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

This course is part of Google UX Design Professional Certificate

Instructor: Google Career Certificates

Access provided by Somaiya Vidyavihar University

658,329 already enrolled

4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

16,818 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.

16,818 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

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Taught in English

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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.

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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.

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 videos Total 40 minutes

Introduction to Course 2: Empathize, Define, and Ideate 2 minutes
Empathize with users 2 minutes
Recruit interview participants 8 minutes
Prepare for user interviews 3 minutes
Interviewing users 7 minutes
Empathy Maps 6 minutes
Identify user pain points 5 minutes
Understand personas 6 minutes
Wrap-up: Empathizing with users and defining pain points 1 minute

11 readings Total 189 minutes

Welcome to Course 2 15 minutes
Helpful resources and tips 4 minutes
Understand empathy in UX design 10 minutes
Determine research goals and questions 30 minutes
Find and recruit interview participants 15 minutes
Conduct user interviews 15 minutes
Build empathy with users to inform research 10 minutes
Build an empathy map 30 minutes
Case studies: Products that address pain points 20 minutes
Learn more about personas 30 minutes
Glossary terms from course 2, module 1 10 minutes

2 assignments Total 83 minutes

Module 1 Challenge 75 minutes
Test your knowledge on user pain points 8 minutes

1 plugin Total 30 minutes

Pain points vs. solutions 30 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 videos Total 26 minutes

Welcome to module 2 1 minute
Craft user stories 2 minutes
Consider edge cases 4 minutes
Ayan - Real world example of edge cases 3 minutes
Create a user journey map 7 minutes
Consider accessibility when empathizing 4 minutes
Understand the curb cut effect 4 minutes
Wrap-up: Creating user stories and user journey maps 1 minute

5 readings Total 80 minutes

Learn more about user stories 15 minutes
Review: Craft user stories 10 minutes
User journey map slides 15 minutes
Consider accessibility during user research 30 minutes
Glossary terms from course 2, module 2 10 minutes

1 assignment Total 50 minutes

Module 2 Challenge 50 minutes

1 plugin Total 10 minutes

Design accessible experiences 10 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 videos Total 18 minutes

Welcome to module 3 1 minute
Create problem statements 2 minutes
Define hypothesis statements 2 minutes
Determine a value proposition 3 minutes
Understand human factors 5 minutes
Explore psychology principles that influence design 4 minutes
Wrap-up: Defining user problems 1 minute

7 readings Total 105 minutes

Introduction to the define phase 10 minutes
Define problem statements 15 minutes
Learn more about defining user problems 30 minutes
Define hypothesis statements 15 minutes
Review: Build problem statements and hypothesis statements 10 minutes
Determine a value proposition 15 minutes
Glossary terms from course 2, module 3 10 minutes

3 assignments Total 66 minutes

Module 3 Challenge 50 minutes
Self-Reflection: Problem statements and the 5 Ws framework 10 minutes
Test your knowledge on how psychology and human factors influence design 6 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 videos Total 51 minutes

Welcome to module 4 1 minute
Understand design ideation 3 minutes
Explore lots of ideas 2 minutes
Recognize business needs during design ideation 3 minutes
Use research to inform ideation 4 minutes
Craig - Research informs ideation in the real world 3 minutes
Create goal statements 5 minutes
Scope the competition 4 minutes
Limits to competitive audits 2 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 ideate 4 minutes
Use Rapid Sketching to ideate 7 minutes
Consider user journeys during ideation 4 minutes
Congratulations on completing Course 2: Empathize, Define, and Ideate 2 minutes

19 readings Total 235 minutes

Learn more about design ideation 10 minutes
Learn more about how research informs ideation 10 minutes
Learn more about goal statements 10 minutes
Review: Build goal statements 10 minutes
Learn more about competitive audits 30 minutes
Steps to conduct a competitive audit 15 minutes
Review: Create a competitive audit and audit report 10 minutes
How to present a competitive audit 15 minutes
Best practices for How Might We 15 minutes
Best practices for Rapid Sketching 15 minutes
Glossary terms from course 2, module 4 10 minutes
Portfolio project guide for empathizing with users 10 minutes
Exemplars: Create personas for your portfolio project 10 minutes
Portfolio project guide for defining user needs 10 minutes
Exemplars: Create a user journey map for your portfolio project 10 minutes
Portfolio project guide for ideating design solutions 10 minutes
Reflect and connect with your peers 10 minutes
Course 2 Glossary 10 minutes
Start the next course 15 minutes

7 assignments Total 214 minutes

Module 4 Challenge 50 minutes
Self-Reflection: Ideation in everyday life 10 minutes
Test your knowledge on competitive audits 4 minutes
Activity: Create personas for your portfolio project 30 minutes
Activity: Create a user journey map for your portfolio project 30 minutes
Self-reflection: Create a value proposition for portfolio project 30 minutes
Activity: Create a competitive audit for your portfolio project 60 minutes

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Reviewed on May 30, 2025

This was a good course. My only complaint is that some questions in the assignments are too open-ended. Particularly in the multiple-correct choice questions, there seems to be a lot of ambiguity.

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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