Online ExpertTrack in Creative Arts & Media

UX Design Fundamentals

4.7 (9 reviews)

Launch your career in user experience (UX) design by developing your skills and knowledge of UX principles.

464 enrolments

Created by

FutureLearnFutureLearn

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In collaboration with

CanvaCanva

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Endorsed by

Coventry UniversityCoventry University

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Use the foundations of UX design to launch your career as a digital designer.

More organisations are taking a ‘digital first’ approach to business, and seeking out individuals who understand the user journey to create a frictionless experience for their customers. Global demand for UX professionals has never been higher. So how can you kickstart your career in the ever growing world of user experience (UX) design?

This ExpertTrack will explore the full end-to-end experience that a user has when interacting with a website, app or digital product. You’ll learn to consider aesthetics, usability and accessibility of digital assets.

You’ll discover how, as a UX designer, you can add value to a business at all levels and play a critical role in driving customer engagement by conducting user research, building personas, developing business models, creating wireframes and building prototypes. And you’ll learn how to put yourself at the core of both designing new products from first principles and the continuous improvement of existing offerings.

UX vs UI: understanding user interface vs user experience

More UX designers are required to display UI (user interface) skills. So how does UI design relate to the wider field of UX?

You’ll find out how to incorporate visual design with interaction design, and how these ‘micro’ elements exist within the big-picture ‘macro’ world of UX.

Learn the 5 stages of the design thinking process

You’ll examine the five-stage design thinking model proposed by the Hasso-Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford University: empathise, define, ideate, prototype and test. You’ll explore the non-linear nature of this methodology that will allow you to work through obstacles and bring ideas to life.

Learn how to create a user journey with the value stream map

The user journey map is an excellent tool for digital designers, as it allows you to visualise how a user interacts with a product and lets you see a product from the user’s perspective. You’ll learn how to use mapping to find out all the touchpoints at which a customer will come into contact with your company, online and offline.

Key skills you will learn

  • User experience design
  • User interface design
  • Building prototypes
  • Creating wireframes
  • Design thinking
  • Business model design
  • Customer profile mapping
  • Customer value mapping
  • Research skills
  • User personas

Learning outcomes

By the end of the ExpertTrack, you’ll be able to...

  • Articulate and analyse the Design Thinking process
  • Define and justify an ideation plan
  • Articulate the key elements of an implementation plan
  • dentify key elements of a business model for a specific value proposition and its associated business environment
  • Articulate the phases of Business Model Design
  • Evaluate the fit between a customer profile map and a value map

Experience required

This ExpertTrack will give you foundational knowledge and skills needed to successfully implement design thinking practices and principles grounded in UX design to help drive business forward.

You’ll learn to apply this knowledge to develop a user-centered business model design and value proposition design.

No prior experience is required to succeed in this ExpertTrack.

During the ExpertTrack we’ll be using Canva.

Getting started

This ExpertTrack will help you develop your theoretical and practical expertise in UX design, and builds upon the fundamentals of Design Thinking and the Design Thinking process.

You may be an entry-level or intermediate graphic or digital designer, a non-technical digital team leader or an aspiring product manager.

ExpertTrack course overview

  • Course 1

    4.7 (9 reviews)

    Learn the fundamental UX skills, principles and other essentials required to kickstart your career as a digital UX designer.

    1 test

    4 weeks

    4 hours per week

    • Week 1

      Introduction to User Experience (UX) design
      • Welcome to the course
      • Why is UX design so important?
      • Designing for UX and UI
      • Wrap-up
    • Week 2

      Design thinking in UX
      • Introduction to design thinking in UX
      • What is design thinking and why is it so valuable?
      • The role of design thinking in UX
      • Wrap-up
    • Week 3

      Setting design challenges
      • Introduction to setting design challenges
      • What is inspiration?
      • Framing design challenges and project plans
      • Wrap-up
    • Week 4

      Developing understanding and inspiration
      • Introduction to developing understanding and inspiration
      • Types of research
      • Field research methods
      • Wrap-up
  • Course 2

    Learn the role of design thinking in UX – from the five stages of design thinking to defining and creating an ideation plan.

    1 test

    4 weeks

    4 hours per week

    • Week 1

      What makes a user?
      • Welcome to the course
      • Empathising with the customer
      • Wrap-up
    • Week 2

      Developing customer empathy
      • Introduction to developing customer empathy
      • Empathy maps
      • Wrap-up
    • Week 3

      Journey maps
      • Introduction to journey maps
      • Designing journey maps
      • Designing for fidelity
      • Wrap-up
    • Week 4

      Ideation
      • Introduction to ideation
      • What is ideation?
      • Synthesising to draw insights
      • Brainstorming to generate ideas
      • Prototyping to evaluate ideas
      • Wrap-up
  • Course 3

    Uncover the role of business strategy and adopt a customer-centric mindset to become a successful user experience designer.

    1 test

    4 weeks

    4 hours per week

    • Week 1

      Concept development
      • Welcome to the course
      • User testing
      • Weekly Wrap-up
    • Week 2

      Value proposition design
      • Introduction to value proposition design
      • Customer Profiling
      • Value Mapping
      • Testing for fit
      • Wrap-up
    • Week 3

      Phase of business model design
      • Introduction to business modelling
      • Drafting business models
      • Testing business models
      • Designing business models
      • Wrap-up
    • Week 4

      Launching and analysis
      • Introduction to launching and analysis
      • Launching products
      • Making implementation a success
      • Facilitating continuous improvement
      • Wrap-up

Prove you're job ready

Highlight the new, job-relevant skills you’ve gained and supplement existing qualifications with a hard-earned, industry-specific digital certificate – plus one for every course within your ExpertTrack.

  • Learn the latest in your chosen industry or subject.
  • Complete each course and pass assessments.
  • Receive certificates validated by the educating organisation.
  • Impress employers with learning outcomes you can add to your CV.
  • Make your career dreams a reality.

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World-class learning with FutureLearn

FutureLearn is a leading social learning platform and has been providing high quality online courses for learners around the world over the last ten years.

This ExpertTrack is in collaboration with Canva

Experience working with Canva, a leading design platform, used to drive business success across the UX design workflow.

This ExpertTrack is endorsed by Coventry University

This ExpertTrack is endorsed by Coventry University and delivered by FutureLearn as a quality professional development programme.

Meet your instructor

I create positive impact through Design Thinking.

Mainly across topics such as Business & Service design, UX/CX/EX Design, Product Management, Strategy, Innovation, Training & Facilitation.

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Join a global classroom

  • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
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Map your progress

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  • Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate

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ExpertTracks are a series of online courses designed to help you master new skills in specialist areas. You pay a monthly subscription fee which includes access to all courses within the ExpertTrack, as well as assessments and the final digital certificate.

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