studyUP

Web Design
Project Overview
This was my second portfolio project for Google's UX Design Specialization Course. To determine the project prompt, we were required to select a randomly generated challenge via Sharpen's Design Challenge Generator. The prompt I selected was to design a study partner request flow for a local school.
My Contributions
The entire project was a complete end-to-end project that included all 5 stages of the UX Design process methodology: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, Test.
Problem Statement
‍
Students are busier than ever, so trying to find time and motivation to study can be difficult. This website was created so students can schedule homework/study sessions with their classmates in an efficient way. There are all different types of personalities, so for the more introverted students, approaching another classmate can be intimidating. StudyUP provides a solution for all students to connect with fellow classmates in a non-intimidating manner.
Goal
‍
Design a responsive website for students to be able to schedule study sessions and connect with their peers to do homework and study for classes in different environments: in person, virtual, or group.
User Research, Pain Points, and Personas
‍
My research was centered around high school students to learn more about their study habits, motivations, stressors, and goals. I found that students want the flexibility to study in different environments and to find a study partner who shares their goals and motivations who they can meet with at designated times.

Pain points:
1. Intimidation - Users report that the thought of approaching classmates feels intimidating. Being able to send a message or schedule a study session online takes the pressure off.
2. Distractions - Users report that they have difficulty studying alone at home and are surrounded by distractions: social media, text messages, family
3. Time - Users report that between school, part-time jobs, and balancing social time with friends and family, they feel there aren't enough hours in the day to devote to studying

Personas:
The two personas created encapsulate the target group for the website:
1. Allison is a high school junior who works part-time and struggles to find study time. She feels pressure to maintain her GPA so she can get into a good college and receive scholarships. She is introverted and feels intimidated by the idea of approaching a classmate to be a study partner.
2. Kevin is a high school senior who needs to maintain his GPA so he doesn't lose his college scholarship to play soccer. His busy schedule leaves him overwhelmed and tired at the end of each day, so he find himself frequently procrastinating.
Wireframes
‍
Paper and Digital wireframes were created for this project. Both mediums include designs for desktop, mobile, and tablet.

Usability Study - Lo-Fi Prototype
‍
Feedback from the usability study was positive, but there were a few pain points discovered:

Users want a grade level view of each student
‍
Users want to filter students by grade, classes, availability, etc.

After the usability study was complete, I created a second round of digital wireframes addressing the issues.

Additional updates listed below were made to the mockups and high-fidelity prototype
Progress bar indicator for scheduling a study session

Confirmation page when booking complete, instead of a pop-up
Design: Mockups & High-Fidelity Prototype
Figma
When creating the designs for the app, I kept the color palette simple with buttons that stood out against the neutral background.

The sticker sheet includes the color palette I created, typography throughout the app, icons, link states (inactive, active), button styling, and logos I created with Adobe Express.

The mockups and high-fidelity prototype both take the student through the entire user flow of creating an account and scheduling a study session.
Takeaways
Impact:
‍The website makes it really easy for students to schedule a study session that fits their busy lifestyles. By addressing one of the major pain points, students feel less intimidated when scheduling a study session online instead of approaching a peer in person, increasing their motivation and satisfaction in finding another student who fits within their schedule and shares their study goals.

What I learned:
‍While designing the studyUP website, I was able to truly put myself into the students' shoes. As someone who would fit into the user persona of being introverted, I was able to empathize with the users' feelings of intimidation with approaching another student. This was another project example with using the human (or user)-centered design approach.

I also learned that simplicity is key, especially when it comes to high school students. They have a lot of information coming at them throughout the day, so keeping the website simple and straightforward in its design increases their user experience.
Powered by Webflow
LINKEDINGITHUB