How to Become a User Experience Designer Without a Degree in 2024

While many people who are working as User Experience (UX) Designers have a four-year college degree, it isn’t absolutely necessary to have one. Jobs in many technology fields are easier to get based on experience than education, so if you can demonstrate what you can do, you can often land the job.

Degree Requirements for UX Design

Many people working as UX Designers have bachelor's degrees in computing, psychology, sociology, anthropology, humanities, or graphic design, but it is possible to land a UX design job without a four-year degree. If you have a strong portfolio of past work and design experience, you can get a job based on experience rather than education.

UX Degree Programs

The respondents to a 2019 study on UX/UI design reported that 82% had college degrees, but very few had UX or UI-specific education. Among UX Designers who do have degrees, they are in the areas of graphic design, product design, industrial design, digital media, visual communications, or fine arts.

Cost of a College Degree

The cost of a college degree varies from school to school in the US. Not only does it take four to five years to get a bachelor’s degree, but it can also cost between $20,000-$100,000, depending upon the school, when you are finished. Of course, a degree includes many other classes in subjects like English, psychology, math, science, and social studies, in addition to the classes in the major area of study. A four-year college degree is a well-rounded education but it isn’t the only way to become a UX Designer.

Bootcamps and Certificate Programs

UX/UI design bootcamps and certificate programs are intensive classes held over a span of a few days to several months in which participants learn the principles of design and how to use software products for digital design. You don’t need to have any prior experience in order to take the courses.

For example, in Noble Desktop’s UX Design Bootcamp you will learn the fundamentals of conducting user research, creating user scenarios and personas, and building user flows. You’ll sketch, wireframe, prototype, and test with user interviews, then present findings to the class. This intensive UX class prepares you to understand the basics of user experience practice with class assignments designed to help you compile a professional portfolio.

Bootcamps and certificate programs provide hands-on experience that can help you get a job after the program is over. Some schools even give tuition refunds if you don’t get a job within several months. Some programs also provide a mentor to help students prepare for the job search.

Advantages of Bootcamps and Certificate Programs

One of the advantages of bootcamps and certificate programs is that while a few months is a time commitment, it is far less than the four or five years needed to earn a college degree. These courses also cost significantly less than a bachelor’s degree. Finally, bootcamps are taught by people who are currently working in the field and are more adaptable to industry changes than college programs.

Important Skills for UX Designers

In addition to research and prototyping, UX Designers need to have an understanding of other aspects of project development, such as:

• Project management
• Group Facilitation
• Writing
• Public Speaking
• Visual Design
• Data Analysis/analytics
• Data visualization
• Market research
• Content strategy
• Instructional design

Other skills that are useful for UX Designers are what are considered soft skills like:

• Communication
• Empathy
• Listening
• teamwork/collaboration
• Problem-solving
• Design
• Technical expertise
• Business understanding

How to Get a Job as a UX Designer

Getting hired as a UX Designer depends upon the quality of your work, and that involves putting together a portfolio of examples to show to prospective employers. Once you have a resume and portfolio together, you can start answering ads on platforms like Craigslist, UpWork, or Thumbtack. Sign up on employment sites like Indeed.com and Glassdoor.com, and you can get job notices daily in your email.

Internships can be another way to find a job in UX Design. You can access these opportunities through a school or training program that you are enrolled in, or through a professional organization. It can be helpful to join these groups because of the opportunities for networking. One of the professional organizations that UX Designers can belong to is the Interaction Design Foundation that can be found on LinkedIn. The User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA) is another useful group. Professional organizations often hold conferences and job fairs, and this is a good way to make connections with people who may be hiring designers. While networking is definitely important, showing what you can do is just as important as who you know.

How to Learn UX Design

If you would like to learn how to use software like Adobe XD in order to switch to a career in UX design, one of the best ways to do that is to sign up for classes. You can choose classes that meet in-person or online to learn XD, Photoshop, and Illustrator. Some people prefer to attend brick-and-mortar sessions when learning new information, but that isn’t always available. Live online classes have a similar set-up with a real-time, remote instructor who can answer questions and take control of your monitor—with permission—to show you how to do things. Training is part or full-time and available weekdays, weeknights, or weekends.

The best way to prepare for a career shift to a field like UX design is to enroll in a bootcamp or certificate program. These are intensive training courses that run from a few weeks to a few months and will cover the design process and software in much more depth than tutorials can. Another plus of training is that you will leave class with a professional-quality portfolio that you can show to prospective employers.

It’s easy to take UX design classes and start a new career. Choose between in-person sessions in NYC at Noble’s location or sign up for live online UX design courses and attend from anywhere. Find UX bootcamps in your area and get started in a new direction today.