MAKE UX YOUR CAREER

My decision to enter into UX design was one of the best decisions of my career, but that doesn’t mean it’s for everyone. I’m often asked by potential UX students about my boot camp experience and their questions are frequently the same. Here are the top five questions I get:

1. Was it hard?

Short answer, yes. If you’re not ready to work hard and work fast, don’t commit to a bootcamp.

I was up at 6:30 AM each day to catch the train. We worked from 9–5 Monday thru Friday at the campus. I caught the train home again and I was up most evenings until 10:00 PM or later working on projects.

Our mornings began with short, 15-minute activities to get the creative juices flowing, followed by lectures or guest speakers teaching UX concepts and methodologies.

Afternoons were spent doing design labs and team projects to apply our learnings. 5:00 PM showed up before we knew it. I spent time working on projects over the weekend too.

• Would you consider yourself a hard worker?
• Are you ready to work in a team environment?
• Will you pour passion into this?

If yes, then do it.

One of my favorite photographers and teachers, Chris Orwig, talked about passion this way:

“Passion without a plan is like gasoline spilled on the ground.”

A UX bootcamp moves fast and requires passion, so prepare to put your heart into it. Was it hard…yes, but you shouldn’t expect anything less.

2. What did they teach you?

I attended a three-month bootcamp. While not everything can be packed into that amount of time, they did a stellar job teaching the essentials.

My instructor told us by the time the bootcamp ended, we would have the tools to become “world-class beginners”. Looking back, that’s precisely what happened. Over three month's time, we covered:

• Design Tools: Latest software for designing interfaces, wireframes, prototypes, low fidelity mockups, high-fidelity app screens, and websites
• Design Thinking: Information architecture, personas, journey maps, user flows, wireframes, prototyping, card sorts, creative briefs, sitemaps, content inventories, interaction design
• Design Theory: Color, typography, layout, grids, style guides, Google/iOS Design guidelines, micro-interactions, mobile & web design best practices
• UX Foundations & Soft Skills: Human-centered design, working in teams, design presentations, design critiques, empathy, user interviews, communication, mock job interviews
• Post Grad Success: Completed 4 projects/case studies for my resume, built a personal portfolio website, improved LinkedIn my profile, did interview prep, received resume advice

We were given a lot of material. It was presented in an understandable format by the instructors. Could there have been more, sure, but it was a lot to pack into a three-month course.

Some things they simply can’t prepare you for, like the actual team you’ll land on when you’re hired or how the team dynamics will play out. Research the bootcamp website or reach out to the school to have them send you their UX course curriculum, then you’ll have a better idea of what to expect.

Lots of learning, lots of thinking, lots of doing.

3. Is it worth the time & money?

For me: Absolutely — 100%.

Whether it’s worth it for you is relative to the effort you put into the bootcamp. And, obviously, whether the UX bootcamp knows what they’re doing, but that’s another article for another day.

It’s your money, so be wise. UX boot camps aren’t cheap. Keep in mind that your peers paid the same amount for their education. My full-time cohort was just over $10,000 — that’s a lot to pay and not take it seriously. Take your time seriously. Take your money seriously. Take the projects seriously.

I had a wife and kids at home so I considered the bootcamp my full-time job. Knowing I’d have no income during the bootcamp, I had to give it my all so it would be worth it in the end.

Because I attended the full-time cohort, I had to quit my job of 15 years and have enough in my savings account to get me through the course. I also put away extra money to get our family through the job search afterward. Make your own list of things you’ll have to give up before you sign any loan papers.

Be an adult, show up to class, and do work you’re proud of. Don’t be the person who doesn’t communicate with your team. Don’t be the jerk that lets everyone else do the work just so you can take credit for it on your UX portfolio.

4. Will I find a job?

I laugh when I hear the phrase, “It’s all about who you know.” It didn’t work that way for me. Sometimes, it’s your grit and tenacity.

There are no guarantees.

I don’t know if you’ll get a job, but I can tell you what I believe worked for me.

Finishing the bootcamp and realizing I was jobless, I was $10,000 in debt, and had a family to support was an extreme weight on my shoulders. Where I found the most success was in how seriously I took the job search. I treated it like a full-time job. I started at 8:00 am and worked at it until 5:00 pm.

I reached out to our guest speakers and asked if I could shadow them at work. I joined them for half a day to see what a day-in-the-life was like for them. I did this on four different occasions and was never turned down by one of them.

I built a portfolio on Medium. I took each of my school projects seriously and wrote detailed, engaging case studies to demonstrate my learnings. I took the time to document each project early and often. I put my personality into my writing and told the story of each project. I included key outcomes and the contributions of team members.

I reached out to the student success department at the bootcamp for further guidance and job opportunities. I attended all the local Meetups I could get to and tried to mingle as best I could with the other designers.

When an interview came, I took the hiring process seriously and poured my entire UX learnings into the design challenges they gave me. I designed the experience others had of me.

I immersed myself in the job search and feel that’s what ultimately paid off in the end. I had discouraging moments and robot emails that infuriated me at times, but I did my best to brush them off and keep trying.

It took me about three weeks to get an offer letter and it only came through grit and tenacity.

5. Are you happy you did it?

I’ve answered this question dozens of times for people and my response remains the same — I loved it.

Our lead instructor was amazing. Our projects involved real-world clients (which looks great on a resume). The campus culture was conducive to learning and I was able to focus completely on UX when I was there.

Let me ask you this — Can you give and take critiques about the work you do? Be ready to have your work torn apart and built back up. Be ready for emotional highs and lows.

Can you work on a team? Be ready to work in teams and embrace it. Be ready to have disagreements with them. Teamwork is how design happens. Design is greater than one.

We ended the cohort as a tightly-knit, cohesive group of friends. Most students from my class found employment and the ones that didn’t, ha specific reasons for not pursuing a UX job after the course.

I stand by my decision to attend a UX bootcamp and would do it all over again if given the chance.

Now for the runner-up question I know you’re asking:

Which UX bootcamp should I attend?

I’ll give you the most common UX response to any design-related question:

“It depends.”

UX is a rewarding career path — seems it’s all the rage right now. Bootcamps can be found online and in-person with mixed reviews and unique student experiences. With so many options, how do you make the right choice?

First, if the bootcamp costs, look at your finances; make sure you can afford it.

Next, ask yourself what’s pulling you to pursue UX. Why do you want to do it? If you want to understand people better, solve real problems, and make their lives better… then join us. I’ve met many designers who come from a myriad of backgrounds. Don’t let your past hinder your decision — we need your past experience to shape the future of design diversity!

Lastly, look into the school. Read reviews. Ask other graduates about their experience. Do your own research. The bootcamp you choose will depend greatly on each of these factors. For those interested, the in-person school I attended was DevMountain, based out of Salt Lake City, Utah.

👏👏 If something here resonated with you, leave a comment for others. Please reach out if anything I’ve said didn’t make sense or you have further questions; I’d love to chat about my bootcamp experience!

Uncle Mikey helps amplify people and products through human-centered design. With 20+ years experience in design, marketing, e-commerce, and UX, his passion is helping people & businesses apply their skills to the way they’re experienced by others. You can connect with him on LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, or follow his writing here on Medium.