Tools & Techniques

 

 

 

 

This article discussed some tools and techniques that can be helpful when taking a Designlab course. 

Questions covered in this article:

 

 

 

 

 

How to use AI as a tool for your designs

Let’s discuss how you can use AI-generating content tools like ChatGPT and Gemini to enhance your learning experience, amplify your designs and succeed in your design journey. By embracing AI tools as valuable resources in your design toolkit and combining them with your own critical thinking skills, you can enhance your design journey.

Ways you can use AI tools to amplify your design work:

As a brainstorming partner to generate ideas and suggest approaches to design challenges, which you can then build off of.

To generate generic user research recruitment plans, interview guides, and generic user archetypes that you can use to guide your next steps.

To quickly analyze your designs for best practice feedback - be aware that the feedback will err on standardized best practices, which may be out of date.

To provide feedback on your case studies, CV, bio or cover letter, which you can then edit.

To efficiently generate content for your wireframes, and your case studies. Be aware that AI-generated content can be generic, confusing, repetitive and incorrect, so be prepared to edit the content thoroughly.

Balancing AI-generated content with your earning journey to be a designer:

Remember that AI tools are meant to supplement your critical thinking and problem-solving skills, not replace them entirely.

Be discerning when interpreting AI-generated feedback, considering its relevance and applicability to your specific project.

Avoid relying solely on generic responses from AI, and instead, seek to understand the underlying principles and insights they provide.

Key takeaways:

Experiment with AI tools to discover how they can enhance your design process and learning experience.

Approach AI-generated feedback with a critical mindset, evaluating its usefulness and relevance to your projects.

Seek guidance from your mentor on how to effectively integrate AI tools into your design practice and leverage them to achieve your goals.

 

What can I do to practice and improve my design presentation skills?

Presentation is an important skill for any professional designer as it’s how we explain our process to colleagues, convey ideas to clients, and ultimately get buy-in for our design decisions.

Although Designlab is an entirely online experience, we have built in many opportunities to develop your presentation skills both during short courses and in UX Academy.

Above all, we’d encourage you to use the calls with your mentor to make short presentations about your work. This can be as straightforward as having your work ready to screen-share, and jotting down some bullet points about things you’d like to show and discuss.

Alternatively, you could put together brief slide decks using a tools like Google Slides or Keynote so that you can really explain your process and get some practice for how you might present design work in a professional setting. Remember that your mentor can also offer feedback on your presentation style—just ask!

In UX Academy, we require all students to attend “Group Crits”, which are facilitated design critique sessions attended by small groups of UX Academy students and graduates.

These sessions are an opportunity to practice presenting work and listening to feedback in a peer-to-peer setting. Ideally, it mimics the kind of “design crit” you would experience working in a professional design studio. Importantly, it’s also a chance for you to practice giving feedback to others—another essential skill. (For more about this, see our blog article on giving effective critique.)

UX Academy graduates mention that they were initially apprehensive about the idea of attending Group Crits—but it turned out to be one of the most valuable aspects of their course experience.

Remember: presentation and feedback have the power to rapidly influence and transform your work for the better—take full advantage!

 

What does it mean to iterate and create different versions of coursework during the course?

Designlab’s learning platform gives you the option to upload multiple versions of any project. This means that after you get feedback from your mentor on each submission, you can do some more work on the project to address the points they raised, and then upload a new and improved version!

In professional design this cycle of submission, feedback, and revision is known as iteration. It’s an essential skill for any practicing designer, and it’s therefore a discipline that we’ve chosen to build into our courses. In an educational context, this iterative process also helps you learn much more quickly.

In practice, you’ll find that the time available for iteration is often limited. Choosing to constrain the time you spend on any single iteration can be an extra source of creative discipline.

For example, by committing to spend no more than one hour on the next iteration, you’re also limiting the amount of time you spend on the work before you get further feedback—helping to ensure that your project stays on the right track.

For an example of the power of an iterative design process, check out this case study by Annie Devine, a successful UX Academy graduate and design intern here at Designlab.

 

Why are Figma and Sketch your recommended design tools?

In recent years, Figma has become a leading tool among digital designers. As a free, browser-based application, it is accessible on both Mac and PC, including Chromebooks, making it an excellent choice for designers across different platforms. Figma’s real-time collaboration features are particularly valuable for design teams, streamlining the process of working together on projects. Students taking our courses can get up to 1 year of Figma Pro free—check it out on our Perks page. You can also learn the basics of Figma with our free email course.

Sketch remains a popular tool and was previously considered the industry standard for digital design. It offers a lightweight alternative to tools like Photoshop and Illustrator, enabling quick creation of designs for websites and apps. However, Sketch is only available for Mac. A Sketch license costs $99, but Designlab students can get 50% off via our Perks page. If you’re interested in learning Sketch, we also have a free Sketch 101 email course available.

While both tools are excellent for digital design, Figma’s versatility and collaborative features make it the primary tool we recommend for students.