UI / UX Design — research, design, and ship real product work.
A 12-week intermediate cohort that mirrors how real product teams work: user research, wireframes, interaction design, handoff, and a full case study built on a live client problem.
Work the way product teams actually work.
This is our most rigorous design course. You'll be paired with a real client org — an early-stage startup or a local nonprofit — and design a meaningful feature from research through prototype, with your instructor playing PM.
Expect to defend your choices, revise often, and leave with a single case study that will carry your portfolio for the next two years of interviews.
Week by week.
- Wk 01–02
Research foundations
Interviews, surveys, synthesis. Writing a problem statement you can design against.
- Wk 03–04
Information architecture
Sitemaps, flows, card sorting. How structure becomes experience.
- Wk 05–07
Wireframes & interaction
Lo-fi to hi-fi. Prototyping interactions in Figma with real user flows.
- Wk 08–10
Visual design & systems
Design tokens, component libraries, and delivering something a developer can actually build.
- Wk 11–12
Usability testing
Moderated tests, synthesis, and iterating on findings with a client watching.
- Wk 13–14
Case study & handoff
Write up your case study, present to a panel, and hand off your spec to a developer.
What's on your desktop.
Taught by a principal product designer.
Priya Venkataraman
Priya has led design for products used by millions, at healthcare and consumer companies. She brings a research-first methodology that has shaped how we structure the entire course.
- 13 yrs experience
- Teaches since 2023
- CMU HCI '11
What graduates say.
“The live client project was terrifying and the best thing that could have happened. My case study got me three interviews in one week.”
“Priya taught me to defend every design decision. I walked into my first job and my PM said I sounded like I'd been doing this for years.”
Enroll in the May 11 cohort.
Some design experience recommended. We review every application within 48 hours and reply personally.
You might also like.
Web Designing & Python
HTML, CSS, JavaScript and Python fundamentals. Build and deploy your own website.
Graphic Designing & Video Editing
Photoshop, Illustrator, Canva Pro and Premiere Pro. Build a creative portfolio.
E-commerce & Social Media
Daraz, Shopify, Facebook & Instagram Ads, content creation and analytics.