Discover the Best Live Online UX Design Classes
UX design is the practice of creating positive user experiences with technology, whether it be websites or mobile apps. In studying UX design, you will learn the principles, techniques, and tools that will allow you to create engaging, intuitive, enjoyable user experiences with the products you design. UX designers conduct research on user needs, ideate and iterate possible designs, and conduct user testing to gain feedback that they can incorporate into the final design before handing it off to a Front-end Developer.
UX Designers are in high demand at present. It has become increasingly obligatory for businesses to have a website to find and retain customers. Many businesses, even outside the tech industry, provide apps to their patrons as well. So companies both within and beyond the tech space are in great need of people who can provide the users of their websites and apps with a positive user experience. UX design also provides an outlet for creativity and involves working closely with a collaborative team to produce something you can all be proud of. It will also feel good to know that what you have created will make people’s day-to-day lives more pleasant as they interact with your designs.
Best Live Online UX Design Classes & Schools
#1: General Assembly—UX Design
General Assembly’s UX Design program begins with the methodology of user research. Next, students learn the visual design techniques that make for appealing user interfaces, and the interaction design principles that help smooth the user’s experience with transitions in the site or app. Once they’ve drafted a product design, students perform usability testing. Getting user feedback from this testing makes it possible to create more accessible products that can better serve a diverse range of users.
Students also explore best practices for product teams and learn the art of effective collaboration with developers. They study how to document their process through artifacts like wireframes and prototypes, which make it easier to articulate design decisions when meeting with stakeholders. And they discover service design, design leadership, and design operations. Ultimately, they create a professional portfolio (with expert feedback) that can help them in their job search.
Key Information
This course is available both full-time and part-time. The full-time immersive program lasts two months at 40 hours a week. There are no prerequisites for this course. The upfront tuition cost is $16,450. Students can also make a $250 deposit for an income share agreement. In this agreement, students begin making monthly payments when they get a relevant job. Students may also pay in four installments of $4112.50 each. Discounts are available for people from underrepresented groups and members of the military.
The part-time option lasts two months with four hours of classes a week. There are no prerequisites for this course. If paid upfront, tuition is $4500. Some students pay in two, three, or four installments, with the last option requiring as little as $1112 per payment. As with the full-time program, military officers and members of underrepresented populations can get tuition discounts.
More Details
In General Assembly’s UX Design program, students receive dedicated career coaching. They can go to panels and lectures by professional UX designers, attend career workshops, discover how to develop their professional brand, practice technical interview skills, and gain networking opportunities.
Students say General Assembly’s program is “a game-changer in confidence-building.” The lessons are “fantastically engaging and informative, ” and the instructors are “thorough and helpful.”
#2: Flatiron School—Product Design and UX/UI Bootcamp
Students in Flatiron School’s UX/UI Product Design Bootcamp learn an ethical and inclusive approach to design. They start by learning how to do foundational research for their designs. They build strong research questions and choose an appropriate method for answering their particular query. Then, they discover design fundamentals like typography, visual composition, color, interaction, and animation. The course covers the broader aspects of web design, like the information architecture used to structure a site or app, and how to create designs that are responsive across different types of devices.
Flatiron also prioritizes learning about product strategy and the product lifecycle, as well as how to operate under common tech project management methodologies like Agile. And students explore techniques of communication design, which can help them make effective presentations to stakeholders. Ultimately, students create a capstone project to showcase their skills in their specialty of choice, which can be UX research, UX design, or user interface design.
Key Information
This bootcamp is 15 weeks long at 40 hours a week. There are no prerequisites for this course. The course costs $16,900 upfront or in 12 installments of $1400 each. A $99 deposit is required to register. Scholarships are available for students from underrepresented communities and for women.
More Details
Once they have registered, students can begin a pre-work curriculum to become more prepared for the course. Recordings of each class meeting are available for those who have to miss a session or two. Students attend guest lectures and virtual events through the program. Graduates have access to 180 days of career services, including resume reviews, job search mentoring, and mock interviews.
According to graduates, the “amazing experience” at Flatiron has a “very thorough” curriculum and instructors who are “always ready and available to help.”
#3: Noble Desktop—UX & UI Certificate
Students in the UX & UI Design Certificate program at Noble Desktop begin by learning UX and UI design fundamentals. In your studies, you’ll discover best practices for visual design and user-centered UX. As you conduct user research, you’ll find out what your target users need through interviews that will help you create user personas.
You’ll also explore how to design digital products such as apps and websites. After creating a clickable prototype, you’ll conduct user testing to identify potential problems with your designs. You’ll learn what to do before handing your design off to a developer. Ultimately, you will create an excellent online portfolio to showcase your designs to potential employers.
Key Information
This is a part-time course. It lasts 24 weeks at six hours a week. There are no prerequisites for this class. The course costs $3495. It is the same price whether you pay upfront or in 12 monthly installments.
More Details
The expert instructors and small class sizes are notable advantages of this program. It also includes 1-on-1 mentoring from professional UX Designers. They can give you professional job search advice, review your portfolio, and help you polish your resume and LinkedIn. Noble allows you to retake any class for free within 1 year of completion. If you have to miss a class, you can access a recording after the fact.
Students say Noble’s “excellent” instructors “really make learning fun.” They “felt empowered” by coursework that made it “possible to learn without any stress.”
Industries That Use UX Design
Both within the tech industry and beyond it, UX design as a field is rapidly expanding. Naturally, the sites and apps that tech companies produce will need designers who can provide a positive experience for their users. Yet in other industries as well, businesses increasingly need websites and even dedicated apps for their customers. Education, banking, and healthcare are just a few of the many fields in which app use is rapidly growing.
So one might find a UX Designer working in any industry that uses web technology in its public-facing materials. It is also possible to create your own role in some cases, as a business may not know that the user experience of its site or app is in need of significant improvement. Once you’re a trained UX Designer, you’ll be well-positioned to notice these needs and, if you so desire, pitch yourself as a solution to the problem.
UX Design Jobs & Salaries
In the United States, the average yearly salary for a UX Designer is $103,805. Yet it’s important to note that salaries will vary significantly by location. The average salary will be different in each city. This is due in large part to the cost-of-living in a specific place. However, it also relates to the level of demand for on-site UX Designers there. For example, an average UX designer salary in New York City is $110,359, while in Des Moines, IA, the lower cost-of-living leads to a lower average salary at $98,601. However, that New York City designer will likely be making less than their counterparts in a tech hub like Seattle, where designers average $121,649 yearly. Those who want to become UX Designers and are looking to work on-site will want to consider both cost-of-living and level of demand for UX professionals in the areas they are looking at.
