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I got a call from HR and offer discussion was over couple of weeks back and still waiting for them to send me final mail to release offer. May I know if they take this much time to release offer, when I did a follow up call after 10 days they said they are waiting for some approval to release offer.
Any ideas i still have chances to get offer? BNY Mellon
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BCG PIPE principal or Goldman IB VP?
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anyone know who created Palantir's website?
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Think about this way ... You want to show the workplace/company what you can bring to the table as an individual contributor. A portfolio (with 3-4 case studies) you are building or going to build should showcase your skill sets and abilities on HOW you solve the problems you found and defined, what WHAT projects you worked on.
Treat your portfolio as a platform that you can tell your story, your background, your interests, your soft skills...and your problem-solving skills via case studies. It should have some type of theme rather than a random bulletin board of things you did.
Show the interviewers reasons for your design decisions, show them how you implemented knowledge you gained at the UX courses to your case studies. I've been reviewing lots of boot camp portfolios, and I see the long documents of what they did, but don't see why.
Focus on what you found interesting during your time at the UX boot camp. Did you find the visual/GUI/UI part of UX design interesting? Or research part of it? Anything is fine, but those interests can be also highlighted in your case studies and portfolio.
Last but not least... Be confident! Be proud of what you worked on and own your design decisions. You should be the person who knows from the head to toe about the projects you worked on. Good luck! 🍀
Agreed — you gotta create a portfolio. Look up rad UX designer portfolios for inspo, think about what kinds of jobs/companies you wanna work for, and build that port while you’re in school! Doesn’t need to be an assignment, your effort is what will drive your career. Be proactive!
If you feel stuck on where to start, think of your desired end goal (ie. Jr. UX Designer at a well funded startup or UX researcher at a performance marketing agency — point being, get specific) and then think of what they’d need to see to want to hire you. If you don’t have projects that fit, you know you need to get some practice… write yourself a brief and work through as though you’re being paid to produce the work.
I’d also suggest setting your goals higher. It’s okay that you’re new — doesn’t make you a baby. Just means that, at this point, you’re learning more than leading. And you can take an entry level position but if your skill set and talent are good you could also start off in a role above entry level… either way, you want to come off as confident and professional. You are prob just being casual here which is absolutely valid! But it did catch my attention so wanted to bring it up. You may have to fake that part until you find your footing. Also totally normal (imposter syndrome anyone?). IMO the best UX people tend to have a calm confidence — I assume it’s bc they specialize in thinking through things thoroughly and they know that they can tackle whatever comes their way. Regardless, if you can embody that early on you’ll find people will respond well to you!
I agree! I was on the hiring team at a previous position and I was able to see through talented designers looking to get their foot in the door as a UX designer but only had course case studies under their belt versus real life product experience on their portfolio. The way they presented it and their honesty to my questions were enough for me to know that they were more than capable of fulfilling the roles responsibilities and that they really just needed that first company to give them the chance to show that. Every person I took the chance on were fabulous and were open to mentorship and bettering themselves.
Employers want to see well defined case studies in your portfolio to determine if you’re qualified to be brought on board as a product designer. Most UX boot camps and circuits will give you one piece that you can tailor into a case study but it won’t be enough alone. You’ll want to include 3 different ones in total.
When I got my first product designer role I tailored some past website design projects into UX case studies to drive the point home. Even with those work examples under my belt it took many interviews with dozens of companies before someone took a chance. The bottom line, keep putting yourself out there after you complete your course and eventually someone is going to bite.
Good luck! And PS I did GA too when I segued out of marketing/graphic design into product! You’re in great hands with them.
As a hiring manager I look for an understanding of the process. So many portfolios show a pretty finished design, or a theme but not explanation of how they got there.
In UX / Product design research is key, if you can articulate what you did & how you used it to influence your design on any type of project. You put yourself in a good position.
You'll need case studies that demonstrate that you understand the design process and how to apply it to solving problems that provide value to people and the business.
These case studies can be projects from the GA program, or often times I recommend that new designers just take an app or product that they use and have pain points with. The case study doesn't have to have "real work" it just needs to demonstrate that you are able to apply design principles and the design process to solving problems.
But, you'll want some level of validation that you actually delivered value, but you can do validative testing with a relatively simple prototype to do that.
You'll want to articulate your design decisions and how they connect to the research and discovery that was done in understanding pain points or problems from the business and the people using the product.
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No, get a portfolio ready. You will need it now and in the future. HMs want to see that you are serious about getting the job. Unless there’s an open position that you are interviewing for right now before your program is over, get a portfolio ready.
Wow, thanks everyone for the helpful responses! I will definitely continue to work on my portfolio with an emphasis on the reasoning and research for my designs.
I was originally a web developer for a large consulting firm who was hiring UX designers in another branch. I did some studying outside work and they offered to pay for my certification before I landed the job opportunity. It helped to build connections and staying in touch with those at the other firm to get my foot in the door.
The best thing you can do is freelance. Offer your services to small businesses where you can work through your process and along the way create screenshots, research plans and learnings and discuss how you identified and solved real problems for them.
You can also help non profits through volunteer sites to create real change while you help yourself.