UX boot camps seem to be getting a lot of flak as of late. Are they teaching the necessary skills? What are the necessary skills anyway? This week Andrew Macdonald joins us to give his perspective.
What can we learn from 1840s gold miners hoping to strike it rich?
Boot camps seem to be everywhere nowadays. You can’t spend more than five minutes on LinkedIn without stumbling across a recent boot camp grad who is having trouble finding work.
The bigger boot camps offer “guarantees” and promises of landing a six-figure tech job.
Unfortunately, these boot camps seem to be creating a bubble. Are they producing job-ready UX designers or just a bunch of people with certificates?
There is an interesting parallel between the American gold rush of the 1840s and the UX landscape in 2023. Lots of people went west looking to strike it rich. But the only people who made money were the ones selling pickaxes.
What is it about boot camps that are leaving graduates so underprepared?
Andrew MacDonald has a few ideas, and they all revolve around the teaching of process over teaching critical thought.
Topics:
• 07:41 – UX Education Today
• 10:19 – We’re missing critical thinking
• 13:50 – Many boot camps are lying to you
• 15:05 – Are gatekeepers so bad?
• 20:57 – How do we diversify the talent pool?
• 26:03 – What is everyone running from?
• 34:37 – Think critically about all the things
• 36:43 – This is not a trade. It’s a craft.
• 40:10 – A UX Designer’s job is to figure it out.
• 47:33 – What can we learn from traditional craftsmen?
• 51:42 – Improving paths to access is how we solve the problems
• 55:33 – If you’ve seen the light it’s not too late
Helpful Links:
• Connect with Andrew on LinkedIn
• Meet with Andrew on ADPList
Senior Product Designer & Researcher at Rumor
About Andrew
Mildly existentially obsessive while passionate about inspiring people to be their best… Andrew Macdonald likes cooking and cycling. And his nickname is Ferret.
He’s busy these days building simply complex products for Rumor Avenue’s clients and other ventures.
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Meet your host
Jeremy Miller
Designer // Host // Mentor
I’m Jeremy. I’m a product designer from New Orleans. Here are some things I want you to know about me:
- I rally around research
- I’m dedicated to design
- I’m crazy about collaboration
- I’m sweet on the soft skills
- I’m entranced by the end users
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But most importantly, I know you can’t build great software without great relationships.
So join me here and learn about how to build truly great software.
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