Why Learn Figma?

Figma is a browser-based user interface design tool that lets teams of users collaborate to build interactive user interface prototypes. Thanks to its large community of designers, users can access various templates, widgets, and functional designs. Aspiring Web Designers, User Experience Designers, and Web Developers can use Figma to expedite and optimize their workflow. Figma is also a valuable skill to help users become better at soft skills related to collaboration, as one of the strengths of the tool is how much it empowers designers to work with one another on the same project.

Here, you’ll learn more about the careers that benefit from Figma and how it can enhance your professional life. Regardless of your goals, learning Figma is a valuable and impressive skill to add to your resume.

What is Figma?

Figma is a browser-based user interface design tool that allows users to collaborate with other editors to build unique and accessible website designs. Users work on collaborative shared documents to build interactive prototypes of webpages, making Figma an ideal skill to learn for aspiring Web Designers who want to build complex, multi-feature webpages. Since Figma allows users to update their designs in real-time without downloading an application, teams can collaborate anytime and anywhere.

Figma is also a vector graphics design tool, meaning that all the designs produced are resizable and replicable. This is important for user experience (UX) design because it assures designers can optimize their layouts for several screens, ranging from mobile phones to desktop PCs. Regardless of the project, Figma will give teams the tools they need to construct complex prototypes of their web layouts. Then, users can test these prototypes and ensure that their designs meet all their requirements.

Since Figma prides itself on its collaborative community of designers, there are many readily available plug-ins, templates, and widgets that make designing interfaces much easier. If a Figma user runs into a problem, there is a good chance that another user has already run into that problem, solved it, and made their solution readily available as a plug-in or template.

Read more about what Figma is and why you should learn it.

What Can You Do with Figma?

Figma lets users collaborate in real-time to build and prototype user interfaces and web applications. Using vector graphics design tools, teams of designers can build complicated wireframe layouts for websites that can be resized to be optimized for screens of any given size. In addition, users can add interactive elements such as scrolling and hovering functionalities to their designs, letting them make sure that their webpages look and feel like modern designs. This lets users produce working prototypes of their webpages that can be easily tested, allowing designers to receive feedback quickly. Figma even allows users to export some amount of code from the prototype designs to hand off to developers once the prototype has been perfected.

In addition, because Figma is such a potent collaboration tool, there is a massive community of designers and developers constantly creating new plug-ins, templates, and widgets for public consumption. Through Figma’s website and other forums, users can share new designs, provide feedback on templates, and improve on the functionality of interactive interface elements. Every day, more and more new Figma resources are being developed. The resources that are being developed can help users modify and re-purpose existing resources to fit their needs better. Thanks to the Figma community, users aren’t just able to collaborate with their team on a web design; they can collaborate with the entire community of Figma designers and developers on their web designs.

Common Professional Uses for Figma

As one of the more commonly used web design tools, Figma is used in many professional industries. Since an effective web presence is vital for companies of all sizes, almost all industries will employ or hire Web Designers, UX Designers, and other Figma specialists.

Web Designers: Web Designers are responsible for creating the visual look and feel of a company or client’s web presence. They will use programs like Figma to produce the prototype webpages they will hand off to Web Developers to code and launch. This field works primarily with the graphic design side of web design, building assets and interfaces rather than programming webpages.

User Experience Designers: User Experience Designers ensure that a website’s interface is accessible and provides a positive user experience. They perform testing and market research to observe and analyze user behavior to understand how users interact with a webpage. They will use programs like Figma to build assets and plug-ins that make it easier for other Web Developers to make their designs as seamless and accessible as possible.

Design Directors: One of the most significant advantages of Figma is how seamlessly it allows teams to work together on their designs. Its design director is an essential role in any web design project. These directors will oversee the teams of Web Designers and Web Developers who will bring a project from inception to completion. Most Design Directors will need to know how to design layouts with Figma and oversee teams of engineers coding those same designs.

Build Collaborative Skills

In many ways, Figma is to user interface design as Google Docs is to word processing. It is a tool that allows users to come together and collaborate on a single project as part of a team, rather than acting as independent parts of a machine. This means that learning to use Figma almost necessitates learning how to design and build interfaces as part of a collaborative rather than a singular entity. This won’t be true of all designs produced by Figma users, but more often than not, many team members will share projects in Figma, so users will quickly learn how to work as part of these teams.

Discover a Community of Creatives

The massive community of Figma designers has created a database of user-designed interfaces, widgets, plug-ins, add-ons, and applications. Learning Figma will give Web Designers access to these resources and introduce them to the broader community that makes these resources. This will let users learn how the plug-ins and add-ons were created, which can help prepare them to make similar widgets. Additionally, it means that the functionalities of Figma are constantly expanding as supplemental materials are developed.

How to Start Learning Figma

Aspiring Web Designers looking to learn Figma may be unsure of their options for learning the program. There are many different training options available, and Noble’s Classes Near Me tool is an ideal place to start looking for in-person and online Figma classes.

The most immersive form of Figma training is through live instruction courses. These courses are available both in-person and online. Live training courses let students interact directly with experienced instructors who can guide them through the process of learning Figma for professional use. Some in-person classes are restricted to certain cities, but many providers have multiple campus locations.

For students who need more flexibility in their schedule, on-demand Figma courses can provide students with a helpful alternative. These courses are self-paced and let students dictate their schedules, which can be important for users with job or family obligations. These courses lack an instructor to answer questions and respond to concerns, making learning difficult for some students.

There are also numerous free tutorials and learning resources available for students hoping to learn the basics of the Figma app. Noble offers students a recording of their Intro to Figma seminar, alongside several other introductory tutorials, on the Web Development and Design playlist on their official YouTube channel. Noble also collects articles and resources on their Figma Learn Hub.

Read the full guide on how to learn Figma.

Learn Figma with Hands-on Training at Noble Desktop

Noble Desktop offers students a wide range of options for learning how to master web design using Figma. Figma courses are available both in-person at Noble’s Manhattan campus and online from the comfort of your home. Experienced instructors teach these courses, and even the online courses have small class sizes that allow students to receive focused attention to their learning needs in real-time. Almost all of Noble’s courses come with tech support, with in-person learners using in-house computers and distance learners receiving set-up assistance to ensure everyone is on the same page. Plus, these courses come with the option for a free retake within one year. During this retake, students can refine their skills, make up the work they missed, or simply gain some extra practice with Figma.

Students looking to learn the intricacies of Figma may consider enrolling in Noble’s Figma Bootcamp. This course will teach students how to build web designs using Figma independently and as part of a collaborative team. Students will learn the basics of the program, such as how to create and resize vector illustrations, optimize their designs for different-sized screens, and export their designs for prototyping or demonstration. Then, students will collaborate on advanced designs, including features such as hovers, scrolling elements, or web assets. At the end of the course, students will know how to use Figma to build professional quality web designs.

For students looking to strike out into a new career as a Web Designer, Noble offers many professional training options for students hoping to learn Figma. The UX & UI Design Certificate program teaches students in-depth user experience design practices, allowing them to test and research user behavior to make informed decisions about the interfaces they are designing in Figma. This assures that their webpages will be more accessible and easy to navigate.

Noble’s Web Development Certificate program teaches students the technical side of webpage design. After learning how to build a layout in Figma, students will learn how to use HTML/CSS, Flex, Bootstrap, and JavaScript to turn that design into a functioning webpage or user interface. More creatively oriented students may look towards Noble’s Digital Design Certificate program. This course, aimed at aspiring Graphic Designers, will teach students how to build assets for web interfaces using Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign, before teaching them how to import those designs into Figma to serve as templates or plug-ins for later use.

Regardless of why a student wants to learn Figma, Noble has a course offering that fits their needs.

Key Insights

• Figma is a collaborative, browser-based web development tool that allows designers to build interactive, functional prototypes of webpage and user interface designs.
• As a browser-based application, Figma allows users to design from anywhere, and it is built to help users optimize their designs for any size screen.
• Web Developers, User Experience Designers, and Digital Directors can all use Figma. Given how vital a strong web presence is in the current digital marketplace, this makes Figma an in-demand skill.
• Figma is also a good tool for learning how to perform collaborative design, both as part of a small team with a specific task and as part of a larger community building additional features on top of Figma.
• Regardless of why you want to learn Figma, comprehensive training is available in-person and online through Noble Desktop.