https://www.nngroup.com/reports/user-experience-careers/
This 90-page report explores what a UX career looks like today, including what UX professionals make of it, and how best to get a job in the field. The 2nd edition is based on several research studies carried out in 2019, with responses from 722 UX professionals around the world.
This report features a discussion of specialization in the UX field, it explores the unique backgrounds of practitioners, and it details the skills and responsibilities UX practitioners have working in the industry today.
Topics
- The kinds of work UX professionals do
- Industries in which they work
- What they are working on
- Activities performed on the job
- Education and backgrounds
- Formal education
- Most useful areas of study
- Differences between researcher and designer roles
- Changing careers
- The various paths into UX
- Transferable skills
- The process of making the change to UX
- Skills needed for the job
- What skills UX practitioners have, wish they had, and found useful
- Experiences with mentorship
- Why mentorship is useful
- Where to find a mentor
- How satisfying is a career in UX?
- What hiring managers look for in UX professionals
- UX portfolios
- Advice for new practitioners
Methodology
This report is based on several research studies carried out in 2019. These research studies included a survey, 2 focus groups carried out in Hong Kong and Los Angeles, and 17 remote, semi-structured interviews with UX professionals from around the world.