What I Learned Completing A UX Bootcamp
Thoughts on my experience with a 6 month-long UX Bootcamp: What I learned, what I’m grateful for, and my recommendation.
Success!
I did it; I completed a 6 month long UX Bootcamp. Three days a week, three hours each day, with sessions lead entirely over zoom. I’ve spent the past several weeks since completing the course looking back on the experience.
The Bootcamp proved to be a valuable investment because of the tangible and intangible skills gained. Additionally, going through the course was a powerful networking tool in an era of lockdown. After reflecting on the experience, I wanted to share my accomplishments and recommendations on taking a Bootcamp.
In this post, I’ll share:
- What aspects of the Bootcamp I’m grateful for
- The most valuable skills I gained from the course
- My personal advice on enrolling in a Bootcamp
What I’m Grateful For
The course supported my career goals.
The decision to attend a Bootcamp was motivated by my professional aspirations. My long-term career goal is to land a job as a Content Strategist. Over the past year, I’ve worked to position myself in a way that makes me competitive in the field. Setting myself up to meet my professional goals has been a mix of education, networking, and work experience.
I found my work experience relevant to the field, and I’ve steadily grown my network. Still, I saw a knowledge gap, specifically in the realm of UX. Before going through the course, I didn’t make time for activities like user research or testing. The Bootcamp broadened my perspective and taught me the skills needed to be a more compelling prospect.
On a personal note, enrolling in a Bootcamp gave me additional focus during quartine. Jumping on the class zoom was something to look forward to every week, so I’m grateful for the consistency. The course also gave me a chance to meet some fantastic people, and I’m incredibly thankful for the connections I’ve made.
What I Learned
Learning the design thinking process gave me a broader perspective.
Students were taught industry tools, hard skills, and best practices. I went into the course expecting to gain a working knowledge of tools commonly among UX designers.
I Learned to articulate and defend my design choices.
Learning this made me think deeply about the decisions I make. Seeing fellow students share their design process helped me appreciate different ways of thinking. The Bootcamp was highly collaborative, and I found myself learning as I worked through projects and tasks with others.
So, beyond picking up how to use Figma or besting practices for conducting user research, I improved my ability to work on a team. This helped me to better understand ‘the why’ behind the design choices I was making.
I Learned the importance of user-centric design.
By far, the most important thing I learned was how and why to keep the user at the center of the design thinking process. Knowing user-centric design helped me understand who I was designing for.
I realized it’s easy to say the user is at the center of a design or product. Looking at my design process before going through the course, I was focused on turning work in to move a metric or hit a delivery date. Going through the Bootcamp shifted my focus to the user rather than the task itself.
My Recommendations
What are your goals?
My most significant piece of advice is to take time to be intentional about what motivates you. Writing down goals and creating an action plan helped me articulate what I needed to complete to get what I wanted. Be deliberate and specific early on, so you always have your personal motivations to refer back to when you’re looking at Bootcamps.
How do you like to learn?
I considered getting a master’s degree and realized I don’t have the patience. I also thought about self-paced learning, relying entirely on online content. The self-paced option seemed appealing from a financial and time perspective. However, the structure of a live instructor-led course provided a sense of accountability.
I share this to point out: how you like to learn will, and should, influence your decision. Bootcamps are a commitment, so make sure it’s something you feel you’ll enjoy.
Do your research, consider your options, but don’t overthink.
There’s no lack of articles analyzing the impact of an education in UX. Let these resources be the starting point of your research. Go into this research phase with your goals set and your learning preferences in mind. That way, you can compare whatever you read against your personal experience.
Final Thoughts
Having completed the course, I can confidently say I’m proud of my decision to enroll.
I believe education is a fantastic way to improve yourself. However, I also think you should plan what you want to accomplish before making a decision. Any education you pursue should align with personal goals and fit your learning style.
I’m proud of my accomplishments and believe I am one step closer to pursuing my career goal. I gained valuable hard and soft skills from going through the course. I’m grateful for the progress toward my career goals, the skills I learned, and the people I met.
Hopefully, the insight I gave in this post proves helpful to anyone considering enrolling in a Bootcamp.
