experience is necessary. By the end of this course, you will be able to: - Empathize with users to understand their needs and pain points. - Create empathy maps, personas, user stories, and user journey maps to understand user needs. - Develop problem statements to define user needs. - Generate ideas for possible solutions to user problems. - Conduct competitive audits. - Start designing a mobile app, a new project to include in your professional UX portfolio.

Module details

Get ready to begin the design process for a new portfolio project: a mobile app! This part of the course will focus on empathizing with users, which is the first phase of the design process. You’ll think through the needs of your potential users to build empathy maps and create personas. These hands-on activities will help you understand user perspectives and pain points.

What's included

9 videos11 readings2 assignments1 plugin

9 videosTotal 40 minutes

Introduction to Course 2: Empathize, Define, and Ideate2 minutes
Empathize with users2 minutes
Recruit interview participants 8 minutes
Prepare for user interviews3 minutes
Interviewing users 7 minutes
Empathy Maps6 minutes
Identify user pain points5 minutes
Understand personas6 minutes
Wrap-up: Empathizing with users and defining pain points1 minute

11 readingsTotal 189 minutes

Welcome to Course 215 minutes
Helpful resources and tips4 minutes
Understand empathy in UX design10 minutes
Determine research goals and questions30 minutes
Find and recruit interview participants15 minutes
Conduct user interviews15 minutes
Build empathy with users to inform research10 minutes
Build an empathy map30 minutes
Case studies: Products that address pain points20 minutes
Learn more about personas 30 minutes
Glossary terms from course 2, module 110 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 83 minutes

Module 1 Challenge75 minutes
Test your knowledge on user pain points8 minutes

1 pluginTotal 30 minutes

Pain points vs. solutions30 minutes

In this part of the course, you'll continue to empathize with users of the mobile app you'll later design. You'll craft user stories and develop user journey maps. You’ll also learn about the importance of considering accessibility when empathizing with users.

What's included

8 videos5 readings1 assignment1 plugin

8 videosTotal 26 minutes

Welcome to module 21 minute
Craft user stories2 minutes
Consider edge cases4 minutes
Ayan - Real world example of edge cases3 minutes
Create a user journey map7 minutes
Consider accessibility when empathizing 4 minutes
Understand the curb cut effect 4 minutes
Wrap-up: Creating user stories and user journey maps1 minute

5 readingsTotal 80 minutes

Learn more about user stories 15 minutes
Review: Craft user stories 10 minutes
User journey map slides15 minutes
Consider accessibility during user research30 minutes
Glossary terms from course 2, module 210 minutes

1 assignmentTotal 50 minutes

Module 2 Challenge50 minutes

1 pluginTotal 10 minutes

Design accessible experiences10 minutes

All of your work to empathize with users will help you define the problem that users are facing. In this part of the course, you'll move from the empathize phase into the define phase of the design process. To define the problem your designs will solve, you’ll build a problem statement, a hypothesis statement, and a value proposition. In addition, you’ll explore how psychology and human factors influence design.

What's included

7 videos7 readings3 assignments

7 videosTotal 18 minutes

Welcome to module 31 minute
Create problem statements2 minutes
Define hypothesis statements2 minutes
Determine a value proposition3 minutes
Understand human factors5 minutes
Explore psychology principles that influence design 4 minutes
Wrap-up: Defining user problems 1 minute

7 readingsTotal 105 minutes

Introduction to the define phase10 minutes
Define problem statements 15 minutes
Learn more about defining user problems30 minutes
Define hypothesis statements 15 minutes
Review: Build problem statements and hypothesis statements10 minutes
Determine a value proposition15 minutes
Glossary terms from course 2, module 310 minutes

3 assignmentsTotal 66 minutes

Module 3 Challenge50 minutes
Self-Reflection: Problem statements and the 5 Ws framework10 minutes
Test your knowledge on how psychology and human factors influence design6 minutes

You're ready to move into the third phase of the design process: ideate. You'll consider everything you've learned about the users you're designing for and the problems they're facing in order to brainstorm ideas for design solutions. To help you come up with lots of ideas for design solutions, you’ll conduct a competitive audit and complete design activities, like How Might We and Crazy Eights.

What's included

16 videos19 readings7 assignments

16 videosTotal 51 minutes

Welcome to module 41 minute
Understand design ideation 3 minutes
Explore lots of ideas 2 minutes
Recognize business needs during design ideation3 minutes
Use research to inform ideation4 minutes
Craig - Research informs ideation in the real world 3 minutes
Create goal statements 5 minutes
Scope the competition 4 minutes
Limits to competitive audits2 minutes
Steps to conduct a competitive audit 4 minutes
Use insights from competitive audits to ideate 2 minutes
Vanessa - My journey to UX 3 minutes
Use How Might We to ideate4 minutes
Use Rapid Sketching to ideate 7 minutes
Consider user journeys during ideation 4 minutes
Congratulations on completing Course 2: Empathize, Define, and Ideate2 minutes

19 readingsTotal 235 minutes

Learn more about design ideation10 minutes
Learn more about how research informs ideation10 minutes
Learn more about goal statements10 minutes
Review: Build goal statements10 minutes
Learn more about competitive audits 30 minutes
Steps to conduct a competitive audit15 minutes
Review: Create a competitive audit and audit report10 minutes
How to present a competitive audit15 minutes
Best practices for How Might We15 minutes
Best practices for Rapid Sketching15 minutes
Glossary terms from course 2, module 410 minutes
Portfolio project guide for empathizing with users 10 minutes
Exemplars: Create personas for your portfolio project10 minutes
Portfolio project guide for defining user needs10 minutes
Exemplars: Create a user journey map for your portfolio project10 minutes
Portfolio project guide for ideating design solutions10 minutes
Reflect and connect with your peers10 minutes
Course 2 Glossary 10 minutes
Start the next course15 minutes

7 assignmentsTotal 214 minutes

Module 4 Challenge50 minutes
Self-Reflection: Ideation in everyday life10 minutes
Test your knowledge on competitive audits4 minutes
Activity: Create personas for your portfolio project30 minutes
Activity: Create a user journey map for your portfolio project30 minutes
Self-reflection: Create a value proposition for portfolio project30 minutes
Activity: Create a competitive audit for your portfolio project 60 minutes

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Reviewed on Feb 10, 2022

The course ie well designed and covers all the basis of user experience before the design process. Course has introduced so many frameworks for empathize, ideate and define the user's problem.

Reviewed on May 5, 2021

The UX Program was created for professionals in any field to become professional User Experience Designers even if they have no previous experience in Design. This is fantastic. Thank you so much!

Reviewed on Feb 6, 2023

I believe it's crucial for students in this course to give mandatory feedback on Peer Review assignments. This would provide additional viewpoints and knowledge that may otherwise go unnoticed.

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