How many people know exactly what they want to do when they grow up?
A big decision made without the proper knowledge can lead to big regrets. Most people have to make one of the biggest decisions in their lives at a very young age and with very little information of the actual work scenario. I was one of them. U-rizon was my solution to this problem.
How it works
Starting your path
To kickstart new users or help the least confident, it is suggested to take an optional test. Through some key questions, an algorithm ends up suggesting 3 different fields or professions that the user may want to check out. However, it’s always possible to navigate to any other field they may be interested in.
Narrowing the search
Once the user decides to explore a field of study they are met with useful information based on the data willingly given by other users, like the amount of professionals that are registered, unemployment rate etc. A graphic is also shown to easily compare the different professions in that field.
Make informed decissions
Whatever tickles the users curiosity, there is all kinds of information available to avoid unpleasant surprises. Statistics, salary expectations, events and interesting articles written by industry experts.
U-rizon was my final project at IronHack. I decided to go with the problems of not knowing what to study and finding out that you don't like what you are doing when it is too late because it's something that has affected me personally and I know a lot of people that have been through those very same problems. Therefore, my other problems and ideas had to be put aside, because this problem was BIG.
Due to the size of the problem, the amount of people affected by it and the ominous absence of a clear solution, I spent quite some time researching and empathizing to make sure the project made sense before actually diving into the ideation and visual phases.
Even with all the research and thinking I put into it, I kept finding issues and problems until the last few days of the two weeks we had to design the MVP and prototype it. But in the end, all the UX made perfect sense and I can't be happier with the result. There might be other ways of doing something similar to what I did, but mine was reasonable and worked.
My proposal was a website that offered an array of features to address the previously stated problems:
A test would help the newest and less defined users find what their true vocation might be.
Interesting stats giving information on how making a living in every profession is overall.
Articles and videos explaining the day-to-day life of professionals.
Profiles and career paths in order to learn how those people got to where they are.
The ability to choose where to study with reviews and information on where the alumni are working.
The information architecture for this project was very challenging and took away a good part of my time. However, I can say I am very proud of my improvement, particularly in the UI area with which I had struggled more in the past.
