You may have heard of a coding bootcamp, but did you know bootcamps exist for a variety of different career paths? Due to the success of coding bootcamps, plenty of other types have begun in recent years. One of the most popular is a UI/UX design bootcamp (or UX/UI design bootcamp, whichever order you prefer).
This may sound great, but what can you expect from a UI/UX bootcamp?
Let’s use Coding Cojo’s UI/UX bootcamp as our example. First off, bootcamps in general have been changed forever due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Social distancing caused many bootcamps to go online, especially those bootcamps that were launched early in the pandemic. The Coding Dojo UI/UX design bootcamp is no different.
Ultimately, what you’ll have to decide is where you are in life and what you want out of your next few years.
If you’re looking for a traditional college experience, several years on a campus, and a well-rounded education, a design degree is right for you. If you’re making a career switch or you’re a recent high school graduate who wants to enter the workforce quicker than your peers, a design bootcamp is probably your best option.
Here are some factors to consider.
UI/UX Bootcamp vs. UI/UX Degree
The differences between a design bootcamp and design degree are much the same as the differences between a coding bootcamp and computer science degree.
UI/UX bootcamp cost
As expected, the cost of a coding bootcamp is much less than that of a four-year degree. Ui/UX bootcamps cost on average anywhere from $10,000 to $20,000 in the U.S. At the moment, the average bachelor’s degree costs well over $100,000.
Ui/UX bootcamp length.
On average, UI/UX design bootcamps run anywhere from three to nine months. The Coding Dojo UI/UX bootcamp takes three to four months to complete depending on what you choose. Obviously, this is much quicker than a degree, which will take a minimum of two years for an associates, and four to five years for a bachelor’s degree.
UI/UX bootcamp specialization
Because UI/UX design is a relatively new career path, there are few UI/UX specialized degrees at two- and four-year universities. In order to get as well-rounded a UI/UX education as possible at a college, you’ll need to major in design or industrial design and minor or focus on psychology, information, or computer science.
This is obviously different from a UI/UX bootcamp, which focuses solely on the science and technology of UI/UX design and offers students hands-on, real-world experience.
What to expect from a UI/UX Bootcamp?
Now that you know the difference between a UI/UX design bootcamp and a degree, let’s take a look at the actual curriculum of a bootcamp.
UI/UX bootcamp prework
Like with coding bootcamps, it’s imperative that enrollees in a UI/UX design bootcamp prepare themselves for day one. While the course can get you job ready in 14 weeks, you’ll need to come into it with a light understanding about the UI/UX design basics.
This mostly includes two weeks of reading and studying basic concepts like design thinking, design skills, process, user research, and user personas. From there, you’ll be given problems to solve and an introduction to Figma, the platform most bootcamps use for actual design.
Phase One – In-House Project
Next up is the actual course. In phase one, you’ll spend time learning both UX design and UI design. Some of the concepts you’ll come across include:
- Research techniques
- Journey maps
- Ideation
- Validation and testing
- Interaction framework
- Figma prototyping
- Design systems
That’s just a sample of concepts phase one will cover. All of that will culminate in your phase one project, an in-house project that will let you lead your own design project without the expectations of a real-life setting.
Phase Two – Client Project
Perhaps the most unique and important aspect of Coding Dojo’s Ui/UX bootcamp is that it allows you to do real work for a real client. Using industry connections, each student will work on a project that will see the light of a day at a company. Students will collaborate with their instructors to provide the best work possible and gain valuable real-life experience along the way. Something that you’ll be able to do include:
- Client project management
- Business model canvas
- Presenting to clients
- Design synthesis and insights
- Site maps
- Wireframing
- Mobile/responsive grids
- Usability testing
Again, this is just the sample of things your project will cover, but you can be assured that before you even enter the workforce you’ll have real-life experience and the confident that goes along with it.
Phase Three – Career Phase
Finally, after creating two projects—one for yourself and one for a client—you’ll work on resume and portfolio building with your instructor to get your career off the ground. This will includes hands_on work in:
- Employer research
- Crafting a design resume
- Personal branding
- Case study writing
- Portfolio development
- Interviewing techniques
- Salary negotiations
- Post-grad planning
Post Graduation
Like every other Coding Dojo bootcamp, our career services team will help you long after graduation in order to support you during the job search so you can find the perfect fit for you. After graduation you won’t be abandoned and forced to fend for yourself, Coding Dojo’s lifetime career services will always be there to help.
It includes much of the same that phase three of the course offers, just on a constant and as-needed basis. Graduates can always reach out for help building and enhancing their professional profile and portfolio, job prospecting and specific application guidance, and interview prep and salary negotiation.
Entry-Level UI/UX Design Jobs
So, what can you expect after graduating from a UI/UX design bootcamp? First off, you can expect a job. 89 percent of Coding Dojo UI/UX bootcamp graduates got a job in a relevant position within six months of finishing the program. That number goes up to 95 percent when you look at graduates within the first year.
In terms of entry-level jobs, expect a hot market as the field continues to grow. Opportunities can range from small companies, large corporations, and growing startups.
There are also plenty of opportunities at design or tech agencies. Agencies are a great place to get your start as you’ll be surrounded by talented designers and be able to work on a variety of projects for several clients.
Salaries will range depending on where you’re located, but with remote work becoming the new norm in tech, expect plenty of opportunities to work from home. According to Glassdoor, the average base for an entry-level user experience designer is $73,000, with total pay going up to $88,000. From there, design jobs are likely to go up into the $150k range, with some team leaders making well over $200k.
As UI/UX design jobs continue to grow, now is the perfect time to get in on the ground floor. You can not only change your career, you can change your life by enrolling in a UI/UX bootcamp.