Overview

Conduct UX Research and Test Early Concepts is the fourth course in a certificate program that will equip you with the skills you need to apply to entry-level jobs in user experience (UX) design. In this course, you will learn how to plan and conduct a usability study to gather feedback about designs. Then, you will modify your low-fidelity designs based on insights from your research. Current UX designers and researchers at Google will serve as your instructors, and you will complete hands-on activities that simulate real-world UX design scenarios. Learners who complete the seven courses in this certificate program should be equipped to apply for entry-level jobs as UX designers. By the end of this course, you will be able to: - Plan a UX research study, including the project background, research goals, research questions, Key Performance Indicators, methodology, participants, and script. - Explain the importance of respecting privacy and user data. - Conduct a moderated and unmoderated usability study. - Take notes during a usability study. - Create affinity diagrams to group and analyze data. - Synthesize observations from research and come up with insights. - Develop persuasive presentation skills to share research insights. - Modify low-fidelity designs based on research insights. - Continue to design a mobile app to include in your professional portfolio. To be successful in this course, you should complete the previous three courses in the certificate program. Or, you need to have an ability to conduct user research to inform the creation of empathy maps, personas, user stories, user journey maps, problem statements, and value propositions; as well as an ability to create wireframes and low-fidelity prototypes on paper and in Figma.

Syllabus

Planning UX research studies

Learn how to plan a UX research study! There are seven elements that your plan should include: the project background, research goals, research questions, key performance indicators, methodology, participants, and the script or questions you’ll ask participants. You'll explore each of these elements in detail, and you'll create your own research plan to test the designs you developed in the previous course of the certificate program. You'll also learn how to respect user privacy and data when conducting UX research.

Conducting research with usability studies

Conducting research with participants to get feedback about your designs is critical. In this part of the course, you'll conduct a usability study, which is a research method that assesses how easy it is for participants to complete core tasks in a design. You'll also explore how to reduce bias and be inclusive when conducting usability studies. And, you'll take notes while observing participants in a usability study.

Analyzing and synthesizing research results

After you conduct a usability study, you'll have a ton of feedback from participants. In this part of the course, you'll analyze and synthesize all of the feedback from your research. You'll gather data and observations in one place, organize the data using an affinity diagram, find themes, and come up with actionable insights.

Sharing research insights for better designs

It's time to let your hard work shine in the spotlight! You’re ready to share and promote the insights from your research. In this part of the course, you’ll learn techniques for presenting insights to various audiences, and you'll improve your presentation skills to grab your audience's attention. In addition, you'll iterate on your designs, which means making revisions to create new-and-improved designs, based on insights from your research.