3. UX Academy (Full-time)

I took the UX Research and Strategy short course which was excellent. The price was good and my mentor was a great resource. Based on this, I enrolled in UX Academy and the experience couldn't have been more different. It was like two different schools.

I've worked in Graphic Design for years, so wasn't sure if the bootcamp was for me. I scheduled a phone call with a Student Advisor. When we spoke he was running late from his last call that went long and had to rush off quickly to make his next call on time. So the difference was being up through my allotted time. Given that I was about to spend thousands of dollars and commit hundreds of hours to this course, barely getting 20 minutes with an advisor should have been a red flag.

I explained that I wasn't sure what I wanted my next career move to be. I work with my own clients and want to offer more services to them, but I also like the idea of working with a design team, and that I was curious about how the career coaching worked for people with design experience. I was told that no matter what stage you're at in your career, the career coaches work with you to find you a suitable role. I could get this much from their landing page, what I was asking for was specifics but I never got them.

Given my initial positive experience I trusted them (another red flag) and enrolled anyway. Almost immediately I regretted it. Buried in the Student Agreement it states that you must apply for a minimum of 5 jobs a week and this includes internships. This seems like important information the advisor could have mentioned. Or information that they could state somewhere on their site. Surely getting a surprise while reading the fine print is the type of user experience we all try to avoid no? I signed up anyway, ignoring yet another red flag, knowing I could get my money back if it wasn't right. I sent off an email for further clarification.

A few days went by and no reply. The course started and I sent off another email. Still no reply. I sent a third. No reply. I sent and a fourth and a fifth email, this time via their website contact form. Still no reply. At this point it was 7 days later, I'd finished the first 40+ hour week, and still hadn't received a reply. Now I was starting to think I'd been scammed.

I DM'd the student liaison on Slack, who told me she would reach out on my behalf (kudos to her for being responsive, while being down with the flu no less, because she was the only one who was). A couple more days passed – 9 days after my initial email – before I finally received a reply from DesignLab asking to arrange another Student Advisor call. They also told me how student focused they are (c'mon, seriously?!). 

If it weren't so unnerving handing over thousands of dollars only to have them go dark on me, it would be funny that a company that teaches user experience and empathy could have so little of it. To my huge relief, they processed my refund promptly, but I'd warn potential students to be cautious.

A few final thoughts.

The curriculum is fine. They rely heavily on what is already out there for free though.

If you're new to the industry, blasting your resume to a quote of job postings per week makes sense (we all did when starting out). If you're already in the industry, I can't see the benefit to this approach unless you don't care where you're going.

Make sure you get a good mentor. My first one was excellent. My second one though – I have to qualify this next point with the fact that I withdrew form the course before meeting with him 1-on-1 so am basing this on our written communication only – was very much about his style of teaching, his schedule, and what worked for him. I felt like I didn't factor in to it at all. Had things panned out differently and I'd continued with the program, I'd definitely have asked to change mentors.

So their short course was great. UX Academy was a disaster. And I still have no clue how their career coaching actually works.

UX Academy was a wonderful decision and I am so happy that I decided to take the leap. During my time at UXA, I was a student and became a student advocate to help guide and support new students. While a student and a student advocate, I worked with people from all different backgrounds and since finishing the program, we have all entered the UX design field. It does not matter what your experience is before UXA, if you follow the curriculum and give it your all, you will come out of the course as a UX Designer.  I went into the program wanting to learning UX Design and now I am a UX Designer.

I would absolutely recommend UX Academy. In addition to the thorough coursework, the UX Academy has incredibly talented, supportive, and knowledgable mentors that guide students through learning UX principles. At the UX Academy, you will learn to be a UX Designer and will learn so many additional skills that will apply to your future careers.

I joined UX Academy as a Graphic designer hoping to learn UX/UI design. And UX Academy delivered more than I expected!

The curriculum - Well rounded. They covered all stages of the UX design process from User Research and Strategy to Visual Design. The course was structured well, so as to not be overwhelming. Pockets of theory were paired with practical exercises that helped me understand and remember what I'd learnt.

Mentorship - One of the best parts of UX Academy was being paired with a mentor – a veteran UX designer who knew the ins and outs of the UX design industry. He was an indispensable source of guidance, advice and support (especially for a UX newcomer like me)

Job Search - Rounding out the course was the 'Portfolio and Job Search' phase. Designlab has created an excellent framework of short exercises and activities for this. They helped me get through the daunting phase of making a portfolio, practicing for interviews and learning to present my work. It definitely helped me get where I am today. :)

DesignLab UX Academy is a great start to changing your career! I had very little experience going into the program, and was doing a complete career change. The mentorship aspect, and weekly group crits really made the online program feel like a school you attend in person, with a community of design support. The capstone projects could be demanding at times, with such tight deadlines, so I would have liked more time to make these portfolio pieces better,  but I was able to clean these up after the program ended. The Academy goes through the full spectrum of UX/UI, but I would have liked a few more courses/focus on UI/visual design mainly because I  did not have any graphic design background, and the students that do seem to be a step ahead (I think they may have added more UI courses since I finished). Yet, I learned A LOT from DesignLab, probably just as much, if not more, as other more expensive in-person schools. I landed an internship after the program ended, then a freelance design gig, and shortly after that a full-time position in UX/UI. I'm thrilled to have a new career I love, and have DesignLab UX Academy to thank for that. 

I took the UX Academy from Jan 2017 through April 2017 and thoroughly enjoyed it!  I had done a lot of research when deciding which online bootcamp to take for UX and finally decided on DesignLab and it was the best thing ever for the following reasons:

1. The curriculum is great - they cover all the major aspects of UX/UI and really provide a solid foundation. The materials and method of delivering the training were engaging and fun. They are constantly updating it so it's always relevant.

2. The Mentors - I loved working with a mentor 2x a week and also have group-critiques with my class. It was great interacting and receiving real-time feedback from others in the field.  

3. Projects - the projects were the heart of the program. Being able to apply what we learned from 'textbook/lectures' into real hands-on projects was so much fun. 

4. Cost - Definitely comparable to other UX bootcamps, but at the time I took it - I thought it was competitvely priced.

5. Job Offers - After completing my coursework, I spent time refining my portoflio/resume and working with my career coach.  They provided really good feedback and advice. I received 3 offers within 4-6 weeks of completing everything. 

Overall, I really good experience for me. I came from a consulting background (business) and making a transition/career change - was scary...but I felt confident in what DesignLab taught me.  I liked that the company is based in the US, they are very responsive to emails, flexible with your schedule and adjusting dates if needed, constantly updating materials to improve it and make it more relevant (this field is constantly changing, so ensuring the materials are always relevant is key).  Love them!

I am now a Product Designer (UX/UI) at a large global company and I love it!

Before UX Academy, I was a freelance graphic designer/stay at home mom. I wanted to rejoin the workforce full time and pursue a career in UX design. I liked Designlab's UX academy because they had a full curriculum laid out for me, a mentor, and I would graduate with a professional-level portfolio. The experience was very positive and I had a great outcome. The coursework was engaging and my mentor was always helpful in his feedback. The career mentor encouraged me in my job search after graduation, which definitely helped me from getting "job search burnout." About three months after graduating from UX Academy, I landed a full time job as a UX designer at a great company. My transition into my new career would not have been as smooth without Designlab.

My decision to pursue a career change with the help of DesignLab's UX academy was one of the best decision I have made in my life!

I felt that the course properly prepared me to take on an entry-level position in UX. The project-based coursework is solid, the readings insightful, and the mentors are world-class designers who are deeply interested in your growth as a UX designer.

I would not be where I am today if not for the UX Academy!

To be honest, the entry-level UX market is saturated, but if you work hard and take time to understand the fundamentals and can clearly explain the why behind your designs, you will be in a very good spot!

My advice to prospective students who are evaluating UX bootcamps, , write down a list of things you expect to get from the course and hunt down alumni on LinkedIn and ask them about their experience in relation to the things you are hoping to get from your education.

I had a very positive experience with Designlab's UX Academy. I was switching careers into UX design after a career break, and went from starting UX Academy to having a full time job in less than 6 months.

It was helpful to have all coursework and lessons lined up for me (versus trying to figure it out on my own by sorting through tons of good and bad resources on the web). I felt it was a good balance of traditional lectures/readings with hands-on projects. My two favorite parts were the group crits and the mentorship. The group crits were great because I could create relationships with other people out in the world who were going through the same challenges. It made me feel like I wasn't alone in this big, daunting process. Finally, the best part: mentorship. At the end of the day, I feel that the mentors were most worth the money you spend on UXA. Both my UXA and Career Phase mentors were incredibly helpful...I can't say enough amazing things about them.

I would 100% recommend UX Academy. It is a lot of work and requires commitment, and everyones experience and outcomes will be slighrly different since everyone enters woth different levels of experience. But if you follow the timeline, leverage the expertise of your mentors, and trust the process, you will definitely be able to reach new design and career goals you've set for yourself.

I joined UX Academy after doing a lot of research into UX Design. Networking, reading, looking into formal university programs, to name just a few. I had actually come across blog piece written by Karen Cheng who enlightened me about bootcamp programs; she specifically mentioned Designlab also. That's when I started investigating further and knew this type of a program was perfect for me. The flexibility, the community, and guidance I would get as a student was incomparable. Not to mention learning things in a fast-paced environment to get myself out into the market to get real-world experience. 

I would not trade in my experiences with UX Academy for anything. I met so many different people all around the world and was able to pick up concepts so quickly and easily. I would not have been able to do this on my own and get a great job as well! Having a mentor and other students to communicate with was so helpful and encouraging. And being able to do everything from my home was great; that flexibility is something I needed. Not to mention, having an organized course to teach me all the skills I needed to enter this field. I couldn't have done it on my own. 

Long story short: I embarked on my UX Academy journey nearly a year ago in full-time track, graduated on mid-February, started my first ever UX designer job in April, and now I'm already at my second designer job. 

If you're looking for a place to kickstart your career in UX design, I can say that this course delivers. UX Academy gives you the tools, the platform and the expertise to help you change your career to UX design. But you need to take the charge and really commit. Otherwise you won't get the full advantage. I really enjoyed the curriculum, got professional feedback from my mentor and my peers. The community is awesome and I learned the most from my fellows there. 

Like I said, I'm already at my second work place and not even year has passed from my time at UX Academy. The first job I got was a traineeship, and after that I got a better offer from another company, where I work now. I feel that UX Academy gave me a great starting point and kick-off for my UX designer career. Recommended 100%.

I joined UX Academy full time after years working around building digital products but with no formal experience in design. After three months I was able to create a portfolio, develop my own apps and now I have a job as a UX/UI Designer in a big company in The Netherlands where I now live (I'm from Mexico).

I'd recommend this program to anybody looking to make a carreer change or become a UX Designer, you'll learn all the basics to research, wireframe, prototype and test a digital product, even the worflow itself! 

As a tip, choose the time format you are able to comit to, since the program can be very demanding and in order to get the best out of it, you need to spend time actually working on your designs and sharing feedback with your fellow students.

Previously I had web design and coding experience as well, these are definitely should be mentioned as triggers.

I'm not a shy person, but I had some concerns before like how I'll get a job (is this really enough as a preparation), how the whole group learning will work out, if I get nice and helpful mentors, and so on. Altogether does this really worth it or am I just wasting my time.

At the beginning it was really shocking amount of hours we put inside the projects and everybody struggled to finish the projects in time. But later we got the rhythm together, and helped each other so we started to enjoy.

Personally I liked every single bit of it, we got an equally balanced knowledge of theoretical and practical part of UX. I think the whole course is a big challenge to tackle in the end, if you are doing it good. I think I was competing with myself along the way to deliver better and better outcomes of each modules so I could proudly present to the others.

At first I was worried about mentorship and group critiques since I've never involved anything like these before, but actually it turned out that these elements in the course helped the lot if not the most. Special thanks for my mentors Chrissy and Vibhas who helped me in the different phases and making my work better.

My favorite part was the group hangout during the weekends (Saturday or Sunday), when everybody prepared his / her work for showcasing and explaining the different design decisions to the others. I think we learnt a lot from each other in many different ways. Sometimes we stayed even after the dedicated time just to finish a story or to share thoughts about a problem we were facing. I would recommend everyone to GO HARD! Approach the units with a never ending willingness to experience something new whether is it a new tool or a tutorial video. I think it's also important to be open-minded and stay active on the slack groups with the others so you always feel you are a part of something evolving. I got the job offer just before I started my second capstone to be a UI designer in Amsterdam for the global team of UX design.