UX and UI Designers: What do they do, and how to become one?

UI/UX stands for user interface and user experience respectively. This is a term that we often come across in the technology realm and the concept of both of them is concerned with how we as users interact with software, websites, mobile apps, and other aspects that people may use in a digital capacity or the technological environment.

So why do we need professionals in this field? In order to both implement and understand what users need out of a service or product and how they can experience the interface the best. Professionals in this field are important so that users have a pleasant time navigating through apps, software, and otherwise.

So what does being a UX/UI designer entail? Let’s go through in detail what both of these topics mean, and how you can learn how to excel in both of these fields as they go hand-in-hand and complement each other. With having skills and training in both, you can offer your skills for the best experience a user or client could have.

What is User Interface (UI)?

In short, a user interface is the graphical layout of a program, website, application, or software. User interface deals with aspects of the display like where the buttons are located, where, how, and what text is displayed across the page, placement of the images, scrollbars and a variety of other interactive features. A key part of the user interface is also micro-interactions, and this includes animations, visual effects, screen layouts, and more.

UI designers have the job to figure out what the application or program in question is actually going to look like. They get to decide factors like which fonts are going to be used, how thick the lines are going to be, selecting a colour scheme and shapes of various assets. They’re responsible for the feeling or the “vibe” that the program or software will emulate.

When it comes down to it, UI designers are also graphic designers. How attractive the appearance of the application is, whether the design matches the intended purpose – they care about all that and ask these questions. UI designers make sure the interface is comfortable to look at while also having visually stimulating elements, and they also ensure that while it looks good, the interface is also serving its responsibility (i.e being accessible and practical to use for a variety of demographics).

What is User Experience (UX)?

The mental work that goes behind how people interact with an application is known as the user experience side of things. User experience determines whether a program is easy or frustrating to navigate. Some of the questions that UX designers ask is: Does it make sense to work with? How efficient is the process or path? Does it flow properly? User experience designers want to make sure that interacting with the program is not difficult for the majority of people who use it – it needs to be relatively straightforward.

UX design is also involved in the process of consistently developing and improving the quality of the interaction between the facets and the user. The psychology of it is related to cognitive science more so than the visual aspects (which is related to UI instead of UX). The overall UX design process is used to create products and services that reflect a meaningful experience, from not only a design perspective, but a branding, usability, and functionality perspective as well.

Human experience is what UX designers are concerned with. That means there’s also a heightened expectation when it comes to accommodating users who may have unique needs such as physical limitations. Adjusting aspects makes a world of difference to the user on the other side (such as large text size for accessibility or text-to-speech options).

What’s the difference between UI and UX?

The simple difference between UI and UX designers is that UI designers are tasked with the decision making process of how the interface will actually look, and make changes accordingly as time and user needs progress. UX designers on the other hand care about how the interface operates with the user and how that impacts the user’s interaction, time, ease of use, and more. UI focuses on the visual side such as typography and menu bars while UX is focused on the user’s journey while they are using the product.

How to become a UI/UX designer?

In today’s day and age, you don’t have to choose between becoming a UX or a UI designer, despite these two areas serving their own purpose. You can be both and offer the combined services that people need.

Getting into this field is easy with a UX and UI certificate. There are UI/UX design courses in Canada that you can choose to take to improve your skills and get an exciting career as a UI/UX developer. In no time, you’ll have a thriving career solving UX/UI problems and improving the lives of many people while you’re at it.

If this is a career that interests you, ABM College’s UI/UX design diploma program can get you the skills and training you need to be successful in this field. Offering both UI and UX training, you get increased value and the dual skillset you need to become successful in this field. Contact us today for more information.

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