Career Services in Coda! [Katie Rivard]

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Career Services in Coda! [Katie Rivard]

Career Services Orientation

How-to guide: Building a Job Search Strategy

12 minute read

This is it! You’ve graduated from the UX Academy, and now it’s time to start looking for your first job in design. Searching for a job isn’t as simple as making a resume and applying for jobs. There are many tactics you can use to help you on this journey. Setting a strategy for your job hunt can help you feel focused and prevent you from burning out. Changing careers can take time, so set yourself up for success from the get-go! And remember, looking for a job isn’t always linear. It’s good to revisit and adjust your strategy as you go.

Remember, everyone has a unique journey that led them to design, and they have unique goals for their career. Be sure to utilize your coach along with these tips and tricks to build a strategy that works best for you. The key is to keep at it and put effort into your job hunt every week.

In this lesson, we will talk you through a variety of tactics you should use during your job search, as well as some additional tips and things to avoid.

Game plan for getting hired

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Signpost with directional arrows for product designer, user experience designer, and user experience researcher.

With what you’ve learned, refine your career goals and aspirations. It would be useful to consider the classic question, “ Where do you see yourself in 5-10 years, and what are your goals?”. Consider your career aspirations and dreams. You might be excited about a particular industry, or maybe you have ideas about the team you want to work on. There are many ways to hone in on this for your job hunt. Doing so will help you hone in the roles you apply for. What’s your mission?

Ensure you have a winning job application package that is error-free and displays your new and transferable skills. It’s important to tell your unique story and help recruiters or hiring managers understand why you are the right fit. Continue to iterate on your portfolio, resume, and cover letter(s) until it demonstrates your unique qualities and qualifications. Make sure that you highlight your product design experience, either as a student through your projects or if you have any real-world experience. It’s also good to show how your previous work experience is useful in UX design. Get feedback from your career coach during your 1:1 sessions, as well as input from fellow UX Academy grads through Discord or in the CS Peer Sessions. What is your competitive advantage and is that apparent in your portfolio, resume, and cover letters?

Start applying for jobs. It’s easy to take a “shotgun approach” and start applying for any junior UX or product design role. This is more likely to lead to frustration and burnout. Instead, take a more targeted approach. Think about your career goals when searching; target industries and environments you believe would be a good fit for you. In general, you should aim to match at least 70-80% of the qualifications in a job post. It’s ok if it’s not perfect! Your cover letter or your answers to their application questions are an opportunity to highlight why they should interview you. Don’t forget to keep a list of companies you’d like to work for, and where you have applied. Lastly, when considering your job search parameters, don’t forget to take into account the current market, time of year, and other obstacles that might be out of your control. How will you refine your job search?

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The Job Board page on Huntr with a card moving from Wishlist, to Applied, to Interview.

Remember to stay organized and track your progress using Huntr! Setting aside time for your job search multiple times a week is essential. You may apply to many jobs before you land your first role. Therefore, you must keep track of what companies and positions you’ve applied for. Seeing your progress will also help prevent you from losing momentum. We’ve set you a few goals in Huntr to help you with this, and there are also

weekly goals set in our policies⁠

. Students who meet these goals have more success in their job seach. What concrete goals would you like to set for yourself on a weekly and monthly basis?

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Diagram showing the key areas of your LinkedIn you should add to or update including about me, link to portfolio and resume, experience, skills, certifications/education, and recommendations.

LinkedIn is your best friend. For better or worse, LinkedIn has cornered the job search market. Recruiters and hiring managers use this as a tool to find and reach out to qualified candidates. Make sure to use it to your advantage and add as much detail as possible. Create a tagline and summary that stand out from the pack. Check to ensure your job details match with your resume. Utilize the skills section to increase your SEO. Lastly, don’t forget to update your education with your brand-new UX Academy certification! What improvements can you make to your LinkedIn profile?

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Four people conversing over coffee.

Make time for networking! Your best bet for getting your foot in the door is to know someone who already works at the company you’re applying to. Networking can feel intimidating, but at the end of the day, both parties benefit from expanding their network. Reach out to people you could already have a connection with, like Designlab alums or mentors. It takes time to develop a relationship; the sooner you start connecting and talking with people, the better. Connect with anyone you know who can help. They don’t always have to be a designer themselves. Work with your coach to develop a specific networking strategy for you. How might I make new connections and utilize existing ones?

Similar to your experience with Foundations and UX Academy, you have to carve out time purely to improve your job application assets and apply to roles. Reduce distractions, minimize multitasking, schedule focus time, and set goals.Need a refresher on how to create focused work time for yourself? Check out

this lesson⁠

from the first module of UX Academy. How can I effectively use my time?

Stay positive and keep at it! UX design can be hard to break into, and you’ll need to be relentless to secure an job offer. Apply to jobs every week, build your online presence and maintain it, attend networking opportunities, and reach out to people. Keeping your job search activities varied throughout the week will ensure you cover all of your bases. Creating a community when you’re looking for a job will help. What can I do when the going gets tough?

Additional Tips and Tricks

Find or create a dedicated workspace to work on your job search. Many sites have “Quick Apply” which can make it easy to apply on your phone. However, carving out time and space to focus on these activities and then step away when you’re done will help eliminate distractions.

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Individual on a video conference with a new friend/colleague.

Connect with people to simply learn and gain insights. You never know where a conversation can lead you. Be open, curious, and gracious with your ask, and you’ll find people who want to engage. We all like to talk about ourselves, and designers are inherently empathetic and helpful people. You might be surprised where a conversation can lead! Map out clients or companies related to an industry you're interested in and then reach out to individuals at those organizations for in-person or virtual coffee.

Create content to grow your personal brand awareness. If you enjoy making TikToks, or writing articles about design, this is a great way to show your passion and keep your creative juices flowing.

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Think about this as your next design project! Ask yourself, “What is your “user journey” to becoming a UX Designer?” Stay flexible, don’t stop iterating, and practice a growth mindset as you approach this. Don’t forget to celebrate the wins, no matter how small or big they are. You’ve accomplished so much already, this is the next big hurdle and we know you can do it!

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