Designlab

UX Academy Foundations was great! I started the course with no formal design training and learned so much in a short period of time. The curriculum was easy to learn and I was able to set my own pace. Having a mentor was very helpful. He helped so much during the course and guided me with my understanding and design.  Read less

This program is a great introduction to the concepts of UI design in websites and mobile apps.  It heavily focuses on training a user how to use Figma or Adobe Sketch (common tools for UX/UI design) and leveraging different techniques and shortcuts to accomplish common tasks.  While using this tool (you get to choose) you then have weekly sessions with a mentor to discuss the various assignments from the self-paced curriculum.  Assignments ranged from copywork of existing websites to designing your own website or app based on a certain set of guidelines.

Keep in mind that this is meant to be an introductory course that feeds into their UX Academy, which dives more into what an actual UX designer might do in their career.  In short, I would call UXAF a crash course on learning Figma and some basic principles of design to lay the groundwork to further study how to become an actual UX designer.  The tuition at the time of this writing was only $500 and you get to apply this to the cost of the academy should you choose to proceed.  In my opinion, the mentor sessions alone were worth it because the things that you don't necessarily learn in this course you can ask your mentor.  For instance, we went over a whole manner of different things a UX designer would do in their career, what he did, where you could possibly go after Designlab, etc.

I didn't give the Job Support category a ranking, might show up as zero, because it's not applicable.  There's no expectation that you should be able to get a UX job after this course as it's more of an introduction to some UI principles and how to use the tool.

Designlab's curriculum format was great, easy to read and access, and generally what you'd expect from a company that is teaching you how to format web pages to be aesthetically pleasing and easy to use.  As mentioned, it's self paced, but you also are warned that time management is a key element and considered when applying to the academy.  My only feedback regarding the curriculum (and hopefully they're already working on this) is that it would be great if there was an app that could be directly accessed by my phone or tablet.  You'll see that the content and menus are designed pretty much how an app would be, so I'd imagine it would be fairly easy to create it.

Overall, if you're interested in UX and don't have any design experience, this is a great course to dip your toes. It might not give you a full introduction to what a UX designer does, but you can supplement that by discussing with your assigned mentor what questions you might have and things you're more interested in. Read less

Designlab foundations is an information packed 8 week course. I do think it teaches a wide variety of topics concerning ui design. Looking at the first week and my last week of the course I've grown and learned a lot. At times it was challenging but in the end quite rewarding. I think this course is a great start for anyone looking into a career in ui/ux design. Read less

This course was a lot of fun and very informative. I came from zero experience and learned so much! When I struggled with some of the content, other students and my mentor were extremely helpful! I love that I could do the program around my own schedule and will continue to have access to all the information throughout the rest of my experience. Read less

I took Foundations as a precursor to the full UX Academy bootcamp. Overall I give the experience 4 out of 5 stars. After it ended, I actually backtracked on my decision to move forward with Design Lab and started looking at the more expensive bootcamps. However, cost is a major factor for me so I am going ahead with their UX Academy program.

Pros
- Modules: The online modules are extremely motivating because you can see yourself complete each section in real time, as it you are checking something off a list. This style makes you want to keep going and it feels like you are accomplishing something even when you only have an hour to work on the class. The modules also have a time estimate of how long it might take you to complete each section which is helpful.
- Mentor: My mentor was very nice and helpful. I don't believe she held back any feedback and she gave me some great tips as I moved through the course. I felt fortunate to have been matched up with someone with so much experience to offer.
- Flexibility: The #1 benefit of this course, besides the price, is flexibility. Other bootcamps have you chained up to a zoom all day, M-F, whereas this course is at your own pace. This means you can walk your dogs, go to a doctor's appointment, etc., and not have to worry about missing class. This is the #1 reason I ended up sticking with Designlab for the upcoming full bootcamp.
- Cost: The $500 cost of Foundations can be rolled into the full UX bootcamp afterwards so it won't be a waste of money if you decide to keep going. I also feel that you should definitely take this course if you are on the fence about UX/UI in general because it gives you a great introduction, so that you have a taste for it and it will help you decide if this is something you want to do. The full bootcamp is also about half as much as some of the other bootcamps out there (BrainStation, General Assembly, Flatiron, Columbia) however it's about the same as a few others (Thinkful, Career Foundry).

Cons
- Discord: They communicate with the group via Discord and to be honest it's not easy to use. Discord is messy, with so many channels that you can't hide and replies that come into the main room when sent to a comment. I would 100% much rather they had used Slack. You have to add friends and be accepted before you can start group chats with them and it creates a headache. If you have "unread messages" clicking on the alert doesn't take you to the actual channel, you have to go hunt and find it. It was also a huge hassle getting it set up, as Discord said I already had an account but could not claim the account and we went in circles for days until I ended up just making a totally new gmail to use for it which was a pain.  For this reason I didn't spend much time communicating with my peers or trying to keep track of what was going on in there. I am not sure why they switched from Slack to Discord but it is a big downgrade.
- Downtime: There are a few points in the program where you have to wait on your mentor to progress. I had some issues with this and I don't think it was my mentor's fault, I think there was just a disconnect between the mentor's expectations about turnaround time and the expectation of someone who was going through the course very quickly (one month instead of two). But it did cause me to get stuck at a few points and that wasted some time for me during the downtime.
- Reading: I experience reading fatigue at quite a few points during the course. There weren't a lot of videos and it was a lot of written content to read through over the computer.
- Uploads: There were lots of issues with trying to upload projects. I believe the cap was 5 MB. A lot of my projects couldn't be uploaded and it was a big headache, having to split things out and take screenshots and upload multiple things as V2, V3, V4, even though they weren't different versions but just pieces of one project I was splitting into a smaller size. This needs to be increased. I spoke to another bootcamp and their upload cap was substantially larger.
- Silo: There is a bit of a silo effect in Foundations because you would look at what others have uploaded for a project and be like, wow, mine looks nothing like that. Am I on track? Are they off track? What is going on? Why are they so different? Did I missi something? Are they ahead of me? You get the idea. But this is inevitable when you are working alone in self paced course without a live cohort that you are working with. Read less

I recently finished the foundation course and it was a refreshing experience. I came in with a some design background so it wasn’t difficult to pick up on the sessions. It was great learning Figma and Sketch before moving on to the academy. My mentor match up was alright but it took a couple sessions to warm up to them. I did end up switching mentors and the DesignLab admissions team was very quick to help me get another. The only con I can think of is the application deadline. It’s very tight for part timers to finish on time and most have to wait for the fallowing cohort to start the academy. Overall, foundations is worth it and it offers an extra flushed out project for your portfolio.  Read less

I recently completed the foundations course from Designlab. It was one of the best things I’ve done for myself in a long time. I got to challenge myself and immerse myself into something new and something that links my creativity and passions together. I’m very excited to move forward with their academy and UX/UI design as a whole. Thanks to this course, I have no doubts now whether or not UX is right for me. Read less

I have always wanted to pursue UX Design but was either too scared of starting over or always thought it was too late. Eventually, I finally built the courage to go for it and after doing lots of research on the different bootcamps, Designlab stood out based on the 1:1 mentoring and it surely did not disappoint. 

My mentor was the best I could have ever asked for.  He was extremely passionate about the field as he was always happy to share his knowledge and additional resources. He also took the time to answer all the questions I had and when he had feedback on my projects, he would ask me my thought process and ask me additional questions instead of giving me the straight answer to come up with a solution on my own.  What I appreciated the most was how much my mentor cared about my growth and I couldn't be more thankful!

Overall, the course was a great preview of UX Design. They broke it down into chewable units and within those units, they give you lessons to read along with optional resource links, hands-on practice to get better at the design tools of your choice and provide unit projects to apply what you learned. I completed the course within 4 weeks as I left my previous job to focus on becoming a UX Designer. I chose this route because I wanted to invest in myself :)  Read less

As someone who has had self-taught graphic design experience in the past, this was a great course to see what skills transfer, as well as a primer for what the full UX Academy includes. My mentor was great. 

My only complaint was that some of the projects had unrealistic timeframes for skills that you are just learning. Other than that, I would recommend. Read less

I had a great experience at DesignLab, the breakdown of the lectures followed by the projects followed by putting together a portfolio was the perfect flow. GroupCrits and Mentors were also an additional bonus to the course, learning how to give and receive feedback as well as having a mentor to guide you through the course work and projects helped me understand that I was on the right track. I really enjoyed this course and I recently found a position as a UX UI designer. Read less

I was able to complete this 8 week course in 4 weeks. You can go at your own pace for each unit but you have 8 weeks max to complete the course. This course was definitely worth it before the UX Academy. The final project can be used as your submission when you apply for the academy. Foundations covers all the general groundwork you need to know about UI design. I highly recommend it! You get 8 1:1 meetings with your assigned mentor. A Discord server is also offerred so you can connect with other students!  Read less

My journey started on the wrong foot. I didn't have a great experience with my mentor. Designlab was incredibly understating and accommodating and assigned me a new one quickly. I had a wonderful experience with my new mentor, Anthony Faria. I learned so much these past 4 weeks. The entire design lab experience is easy to follow and fun. I would recommend this course to anyone interested in pursuing design. Read less

My experience was great I learned a lot about UI where I can definitely say I learned more than just the foundations and I think I have a good base to progress into this as a career. The mentor system is a great idea but it can be a double edged sword so you have to work ahead and really listen to what your mentor wants in each iteration. Read less

DesignLab Foundations is exactly that. It is a foundation for those considering a career change to UX/UI. The course consists of 8 units that flow cohesively and ends with a final project that can be submitted as an application to the UX Academy. The content is helpful, easy to understande, and well organized. The mentorship while intimidating is very helpful in student progression through the course. The mentorship aids in providing students with more answers regarding the "why" and pushes students to think as the user. DesignLab Foundations is a great option for those considering a career in UX/UI. Read less

This school is like no other.  It, as the name indicates, provides its students with a solid foundation in the UX UI field.  With guidance from experienced mentors, supportive peers, and phenomenal coursework, students fill well prepared for the step in their UX UI journey. Read less

Designlab's Foundations course gave me a great foundations in UI and some UX skills. The modules were challenging, yet very fun and rewarding to do. The larger projects I think really prepare you to apply and succeed in UX Academy. I really enjoyed having a mentor throughout the course to guide and help me; also getting to take the course at your own pace was great. Highly recommend the course - definitely worth it! Read less