UX career options

- There are a few different career options to consider when thinking about a role as a UX designer. Generally speaking, UX design positions fall into one of a few different options, doing freelance work, working for a digital agency, working for a startup, and doing corporate work. The interview process for positions might look a little different depending on which option you choose. Let's look at some of the main options for UX designer. Digital agencies are fast-paced environments with an emphasis on thinking outside of the box. Typically, a digital agency will be hired by a client to produce conceptual work or a digital experience that will be developed by the client. On the one hand, depending on the size of the agency, you'll get to work on a variety of different projects and brands. On the other hand, often you'll create designs that are handed off to the client to implement, so you don't always get a chance to see your work from concept to development. As a UX designer in a startup, you'll have the opportunity to work in a company that is still growing, which means you'll contribute meaningfully to the product. Startups are typically fast-paced and highly collaborative. Because startups are often smaller, you may have the opportunity to do your own user research, and your designs may span across multiple product areas. You might be setting up a design language or a design framework for all the products to establish consistency. The corporate path is similar to a startup in terms of how you'll engage with products from concept to release. Corporate jobs have more defined roles. For example, if user research needs to be conducted, you'll typically have a user researcher and a separate person who will pull data for you if you need analytics. Your job might be highly focused on just delivering wireframes and other design deliverables. There are also much more opportunities for mentoring and growing your design skillset because corporate design teams have more designers and resources for career development. Lastly, there's the freelance route. As a freelancer, you're managing yourself as your own business, so the interview process is limited to a meeting with a recruiter and a hiring manager for potential contracts. The work you're hired for will be on a contract basis and you'll work on that project for a specific time period. Freelancers can take on projects while they'll work in an agency, a startup, or in a corporate setting. Freelancing is a good way to build up your portfolio with various experiences with different company brands, working in different environments, and meeting a lot of people. Your day might look a bit different depending on which path you select, so take the time to focus on what you want out of your career and how you really want to spend your day. Before applying to a position, you should ask yourself how important is it for you to see your product through development, from concept to execution, and whether you like being a part of something new, and perhaps if you'd prefer to have the ability to pick your own projects and run your own design business.