Nowadays, more and more businesses are moving online and require an engaging and effective user experience like the one people would have in the off-site environment. The demand for digital products and services is greater than ever. To be influential, companies need to pay attention to people’s behaviour. According to
Nielsen Norman Group, Covid-19 changed users' preferences, which calls for businesses to adapt their design based on new research.
The demand for UX and UI designers is rising, and there is a
323% increase in interest in UI roles and a 289% in UX roles in 2020. The role of a UX designer is one of the
50 best jobs to have in 2022, according to Glassdoor. It is unlikely that this will change this year. For all designers in 2023, this opens an incredible opportunity ahead.
As the industry evolves, the role of the UX/UI designer becomes critical for the success of digital products and services. This creates an opportunity for everyone with some design, illustration, or visual arts background to take their career to the next level with sought-after UX and UI skills.
How do we know? Because of our
Upskill UX/UI Design program!
Georgi Balinov, Polya Vassileva, Joro Yordanov, Antoaneta Tsaneva
During the 3-month training, you will gain hands-on skills companies demand to help you fast-track your career. You will have experienced designers by your side, and when you need advice, you can turn to a team of mentors – alumni who graduated from the same program as you will go
through. In the Upskill training, you’ll develop real-world projects, work in groups with like-minded people, and master the latest UX/UI trends and tools.
And to give you a sneak peek into the
Upskill program, we talked to four leading design experts (three of them are lecturers at the program) to learn more about the role of UX/UI designer, why it’s a future-proof career, and how to become one.
But before we start, let us just add something you should know if you consider a UX/UI career. The admission for the
Upskill program is now open. Apply until March 12 and become a well-rounded UX and UI designer.
Let’s start with the basics - what does a UX/UI designer do?
“The role of UX/UI designer is comprehensive and includes expertise in more than one professional field, depending on the designer's work environment - product company, digital agency, startup,” explained Joro Yordanov, a guest lecturer at
Telerik Academy Upskill UX/UI Design and Partner & Design Director at Oblik Studio, during our free career webinar.
Joro has over 15 years of experience and has worked on award-winning campaigns for local and international brands. Since 2017, together with his team, he has contributed to the success of Nexo, which soon after became a leading fintech institution with almost 2 million users worldwide.
“The UX/UI designer is a problem-solver. The role includes visual and conceptual work strategy, and communication and collaboration with other teams. It all leads to achieving the business goals while accomplishing the user needs,” he added.
What skills do you need to be a successful UX/UI designer in 2023?
“It’s vital to be prepared to go deeper into the problem and have analytical thinking. You must be able to focus on the small details while keeping the big picture of the entire user experience in mind,” shared Antoaneta Tsaneva, Director, User Experience, Gtmhub. With over 16 years of experience in the UX field she contributed to the success of companies such as Telerik, Progress, and HP.
"Empathy is a must-have skill in UX/UI design because enhancing user satisfaction is crucial. We create products for people, and we must detect and understand what is essential for the end-user. And then to analyze it," added Antoaneta.
Both Antoaneta and Joro agreed that the career path is different for everyone.
“5-10 years ago, and even more recently, before
Telerik Academy Upskill UX/UI Design, there were no such in-depth programs for UX/UI designers, and people were mainly self-taught, without a structured plan and lectures like the one they have access to now in this program. The professionals in this sector needed to retrain from different working fields, which is common in our industry,” explained Antoaneta.
“This is a natural career step for graphic designers who decide to take the next career step to become UX/UI designers,” added Joro.
As a co-founder of a design company, Joro shared the skills he looks for in future employees:
"It is important to be super organized and always open to learning more - about the profession, the industry and all the new trends in it. This keeps you motivated during your everyday tasks and moves you forward to achieving better results.”
“What I look for is resourcefulness, a quality that can differentiate one candidate from another. It is the mindset of dealing with every challenge - from conceptual to technical and even operational,” added Joro.
The advice agreed on by all the experts came from Georgi Balinov,
Upskill UX/UI Design lead trainer and Creative Director & Co-founder at Hype.
“Being eager to learn and develop yourself professionally is the skill which would not only make you a better designer now but will help you grow and stay relevant in the industry now and for the years to come.”
What is the career path for a UX/UI designer?
“Nowadays, we are surrounded by displays and digital interfaces, leading to the growing demand for UX/UI professionals,” shared Joro Yordanov and added: “The role of UX/UI designer is a great career choice. The development opportunities are numerous whether you choose to work at a software product company or a design agency."
“The demand for UX/UI designers is outstripping the supply of skilled workers. Various companies are looking for well-prepared people, and the need is constantly growing.”
How to start a job as UX/UI designer without experience? Do companies invest in junior talent?
This is indeed one of the most frequently asked questions during our career webinar. And if you are wondering the same thing, we have your answer from the people responsible for talent hiring:
“Yes, companies invest in junior talent precisely because of the growing need for designers. There is a major shortage of experienced designers on the market right now. Hence, companies have no choice but to invest in junior talent,” explained Polya Vassileva, Upskill UX/UI lead trainer and Creative Director at Telerik Academy & Campus X.
“There are currently more businesses that need UX/UI designers than people suitable for the job. Companies understand that if they want to have well-prepared UX/UI designers who understand the specifics of the processes, they need to invest in them. They can do that through internship programs and hiring junior talents, but they must be eager to train and share their knowledge with the new additions to the team,” added Antoaneta.
“Hiring junior specialists could be time-consuming, and both sides need to invest to be effective. But when done right, the results exceed the investment, and more and more companies realize that today. For me, this is one of the most satisfying things - to help people develop professionally and watch them grow over the years,” shared Joro.
Based on your experience, what advice would you give to someone who wants to upgrade their skills or is at the beginning of their career in UX/UI design?
“There are challenges, and you must be willing to put in the work for your professional development and keep learning even after the
Upskill program. But all this will pay off, and the job satisfaction is guaranteed,” shared Antoaneta.
“Take advantage of your curiosity and interest in this area. Grow, learn, upgrade. It is all about communication, soft skills, technical skills, and everyday learning. There are many opportunities, and if you manage to take advantage of them, things will most likely work out for you,” added Joro.
You want to pursue a career as a UX/UI designer? Apply for the
Telerik Academy Upskill UX/UI Design program – power up your career and build the skills of tomorrow.
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