UI Designer Job Description

UI Designers build and design digital interfaces with a focus on user interaction. UI Designers have both creative and technical skills in visual and interaction design and wireframing and prototyping. They may also know some coding. This overview will explain more about what a UI Designer does, what they typically earn, and how to learn the skills required to land a job. 

What is a UI Designer?

A UI Designer designs user interfaces, usually for digital applications such as the web, mobile, or video games. They build visual and interactive elements such as buttons, menus, and widgets. They also develop prototypes and refine their designs based on information gained from user research. UI Designers craft designs for various industries, such as financial and banking, healthcare apps, retail apps, education, automotive, and gaming. 

UI Designers typically work in a team. However, the size of this team and the many hats a UI Designer may wear vary based on company size. In a small company, UI Designers may be responsible for fulfilling all roles of UI design and answer to a project lead. In a large company, UI Designers may find themselves in a team with focused roles in various aspects of UI design, such as UI writing, graphic design, architecture, and innovation. 

A UI Designer’s primary goal is to design applications so that users intuitively understand how to use them and perform the actions or find the information they need without learning how to use the application first. UI Designers play a prominent role in influencing how we use digital technology in our daily lives. 

Job Requirements

A degree or professional training isn’t required to become a UI Designer. Generally, a design portfolio is a better testament to your qualifications than a record of formal education. Ultimately, UI Designers need to comprehensively understand UI design and industry tools, such as Figma, Adobe Photoshop, and Adobe Illustrator.

UI Designers need to understand the following principles:

• Interaction design – the study of how text, graphical elements, space, time, and user behavior shape how a user interacts with a product.
• Visual design – the study of how text, graphic elements, space, layout, and color affect aesthetic appeal.
• User research – the study of target users and how their behaviors, needs, and motivations influence their product use.
• Wireframing – building a rough draft of the overall interface structure.
• Prototyping – building a complete design that users can test before finalizing a product.

Read more about the job requirements for a UI Designer.

Job Responsibilities

A UI Designer’s primary job responsibility is to build an interface that is both visually stunning and intuitive for users. This task can be broken down into the following job duties:

• Developing and enforcing a style guide that establishes a consistent visual “look” across the application.
• Building wireframes that outline the overall structure of a design.
• Making decisions about screen layout and visual elements that drive an intuitive user experience.
• Designing individual elements within each screen that the user can interact with.
• Creating animations.
• Ensuring layout responsiveness across various screen sizes.
• Building prototypes for user testing.
• Taking user feedback and integrating it into design iterations.

Skills

UI Designers need to have a variety of technical and creative skills. They need to understand the principles of visual and interaction design, how these principles affect visual aesthetics, and how users interact with a product. UI Designers also need to understand how to conduct wireframing, prototyping, and user research, as well as how each stage in the project lifecycle informs design creation and iteration. 

UI Designers also require soft skills. Empathy allows them to put themselves in the user's shoes and better understand user needs during initial interface design, user testing, and informed design iteration. Communication skills are needed to interact with users and conduct user testing, as well as to present design ideas to stakeholders, listen to feedback, take constructive criticism, and defend design decisions. UI Designers should also enjoy problem-solving and have an interest in emerging technology. As new advances are made in technology nearly every day, UI Designers should be interested in continuously learning new skills.

Read more about what skills you need to become a UI Designer.

Why Do Businesses Need UI Designers?

UI design is important to the success of any business using a website, mobile application, or software to attract customers. UI Designers know how to build a digital interface that is both visually attractive and intuitive to use. This increases customer satisfaction with your website or product. As a result, businesses that hire UI Designers will see increased traffic, conversion rates, and customer retention, increasing profits. 

Since UI Designers create with the user in mind and back their builds with user testing, company products are better tuned to user needs. This saves companies time and money in customer support as customers should have fewer complaints and usability issues versus skipping the UI design process. UI Designers can also improve the products employees use internally, increasing a company's overall productivity as interfaces are made simple and enjoyable to work with.

Where Do UI Designers Usually Work?

Given that it’s where the career first originated, UI Designers most commonly work in the computer science industry in areas such as software and information technology. However, as digital technology evolves, many other industries need digital design and development. Finance, insurance, healthcare, government, military, and retail use websites and mobile applications to provide access to public services such as banking, telemedicine, and online shopping. Other industries UI Designers may work in include:

• Education – building online courses and study applications.
• Printing – creating electronic documents and e-reader interfaces
• Publishing – creating interactive self-publishing platforms 
• Advertising – managing social media and digital design tools. 
• Telecommunications – designing smartphone interfaces
• Business & Non-profit – developing websites
• Entertainment – designing streaming interfaces
• Automotive – designing digital interfaces such as GPS navigation
• Household Appliance - designing interfaces for smart appliances (such as refrigerators, ovens, or coffee machines)

UI Designer Salary and Job Outlook

UI design is a career with a steady growth outlook. As dependence on technology continues to grow among businesses and the public, so does the need for intuitive and visually appealing interfaces. Thus, UI Designers can expect their job to remain in demand and secure.

UI Designers are needed in a variety of industries. While computer science is the birthplace of UI design, many other industries depend on technical applications to communicate or conduct business with customers. Thus, UI Designers can also find work in finance, education, government, military, and healthcare industries.

The average salary for UI Designers falls around $85,000. However, the pay range for the position can vary greatly depending on location and work experience. UI Designers can generally expect their salary to increase with industry experience and newly acquired skills. Senior UI Designers can see six-figure salaries, with the highest-paying jobs available at major software and technology firms.

Read more about UI Designer salaries and the job outlook for a UI Designer.

How Long Does it Take to Become a UI Designer?

UI design certificates and bootcamps take three months to complete for full-time students. Part-time courses take around six months to complete. However, while many of these courses offer job search assistance services, there is no job guarantee upon completion. Students who choose to complete a course should continue honing their skills on their own as they search for entry-level jobs. Self-learners can also break into UI design without a degree or completing a certificate, though their training time will likely take longer.

Some job seekers may need to accept a position in a related field before breaking into UI design. Upon landing a UI design position, employees in entry-level positions will still have skills to learn, and it may take some time before they feel comfortable and confident in the skills and are capable of mentoring others. Overall, it can take an individual two to five years to find a salaried position and confidently call themselves a UI Designer. 

UI Designer vs. UX Designer

UI & UX design are commonly grouped together. Though the roles of UI and UX Designers frequently overlap, they are, in fact, different positions. UI and UX Designers both build digital applications focusing on usability and user experience. However, UI Designers are focused on the visual design and usability of an application’s interface, while UX Designers are focused on the overall experience of the user as they interact with the whole of the application. 

UX Designers are primarily concerned with conducting user research, not just through focus groups and usability testing. UX Designers also look at analytical data. They gather user feedback and data-focused information and give UI Designers suggestions for improving their designs. UX and UI Designers generally see similar salaries. 

A UX Designer is more focused on user testing and prototyping in a team, while a UI Designer is more concerned with design and interactivity. However, the job roles overlap, and a UI Designer will likely be expected to take on all duties in small companies. Many UI Designers take on additional training to become UI & UX Designers, reflecting their skills in both areas.

Learn the Skills to Become a UI Designer at Noble Desktop

Noble Desktop offers several UI design classes for those seeking professional instruction in pursuing a career as a UI Designer. Classes are small and feature expert instructors and free retake options. Courses can be attended in person in NYC or online from anywhere. 

The UI Design Certificate is designed to prepare students to launch a career in UI design. You’ll learn essential design principles as well as how to use the most popular UI design tools: Figma, Photoshop, and Illustrator. Throughout the course, you’ll complete a number of hands-on projects and build a portfolio to showcase your skills to potential employers.

Should you be interested in UX design as well as UI design (the two fields commonly overlap), you can pursue the UX & UI Design Certificate. You’ll learn the design principles and industry tools of both UX & UI design, build a professional portfolio, and receive one-on-one job preparation assistance. 

Bootcamps are also available where you can learn the ins and outs of the most popular UI design tools, including Figma, Photoshop, and Illustrator. These courses are open to pure beginners and are designed to guide you to mastery of the program. 

If you’re not ready to jump into a full UI design course, you can explore Noble Desktop’s learning hubs. These hubs are designed to inform you about a topic and offer learning resources, including free tutorials and self-guided education. UI design learn hubs include:

• Learn UI Design
• Learn Visual Design
• Learn Adobe XD
• Learn Figma
• Learn Sketch

Key Takeaways

• UI Designers build and design digital interfaces with a focus on user interaction.
• UI Designers must have a firm grasp of visual and interaction design concepts.
• They must also know how to use industry tools in building wireframes and prototypes.
• They need soft skills in communication and user empathy. They should also be creative and have an interest in technology.
• UI Designers can work in nearly any industry that uses digital applications, either internally or to communicate or offer services to customers.
• Formal education isn’t required to become a UI Designer.
• You can receive comprehensive training to become a UI Designer through an in-person or live online course with Noble Desktop.