Many might ask why, and what led me to this decision. Honestly, I have never enjoyed my previous jobs since graduating from university. I worked as an environmental lab analyst for 3.5 years, then member engagement coordinator for 9 months before accepting my sales position at Yelp. I really thought Yelp was it, that it was my successful career path in life, but it wasn't. My original plan was to work for a year to pay off my credit card debt before enrolling back in school, but the situation changed when the AE position did not align with my life morals. Secondly, I've always been into arts and graphic design, but because of my typical Asian parents, I never got a chance to follow my dream. After going on a couple of trips with friends in May, I realized life is too short to keep following my parents' expectations and not take any risks. It's going to suck starting at ground zero, especially with how much debt I still owe, but it's better to follow my passion now than to regret it when I'm older.
I recently started taking Google's UX Design certification course on Coursera, learning the basics of UX, or user experience design. UX refers to how a user interacts with a product, or service— similar to how readers view my blog or how iPhone apps are displayed nicely. What pushed me to start taking classes for UX Design was how much it aligns with my personality and interests. I ranked top 40 at Signify Health due to my empathy skills with elders, making it easy to talk and communicate when scheduling their in-home health visits. When a close friend is in pain, I will also feel their pain. I always thought that was the extra-friendliness (or “nosy”) personality in me— caring and being deeply interested in people's lives. Turns out, it's a great skill to have! Empathy is crucial when it comes to UX Design because you can understand and create a product that best relates to the users. I'm also confident in my creative skills, especially when it comes to designing event posters or choosing colors that will make my website aesthetic. I love technology and learning how people interact with an application or device. I enjoy working with others on group projects and hearing different ideas someone has to improve our product. All of these skills are necessary when it comes to UX Design, and that's why I want to pursue it. Of course, I won't deny the fact that an average starting salary of $75,000 for an entry-level UX designer is eye-catching as well.
My current goal is to find a part-time job while focusing my energy and time on my certification, then build a solid portfolio by February 2023. I will also apply to Google's UX Design Apprenticeship Program this fall as well (thanks to Millicent's suggestion). Hopefully, I can crush through the first three courses of Google's UX Coursera program and start self-teaching myself how to use Figma and Adobe XD. I already started brainstorming ideas for apps that I want to build, mainly because I have been obsessed with the App Store since I was 15 and downloaded every new app that was released (besides Tik Tok). This blog will keep me accountable for my goals— after all, it's better to have it typed out than to say it in my head. Good luck Uyen!