Coursework
Enterprise IT Architecture
In this course, I learned the ins and outs of Cloud Computing. By the end of this course, I was able to build a cloud application and deploy it on Amazon Web Services, configure settings in AWS that allowed me to deploy these applications as well as code in Node.js.
Learning the interface of AWS helped me critically think about how these interfaces are designed. Most of Amazon’s profit comes from AWS which means there are often many UX designers working on AWS to iteratively improve the interface for their consumers to use. As I used AWS, I was able to think about how discoverable features are which is something I learned in MIS 3506.
Digital Solution Studios
This course allowed me to grow my UX design skills. The required reading for the course was “The Design of Everyday Things” which is a staple in the UX design community. Reading this book gave me the framework to evaluate the business I was given and provide them with a better-designed website for their business. I conducted research, performed a usability test, got a better understanding of how to use the WordPress interface and create different variations of the website before reaching the final decision.
This class helped with my personal goals because I’m able to add my completed project to my portfolio now. When applying for UX/Product design internships, it’s always a requirement to have at least 2-3 portfolio projects to talk about with a clean-cut process on how I reached my design decisions.
Data Analytics
This course was my first introduction to analyzing data. I was able to use MySQL and R to take a closer look at data. I learned the importance of finding relevancy and trends all based on the business goals of a company. This course gave me a stronger understanding of how to use MySQL and the different ways it can be used.
As an aspiring UX designer, it’s important for me to understand data. Design decisions have to be backed up with supporting evidence and this course helped me learn how to do that. Using the business goals to know what you’re looking for in the data and then make changes to a website or content strategy is the main take away I got from the course.