UX Design Program

Become a UX designer
in as little as 6 months
Develop in-demand UX/UI
and product design skills
Learn 1:1 from expert mentors
and build your portfolio

Get a free
UX Design short course

Get a free
UX Design short course

Curious about this program?

Contact us to find out if it’s right for you

Career Advisor

“How would you like to get in touch?”

“I’m here to help you become a UX designer”

Alana, Senior Program Advisor

Curious about this program?

Contact us to find out if it’s right for you

Career Advisor

“How would you like to get in touch?”

“I’m here to help you become a UX designer”

Alana, Senior Program Advisor

Our graduates now have tech jobs all over the world

Apply for one of our 100 Women in Tech Partial Scholarships this month and get up to 19% off the career change program of your choice! Speak with one of our advisors to learn more 🙌

The UX Design Program

Your launchpad into a career in product design

Gain a rigorous education in user-centric design thinking, and learn how to build sitemaps, research, work with AI, and wireframe—all with lifetime curriculum access after graduation

Build the technical skillset of every great product designer adopting tools for wireframing and prototyping, such as Figma, Adobe XD, Sketch, Marvel, InVision, and more

Work with a team of active industry experts offering 1:1 mentorship on every assignment and project review, including a capstone project you’ll use to conquer your local job market

Find your industry passion through a specialization course, deciding between UI for UX Designers, Frontend Development for Designers, or Voice User Interface Design

Earn real-world work experience with a stand-out portfolio and the chance to gain hands-on apprenticeship training with our partners: TechFleet, Democracylab & Digital Product School

Launch into the world of product design and land the role you want with 1:1 career specialist guidance to build a competitive application package and job search strategy, all on our Career Support Center

Starting every two weeks

Learn online 30–40 hours/week for 5 months or 15–20 hours/week for up to 10 months

Top-quality mentorship

Our UX design mentors are seasoned industry experts with a 4.94/5 rating

Support from start to finish

Enjoy the Job Preparation Course with career coaching included

What makes UX design the right career?

Compassion is at the heart of UX

UX designers work at an exciting crossroads. They empathize with and advocate for the user via research and testing, combining the hard skills of impactful creative design, with the soft skills of teamwork and communication between users and product stakeholders.

Designers are a permanent staple of tech

Despite AI’s arrival and Big Tech layoffs, UX/UI design positions continue to surge. MarketsandMarkets research says remote market size is expected to increase from USD 20.1 billion in 2022 to 58.5 billion by 2027, meaning UX/UI and product designer demand is only on the rise.

Work-life balance is baked in

Working remotely or hybrid is a top benefit of working in tech. UX/UI offers a career that is creative, flexible, and yes, cost-saving. Graduates go on to earn more, work on rewarding projects that solve real problems—and enjoy more time for loved ones and hobbies at home.

What makes CareerFoundry the right school?

We’re the proven path to professional success

Since 2013 we’ve helped 7000+ career changers move from diverse backgrounds like teaching, taxi driving, or opera singing to tech professionals. Our model of industry-driven curriculum, flexibly-paced learning, and expert mentorship ensure graduates land careers they love.

Learn on your schedule, backed by our Job Guarantee

Study flexibly by choosing your own timeline. Immerse yourself in the curriculum, and build your portfolio around your other commitments. Work with your advisor on job coaching and land your first role within six months of graduation or your money back—that’s the Job Guarantee.

Our graduates stand out with cutting-edge skill sets

We’re constantly evolving our curriculum to be industry relevant. That includes specialization courses, like our upcoming Designing for AI course. Through research and working with industry experts, we ensure success—and our 90% graduate placement rate reflects that.

Meet our graduates

All programs

UX Design Program Curriculum

A rigorous and industry-relevant education built with beginners and upskillers in mind.

Curriculum overview

Part-time
Flexible
Full-time
Intro to UX Design
approx.
1 month
UX Design Immersion
approx.
7 months
Specialization
approx.
2 months
Intro to UX Design
approx.
0.5 - 1 month
UX Design Immersion
approx.
3.5 - 7 months
Specialization
approx.
1 - 2 months
Intro to UX Design
approx.
0.5 months
UX Design Immersion
approx.
4 - 4.5 months
Specialization
approx.
1 month
info-icon

Completion times are approximations based on the progress of our current students and graduates

Intro to UX Design
UX Immersion
Specialization

This course will take you through eight tasks leading up to one main project: user research, personas, wireframes and more for a vocabulary learning app.

curriculum curriculum-box heading image
1.1 Introduction to UX & Design Thinking

Set the foundation for the rest of your learning and kick off the first stage of your course project.

1.2 User Research

Explore user research methods and conduct a series of user interviews.

1.3 User Personas

Learn how to tell user stories and create a proto-persona for your course project.

1.4 Information Architecture

Analyze how people navigate sites and how information is structured.

1.5 Wireframing & Prototyping

Create detailed prototypes and wireframes for your vocabulary learning app.

1.6 Usability Testing

Devise a usability testing plan to ensure your design solutions are effective.

1.7 Presenting Your Work

Present your design process and results to stakeholders in an engaging manner.

1.8 What’s Next?

Draft your design profile to map out where your design education will go from here.

This course provides a deeper dive into the daily practice and mindset of a professional UXer. You'll complete a total of six achievements, which will build off of each other to create a final product at the end of the course.

curriculum curriculum-box heading image
Achievement 1
Achievement 2
Achievement 3
Achievement 4
Achievement 5
Achievement 6
Thinking like a UXer

Make design thinking a daily habit and apply it as you kickoff the project that you’ll complete over the next five achievements. Here’s what you’ll learn:

The Role of the UX Designer

A History of User Experience Design

Human Needs & Motivations

User-Centered Design Process

Design Thinking

Understanding the Problem

Competitive Analysis

Lean UX vs. Agile UX

Business Requirements

User Stories

Portfolio Review

Understanding the User

Through user research and analysis, you’ll create effective user personas and journey maps, conduct a thorough task analysis, define an actionable mobile strategy for your product, and create a visually appealing and portfolio-ready site map. Here’s what you’ll learn:

Research Methods

Surveys & Interviews

User Research Analysis

User Personas

Mental Models & User Journeys

Task Analysis & User Flows

Cross-Platform Optimization

Content Auditing

IA Principles & Frameworks

Refining Your Sitemap with Card Sorting

Portfolio Review

Prototyping & UI Fundamentals in Design

You’ll learn all the skills and fundamentals to create a prototype of your design. You'll explore the foundations of UI design, learn to build a Design System, and go from low fidelity sketches to high fidelity clickable prototypes using Figma. Here’s what you’ll learn:

Navigation for Mobile & Desktop

Design Patterns for Mobile & Desktop

Usability Heuristics & Interaction Design

Visual Design Principles

Low-Fidelity Prototyping with Figma

Conceptualizing and Selecting a Design

Grid Fundamentals

Mid-Fidelity Wireframes & Prototyping

Design Systems

High-Fidelity Wireframes & Clickable Prototypes

Portfolio Review

Usability Testing

You’ll conduct usability testing for both mobile and desktop from start to finish, working with test subjects, analyzing test results, making improvements, and planning future tests. Here’s what you’ll learn:

Best Practices for Working with Human Test Subjects

Usability Test Methods

Usability Test Plan

Usability Test Script

Conducting Usability Tests

Usability Test Results & Planning for Future Tests

Reporting Findings & Making Recommendations

A/B & Preference Testing

Portfolio Review

Refining a Design for Handoff

You’ll ensure your design meets accessibility guidelines and is emotionally engaging for all users. Then you'll ready your design documentation for a developer handoff. Here’s what you’ll learn:

Designing for Accessibility

Emotional Design for User Engagement

HTML Basics

Alternatives to HTML: Native Platforms

Responsive Frameworks

Design Documentation

Design Deliverables

Design Collaboration

Portfolio Review

End-to-End Design

You’ll compile all your design iterations up to this point and make final fixes to your design. You’ll also work on publishing your online portfolio and creating a video demo of your work. Here’s what you’ll learn:

Agile Design Process

Designing for Good

Online Portfolios

UX Communities

Video Presentation

Portfolio Review

To further develop your expertise, you’ll choose one of three specialization course options: Voice User Interface Design, UI for UX Designers, or Frontend Development for Designers.

curriculum curriculum-box heading image
Voice User
Interface Design

Achievement 1

Achievement 2

UI for UX Designers

Achievement 1

Achievement 2

Frontend Development for Designers

Achievement 1

Achievement 2

Introduction to Voice Design with Alexa

Explore the origins of voice, discover the unique user populations and use cases for voice, then get to know Amazon’s Alexa and build a skill for the interface.

Getting Started with Your Voice Design Course

History & Appeal of Voice

Use Cases for Voice

Personas for Voice

How Alexa Voice Interactions Work

Building Your First Skill

Working with AWS Lambda

Certifying Your Skill

UX Design Principles for Voice

Find out how to create user stories, dialogs, flows, and scripts, as well as how to test your designs. You’ll also explore some advanced topics.

User Needs & User Stories for Voice

Sample Dialogs

User Flows for Voice

Voice Scripts

Context & Memory in Voice Design

Usability Testing for Voice Interactions

Multimodal Interactions

Accessibility & Voice

Safety & Privacy for Voice Design

Composition & Visual Design

Learn the principles, trends, and theories behind effective UI design, and build a set of high-fidelity mobile mockups demonstrating your mastery of visual design.

Getting Started with Your UI Course

Responsive Layouts & Grids

UI Elements & File Organization

Visual Hierarchy & Spacing

UI Design Patterns

Visual Design Principles & Trends

Typography in UI

Color in UI

Imagery in UI

Advanced UI & the Design Handoff

Prepare a visual style guide, adapt your designs for additional breakpoints, and finalize the presentation mockups for your responsive mobile app.

Shapes & Icons

Interactions & Gestures

Style Guide

Designing for Different Breakpoints

Final Mockups

Design Handoff & Deliverables

Final Presentation

Getting Started with HTML & CSS

Learn the basic structure of the web, then begin building your website using HTML and advanced CSS. You’ll also practice pushing your code to GitHub.

Getting Started with Your Frontend Course

Internet & the Web

Starting with HTML

Coding with HTML

Using GitHub for Your Projects

CSS Basics

CSS Layouts

Advanced CSS for Designers

JavaScript & Your Portfolio Site

Discover JavaScript code, libraries, and plugins, then learn to set up efficient processes for testing, QA, and debugging. Explore hosting options and then present your website.

Introduction to JavaScript

Coding with JavaScript

JavaScript Libraries & Plugins

User Testing

Code Quality & Cross-Browser Testing

Portfolio Site Demo & Case Study

Intro to UX Design

This course will take you through eight tasks leading up to one main project: user research, personas, wireframes and more for a vocabulary learning app.

1.1 Introduction to UX & Design Thinking

Set the foundation for the rest of your learning and kick off the first stage of your course project.

1.2 User Research

Explore user research methods and conduct a series of user interviews.

1.3 User Personas

Learn how to tell user stories and create a proto-persona for your course project.

1.4 Information Architecture

Analyze how people navigate sites and how information is structured.

1.5 Wireframing & Prototyping

Create detailed prototypes and wireframes for your vocabulary learning app.

1.6 Usability Testing

Devise a usability testing plan to ensure your design solutions are effective.

1.7 Presenting Your Work

Present your design process and results to stakeholders in an engaging manner.

1.8 What’s Next?

Draft your design profile to map out where your design education will go from here.

UX Immersion

This course provides a deeper dive into the daily practice and mindset of a professional UXer. You'll complete a total of six achievements, which will build off of each other to create a final product at the end of the course.

Specialization

To further develop your expertise, you’ll choose one of three specialization course options: Voice User Interface Design, UI for UX Designers, or Frontend Development for Designers.

Voice User Interface Design

Learn how to design voice user interfaces and develop three “skills” for Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant. You’ll complete a total of two projects (achievements) consisting of several tasks each.

UI for UX Designers

Explore visual design trends and best practices, image theory, iconography, and interaction design. You’ll complete two projects (achievements) consisting of several tasks each.

Frontend Development for Designers

Learn how to code with HTML and CSS, and debug and use JavaScript to add interactivity to a website. You’ll complete two projects (achievements) consisting of several tasks each.

The Future of Design and AI

It’s no secret that the tech industry evolves quickly. Designers—like all professionals—need to stay up-to-date with automation, AI, and relevant new tooling. At CareerFoundry, it’s our job to ensure you’re a top hire with industry-relevant experience.

Stay ahead of the competition with our Voice User Interface Design specialization course, included in program costs and covering everything you need to know about designing interactions between voice assistants and their users.

As well as expanding our curriculum to help you supercharge your career and explore the power of AI, we’re also offering regular, live events hosted by industry experts teaching you how to utilize automation to maximize productivity.

future with AI
Create head-turning work with industry-standard tools
course-tools
A pillar of your UX design education is, of course, tooling. Attend free workshop events and become a CareerFoundry student to gain free trials and exclusive discounts. Whether immersed as a student, or still researching design, prepare to explore industry staples: Figma, Adobe XD, Sketch, GitHub, Balsamiq, and more.
Student perks

Get exclusive hands-on work experience

  • Gain real-world UX/UI experience when you apply for one of our partner apprenticeships
  • Build a portfolio based on real-world projects, including an optional bonus project
  • Forge a stand-out applicant profile built on portfolio work, end-to-end capstone projects, industry exposure, and demonstrable expertise you can
  • Build your soft skills on external work experience placements and partner with designers, developers, data analysts, marketers, and product managers
The Tech Fleet apprenticeship exceeded all my expectations! CareerFoundry’s education really complements the practical experience, where you work in cross-functional teams and with real clients.

Anna Roe

CareerFoundry graduate

Success Stories

Our students go on to launch challenging new careers in the tech industry

Portfolio projects

Our graduates now work at...

UX Design Program admission criteria

What you need:

 

The motivation to transform your career

Even though you can study flexibly, the program requires some commitment as it takes a minimum of 15-20 hours per week to complete in 10 months.

An interest in UX design

If you're already reading books and blog posts about UX, that is a great start. If you are unsure that UX is really for you, here are some great ways to explore it:

Written and spoken English skills at a level B2 or higher

A computer (macOS, Windows, or Linux) with a webcam, microphone, and an internet connection

    What you don't need:

     

    A background in design or tech

    This program is designed to take you from beginner to job-ready—regardless of your background. And now more than ever, employers see bootcamp graduates as excellent job candidates. A 2021 study by Career Karma found that companies as respected as Amazon, Google, Facebook, and Microsoft are some of the largest employers of bootcamp graduates. The same study revealed that, in 2020, those same companies hired up to 120% more bootcamps graduates than they did in 2019!

    Unlimited free time

    You can study part-time at 15-20 hours per week to finish the program in 10 months; or complete the program in as little as 6 months by studying up to 30-40 hours per week. 

    To learn all on your own

    You can enjoy the flexibility of online learning with the accountability and one-on-one attention traditionally associated with brick-and-mortar institutions. Much like a college professor might inspire you to pursue a career in a certain field, your mentor, tutor, career specialist, and student advisor will keep you motivated and on track.

    Price and payment options

    Next start dates:

    Pay upfront

    Get 5% off your tuition when you make a one-time, upfront payment.

    upfront, then for months

    Pay monthly

    Pay today to secure your place, and then per month for months.

    €6900

    €1500 upfront, then €450 for 12 months

    Pay monthly

    Pay €1500 today to secure your place, and then €450 per month for 12 months

    €0

    Only available for residents in Germany

    Bildungsgutschein

    Talk to your local job center to find out if you're eligible. You can download our application guide for step-by-step instructions.

    $158*/month

    $158* per month for 60 months

    Pay less per month

    Apply for an education loan with one of our partners (Ascent or Climb) and benefit from low monthly payments over an extended period.

    *Installments depend on your approved interest rate.

    $0 upfront

    Pay later

    Apply for deferred payment with our one of our partners (Ascent or Climb) and only start paying for your program several months after completion.

    Need a more flexible payment plan?

    We can set up a custom payment plan that better suits your needs. Book a call with a program advisor to learn more.

    Talk to your program advisor banner image banner image

    FAQ

    1.    Is becoming a UX designer a secure career choice?

    In short, yes. There’s a high demand for qualified UX designers in tech (and even in other sectors). According to CNN Money, the demand for UX designers is predicted to grow by 18% from 2015-2025.

    Curious about what salary you could earn? Check out our UX design salary guide.

    2.    Do I need to take both the UX and UI programs to learn about both disciplines?

    You only need to take one program. While UX and UI design are similar in many ways, and most designers do both kinds of work at some point in their careers (and there are many companies who hire for combined UX/UI roles), we’ve built our programs to support budding UX and UI designers separately.

    If usability and function in digital product design are more interesting to you (key facets of UX design), take the UX Design Program. You can always opt for the UI design specialization at the end if you want to learn UI basics.

    On the other hand, if the aesthetic and interaction side of digital product design appeals to you, take the UI Design Program—it covers UX design basics along the way!

    Ultimately, which program you choose should depend on your interests and career goals. Make sure you understand the differences between UX and UI—including the skills and processes that are unique to each discipline, and how UX and UI designers work together. If you’re still undecided, book a call with a program advisor! They can help you figure out which direction might best suit you.

    3.    What are the prerequisites and requirements for the program?

    This program is designed with the absolute beginner in mind. Meaning, there are no prerequisites or prior experience in design or tech required.

    Regardless of age or background, we’ve built a learning experience to ensure your success. From the catered curriculum and hands-on exercises to one-on-one mentorship and support throughout.

    What’s required*:

    • Motivation to transform your career
    • Interest in UX
    • Written and spoken English proficiency at a B2 level or higher
    • A computer (macOS, Windows, or Linux) with a webcam, microphone, and an internet connection
    *Note that you will be required to invest some independent study time into familiarizing yourself with the tools you’ll use throughout the program, and learning how to use them. It is estimated that you will need to spend an additional 1-2 hours per week of extracurricular study time becoming comfortable with them.
    4.    Which tools will I use and what are the costs?

    For the Intro to UX Design Course, you’ll mainly use Marvel, in addition to others. For the UX Immersion Course, you’ll mainly use Figma.

    As a CareerFoundry student, you’ll qualify for free access to the Figma Professional Plan.

    You will also be using other tools to help you refine your designs. These tools will be available with a free trial or with a discount, which can be found on CareerFoundry’s Perks page. For further tool requirements related to specialization courses, please view their respective pages:

    5.    What are the minimum system requirements?

    As this varies widely, we recommend checking individual system requirements on Figma's website.

    For further system requirements related to specialization courses, please view their respective pages:

    6.    Is the program 100% online?

    Yes, the program is entirely asynchronous and online—so you can study when and wherever you’d like so long as you can get online and stay on track for graduation.

    But this doesn’t mean the learning experience is isolated or lonely! You’ll have regular contact with your mentor, tutor, student advisor, and career specialist—as well as full access to our active student community on Slack.

    7.    How long does the program take to complete?

    The program is flexibly-paced within a 10-month duration. There are three deadlines along the way that we’ve put in place to help keep you on track for graduation.

    Expect to devote a minimum of 15-20 hours per week to graduate within that maximum time frame. This is considered part-time study, and matches the default pacing of the program. If you’d like to graduate in as little as five months, you can devote 30-40 hours per week to reach that goal.

    8.    What's included in the program tuition?

    The UX Design Program offers you a complete career change package—from expert-authored curriculum and hands-on projects, to personalized mentorship and career coaching. Find out more here:

    • How it works: From curriculum details to your career change team, and beyond—here are the details.
    • Meet our mentors: Get to know who the CareerFoundry mentors are and how the dual-mentorship model works.
    • Career services: Everything you need to know about our personalized career coaching, Job Preparation course, Career Support Center, alumni community, and more.
    • Graduate outcomes: Here’s some of the work our graduates did in the program—and where they’re at today.
    In addition to all of this, you can request read access to our program library—so you can study other corners of the tech world independently, with all the program materials included in your tuition! You can ask your student advisor about this once you start the program.
    9.    Are there payment plans available?

    Yes, we offer two payment options. You can save 5% of your total tuition by paying it up front. Alternatively, you can pay a set amount up front to reserve your place in the program, and the remainder in 10 monthly payments (regardless of when you graduate from the program).

    Still not feasible for you? Book a call with a program advisor to see if you’re eligible for a customized payment plan.

    10.    Does CareerFoundry offer full or partial scholarships?

    While we do offer an ongoing tuition reduction to active U.S. military personnel and veterans, as well as periodic, partial scholarships/tuition reductions, we do not offer any full scholarships or funds at this time.

    If you’d like to learn more about any of these offers, please reach out to a program advisor.

    11.    What's the refund policy if I change my mind?

    If you’re not happy with the program in the first 14 days from the start date, you can simply cancel for a full refund.

    If you are 60% or less of the way through the program duration (not including any extensions) and need to cancel for any reason, you may be eligible for a prorated refund. For more information, see our full terms and conditions.

    12.    Do I get a certificate at the end?

    You will receive a signed CareerFoundry certificate when you complete the program. This will make it easy for you to share your new qualification on LinkedIn and with potential employers or clients.

    13.    Is the program accredited and what does ZFU-approved mean?

    While the program is not university accredited, it does undergo a rigorous quality assurance and certification process with the ZFU (Staatliche Zentralstelle für Fernunterricht)—the state body for distance learning in Germany.

    This process ensures that the program meets a high stand for an excellent and effective learning experience.

    On successful completion of this certification process, the program is assigned a unique approval number (7324918) which can be checked against a public register.

    14.    Are there eligibility requirements for the job guarantee?

    There are conditions that graduates need to meet in order to be eligible for the job guarantee. We’re transparent about these requirements because we want them to be easy for you to follow and because we know they genuinely help graduates succeed in their job search.

    You’re eligible for the job guarantee when:

    • You’ve successfully completed 100% of your CareerFoundry program as well as our free Job Preparation course.
    • You’re applying to at least five relevant jobs a week.
    • You live in a metropolitan area with a population above 200K people in any of the following countries: USA, Canada, European Union or EFTA countries, UK, Australia, or New Zealand (or you’re willing to relocate).
    • And when you meet other qualifying criteria. Please read the full terms and conditions.
    If you have any questions about the job guarantee or the eligibility criteria, simply book a call with a program advisor—they’re happy to help!
    15.    What kind of job can I get after the program?

    Based on the program’s comprehensive curriculum, you’ll be ready to apply for and step into a junior UX design role or mid-level UX design positions. If you take the UI design specialization, you'll also be eligible for UX/UI roles.

    Keep in mind that many job ads for UX designers ask for 2+ years of experience, but it is often part of their “wishlist” rather than a requirement.

    If you have transferable skills from your previous career, it’s possible to land a more senior role. Your dedicated career specialist (during the Job Preparation Course) will help you understand your transferable skills and craft the right narrative to present in your job application materials.

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