As the field of User Experience (UX) continues to grow, so do the number of amazing career opportunities—and the number of job titles. Industry growth is exciting; however, the mind-boggling number of job titles (or mis-titles) can be really, really confusing.
Decoding UX Job Titles and Job Descriptions
On March 30, 2022, User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA) / New Jersey Chapter and Rutgers Master of Business and Science (MBS) program once again joined forces for a highly relevant presentation entitled "Decoding UX Job Titles and Job Descriptions"—a session intended to help students “decode the many, varied UX job titles and job descriptions that are being talked about in today's job market.”
Coordinated by Rupa Misra, assistant professor and director of MBS's User Experience Design (UXD) concentration as well as the brand-new concentration in Product Design, the event was warmly hosted by UXPA/NJ’s Josephine Giaimo, who, along with industry experts Lubina Bogoeva—also an advisor for MBS’s Externship Exchange—and Diba Kaya, a UX research strategist based in Los Angeles who has worked across multiple industries and at companies including Amazon and Google, discussed how to make sense of an overwhelming amount of information presented in today’s job descriptions. According to the Nielsen Norman Group, there are more than 130 unique UX job titles.
Main Areas of UX / Most Popular Titles
Bogoeva and Kaya discussed the main areas of UX including content, information architecture, interaction design, user research, visual design, and experience strategy. They discussed topics including:
- What does a UX/UI designer / researcher/ information architect actually do?
- How much should I believe about what is written in the job description?
- What does the future of UX job titles and job descriptions look like in 2022 and beyond?
The event, says Bogoeva, was not only to help students learn how to read between the lines of job descriptions, “but to make an informed decision about whether this job is appropriate for you, and whether to invest time in pursuing it.”
A Great Networking Opportunity
For the past few years, the UXPA/NJ – MBS partnership has provided great networking opportunities to students and UX professionals of all levels, and is part of Misra’s ongoing efforts to ensure that MBS students learn about UX through multiple channels—most importantly, that students are not shy about becoming part of the UX community through organizations including UXPA/NJ—where all meetings begin with warm introductions, information exchanges, and a platform for both job seekers and candidate seekers to discuss open positions and desired roles.
“I am thrilled that students looking for opportunities can connect with employers and other UX professionals through active and welcoming organizations like UXPA/NJ,” says Misra, who hopes that regardless of academic concentration, “students who are even slightly curious about UX will come to these events as well.”
Note: The event was recorded and is available to MBS students through Canvas.
The next event, “A Day in the Life of a UX Researcher,” will be held on Wednesday, April 27, from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Events are held throughout the semester and are announced via Canvas. All students who attend will earn one colloquium credit. For more information, please contact Dr. Misra at rm1337@docs.rutgers.edu.