Designlab
Designlab is an online training provider that teaches in-demand UX/UI design skills through their UX Academy and short courses. Designlab’s top-tier online programs connect students with expert design mentors, empowering them to launch and advance their career in digital design. Whether students are transitioning into UX design with Designlab’s flagship UX Academy or refining their skills through advanced courses designed for seasoned designers and design teams, Designlab offers meticulously crafted programs to help learners achieve their goals.
With mentorship and community at the core of every course, students benefit from weekly 1:1 video calls in UX Academy and UX Academy Foundations, as well as small peer group sessions in advanced and short courses. Through personalized feedback and guidance, Designlab’s network of experienced mentors helps students navigate the design industry, offering career advice and insights into market trends from a professional’s perspective.
To apply for the UX Academy, applicants need to fill out an online application, and schedule a call with a Designlab representative. Applicants should have a love of good design, a grounding in design fundamentals, and commitment and resilience.
785 Designlab Reviews
- Priya ShahUX Designer At Autodesk • Graduate • 3. UX Academy (Full-time) • OnlineVerified by LinkedInNov 11, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
Amazing course! Would highly recommend.
Designlab is an amazing UX/UI course for anyone looking to either switch careers or enhance their design knowledge. I found their 1:1 mentorship, group critique sessions, and comprehensive curriculum extremely useful. My mentors were very supportive and their Slack community is extremely warm and resourceful. I would highly recommend this course! :) - OliviaAssociate Product Designer • Graduate • 3. UX Academy (Full-time) • OnlineVerified by LinkedInNov 08, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
UX Academy
A great UX/UI course at an affordable price. The one-on-one mentorship and group crit facilitators give the program a personal touch even while remote. I switched careers from marketing and wound up getting my dream job one month after graduation, so with that being said, I'd highly recommend :) - Vie PereiraUX Design Masters Student • Graduate • 6. UX: Interaction Design • OnlineVerified by LinkedInSep 09, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob AssistanceN/A
Fantastic mentorship and practical, project-based course content
My mentor Jessica was really excellent, and went above and beyond to tailor the course to my own project interests. The emphasis on design critique and iteration was fantastic, as so few online short courses have this feature! Generally, the content itself was well curated, relevant and heavily focused on the practical application of skills through projects, so you have a valuable set of projects to add to a personal portfolio, should you so wish to do so.
The only caveat would be...My mentor Jessica was really excellent, and went above and beyond to tailor the course to my own project interests. The emphasis on design critique and iteration was fantastic, as so few online short courses have this feature! Generally, the content itself was well curated, relevant and heavily focused on the practical application of skills through projects, so you have a valuable set of projects to add to a personal portfolio, should you so wish to do so.
The only caveat would be that you get out from this course what you put in - so to anyone thinking of doing a DesignLab short course, my recommendation would be to thoroughly review their Sketch/Figma/XD tutorials beforehand, and make sure you're well acquainted with the design tool of your choice before you begin! - Amanda SoVisual Designer • Graduate • 6. UX: Interaction Design • OnlineVerified by LinkedInSep 09, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob AssistanceN/A
Short program, huge value
A huge incentive to choosing Designlab was the mentorship. Though I chose the 4 week short course, it was great to know that I would have a mentor throughout the course available to help me with concepts in the lessons, providing me feedback on my projects, challenge me, and meeting with me in one-on-one 1 hour sessions. That and the fact that I would be working with someone in the field--a Designlab success story--gave me the accountability I needed to complete this course. My mentor wa...A huge incentive to choosing Designlab was the mentorship. Though I chose the 4 week short course, it was great to know that I would have a mentor throughout the course available to help me with concepts in the lessons, providing me feedback on my projects, challenge me, and meeting with me in one-on-one 1 hour sessions. That and the fact that I would be working with someone in the field--a Designlab success story--gave me the accountability I needed to complete this course. My mentor was a Designlab alum and I think I especially benefitted from that because she had a reference to great mentorship to provide mentorship and confidence to me. I was concurrently taking an Interaction Design course through Coursera which is $40 per month and the difference between the engagement I had was huge.
The UX of the lessons made the concepts easily digestible and each lesson was supplemented with projects which really benefited my understanding of the material. I would say that the lesson on heuristics needed further Googling to supplement my understanding; my Coursera course was also a huge help for supplementing this section but otherwise all concepts were well explained through the lessons and projects. The time estimates I feel were not always accurate as I definitely spent more time on each project due to my own slow process or having addressing my mentor's feedback for revisions on my projects. I believe that you definitely put in the amount of time and effort that ultimately aligns with your goals and I definitely wanted to put in my best professional foot forward for every project. I enjoyed the challenges of the projects and it was particularly useful to have other classmate work and their mentors' feedback visible; it reminds me of the critiques that would take place in in-person design classes.
While the course claims to provide projects to add to your portfolio, I think it honestly provides you all the different pieces for a single but complete case study to add to your portfolio. I'm really happy I dived into this course, it was one of the most fulfilling 4-weeks I've had and definitely opens me up to the idea of taking the bootcamp with Designlab once I decide whether a job change is my goal. Shout out to Olga A. for being an amazing mentor! Get you a mentor genuinely wants you to succeed! - Sam Davidowitz-NeuGraduate • 4. Design 101 • OnlineVerified by LinkedInAug 06, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
Design101
Great Course, highly reccomend to anyone looking for an affordable introduction to the fundamental components of UX/UI Design - VanessaGraduate • 7. UI Design • OnlineVerified by LinkedInJun 02, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob AssistanceN/A
Hands-on UI Design Course
A great asset of this course is that you get a mentor to support you. You have 4 live sessions with the mentor and you also get written feedback on your tasks/projects through the platform. You'll be able to see how fellow students tackle the tasks via the platform. The mentor has been great for my motivation and to keep going and improving. The fact that you are doing hands-on projects makes you learn by doing, my favorite way of learning. You also learn whenever you want (morning, even...A great asset of this course is that you get a mentor to support you. You have 4 live sessions with the mentor and you also get written feedback on your tasks/projects through the platform. You'll be able to see how fellow students tackle the tasks via the platform. The mentor has been great for my motivation and to keep going and improving. The fact that you are doing hands-on projects makes you learn by doing, my favorite way of learning. You also learn whenever you want (morning, evening, daytime) whatever fits best and that's great as it offers great flexibility.
Even though it says around 10 hours per week of work, you spend more time on the hands-on tasks if you want to do them good to be able to show a portfolio piece. The theory is easy to take in (well structure, in bite-size chunks of 20min mostly), but for the tasks/projects, you often spend more than the time they estimate. - Erick SolaresStudent • 7. UI Design • OnlineVerified by LinkedInMay 08, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
UI Design
The course really surpassed my expectations, great support, Peter was my mentor and he was great, I learnt a lot from him, having a mentor is very important, the course was well structure and overall very happy that I was able to attend the course. And Emma on admissions was very helpful as well. - Santos Sanchez OlmoProduct Designer • Student • 5. UX Research & Strategy • OnlineVerified by LinkedInMay 05, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
Amazing Course!
I have learned a lot with this course, it is great that you can talk to a specialist mentor in the sector every week during the course to receive feedback. The temary is correct, although the design can improve, the examples of the exercises could be improved. For the rest everything is great! - Jesse BandfieldGraduate • 4. Design 101 • OnlineVerified by LinkedInApr 09, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob AssistanceN/A
Productive and fulfilling course!
As with any bootcamp, you really get out what you put in. From my perspective, Designlab did a great job of setting me up well. When my mentor had a family emergency and had to step back, DL provided a flawless transition to a new mentor and gave me an extra mentor session. Although the course went by quickly, the material was holistic yet relevant and worked well towards the final project. From my mentor I felt challenged as well as encouraged, and have a much better sense of the UX ind...As with any bootcamp, you really get out what you put in. From my perspective, Designlab did a great job of setting me up well. When my mentor had a family emergency and had to step back, DL provided a flawless transition to a new mentor and gave me an extra mentor session. Although the course went by quickly, the material was holistic yet relevant and worked well towards the final project. From my mentor I felt challenged as well as encouraged, and have a much better sense of the UX industry and possible avenues to check out based on my own strengths and interests.
Being a perfectionist meant I spent much more time than what they estimated on the work. If I didn't have extra time to devote to this course, it would have been difficult to prioritize my time and finish everything well. Highly recommend! - TonyGraduate • 4. Design 101 • OnlineVerified by LinkedInFeb 01, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
Design101 Review
When starting this program, I was a nervous because I wasn't sure what I was getting my self into. I majored with a business degree, but I wanted a change in my career in design. I was recommended by my cousin about Design101 and did some more research on it. I decided to go for it and took Design101 and see where it will take me. Once I was in the program, I was given a mentor to help me throughout my course of 4 weeks. This was really helpful because I never had a mentor before, and wo...When starting this program, I was a nervous because I wasn't sure what I was getting my self into. I majored with a business degree, but I wanted a change in my career in design. I was recommended by my cousin about Design101 and did some more research on it. I decided to go for it and took Design101 and see where it will take me. Once I was in the program, I was given a mentor to help me throughout my course of 4 weeks. This was really helpful because I never had a mentor before, and working with a mentor was the greatest thing that happen. I was given tips and advices from working professional, and they were able to give me critique on my projects. I really enjoyed the challenges that Design101 presented, and learned a lot from it. - Mary GarciaGraduate • 4. Design 101 • OnlineVerified by LinkedInJan 24, 2020Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob AssistanceN/A
Mentor Made the Program Worthwhile
I chose design 101 specifically for its connection to mentors in the UX Design field, and was not disappointed. My mentor (Robbin Arcega) went above and beyond to offer me advice on any and all topics we discussed (as they correlated to UX Design) during our weekly 1-on-1s. Beyond that she taught me to practice efficiency and how to prioritize my goals, even providing a rundown of Design jobs and the hiring cycle of design companies.
That having been said, I would not have found this...I chose design 101 specifically for its connection to mentors in the UX Design field, and was not disappointed. My mentor (Robbin Arcega) went above and beyond to offer me advice on any and all topics we discussed (as they correlated to UX Design) during our weekly 1-on-1s. Beyond that she taught me to practice efficiency and how to prioritize my goals, even providing a rundown of Design jobs and the hiring cycle of design companies.
That having been said, I would not have found this experience nearly as beneficial without my mentor. Understanding that this is a 101 class that focused mainly on the basics of UX Design, I think there was so much crammed into such a short amount of time, that I was mostly just overwhelmed with information without much of an opportunity to practically apply it. Regardless, I would recommend the course to those considering the UX Design field, with the caveat that they MUST be proactive and engaged with their mentor. - DougGraduate • 2. UX Academy (Part-time) • OnlineVerified by LinkedInDec 06, 2019Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
A mediocre experience in changing careers.
I chose to jump into UX Academy hoping to change careers into UX/Product Design. I had weighed between Bloc and Designlab at the time and chose Designlab in order to wholly focus on UX Design. So I paid the upfront $5200 to start my journey. I was excited to start and was expecting a well thought out format in teaching and learning about the design process. However, after going through the complete course I can say that there was not much value beyond what could be found through viewing ot...
I chose to jump into UX Academy hoping to change careers into UX/Product Design. I had weighed between Bloc and Designlab at the time and chose Designlab in order to wholly focus on UX Design. So I paid the upfront $5200 to start my journey. I was excited to start and was expecting a well thought out format in teaching and learning about the design process. However, after going through the complete course I can say that there was not much value beyond what could be found through viewing other graduates online portfolios and following the process much like they do (supplemented by free sources online).
The best part of my experience with Designlab was the mentorship. My mentor was amazing and was able to help me understanding what part of the process is relevant and important to focus on. There were a lot of things he would explain that the course itself would not share.
The other good thing about the course is getting you to have a discipline to stay on course and focus on product design for a certain amount of time. It pushed me to learn and practice everything, which otherwise I probably wouldn't.
Beyond those two things, there was not much value that Designlab put forth is being able to help you swtich careers. There would be group critique sessions that would not be entirely helpful as critiques were coming from other students who are just learning as well. There are one facilitator that would provide great feedback, however, the focus would be for other students to participate so the feedback would be limited.
The 3 capstone projects during Phase 2 of the course are great projects to get you to practice everything. However, the prompts are simple and you could do these without having to actually go through the course.
For a UX bootcamp, there are also a lot of UX issues with their online platform. It can get frustrating to navigate and actually keep track of things.
Finally, if you're hoping to stay eligible for tuition reimbursement after 6-months of job searching, make sure you follow their eligibility requirements perfectly. If you miss one thing in any way, they will not sympathize with you. They will find any excuse to not get you your refund. They are incredibly dismissive and have personally made me feel like I was an afterthought.
After graduating, career services isn't so much service but more bookkeeping for their sake. The support here purely comes from your mentor.
After this experience, I somewhat regret spending an entire year with them and spending the $5200. I would suggest that perhaps it would be more worth your while to find alternative cheaper ways to learn the design process and work on your own projects. Alternatively, I believe an on-site course (despite the higher price) would be much better, as you would have instructors with you there at all times and fellow students to learn alongside.
I hope this helps whoever is hoping to change careers!
Designlab Alumni Outcomes
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How much does Designlab cost?
Designlab costs around $7,749. On the lower end, some Designlab courses like 9. Design 101 cost $499.
What courses does Designlab teach?
Designlab offers courses like 1. UX Academy Foundations, 2. UX Academy (Part-time), 3. UX Academy (Full-time), 4. Data-Driven Design and 5 more.
Where does Designlab have campuses?
Designlab teaches students Online in a remote classroom.
Is Designlab worth it?
Designlab hasn't shared alumni outcomes yet, but one way to determine if a bootcamp is worth it is by reading alumni reviews. 785 Designlab alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed Designlab on Course Report - you should start there!
Is Designlab legit?
We let alumni answer that question. 785 Designlab alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed Designlab and rate their overall experience a 4.78 out of 5.
Does Designlab offer scholarships or accept the GI Bill?
Right now, it doesn't look like Designlab offers scholarships or accepts the GI Bill. We're always adding to the list of schools that do offer Exclusive Course Report Scholarships and a list of the bootcamps that accept the GI Bill.
Can I read Designlab reviews?
You can read 785 reviews of Designlab on Course Report! Designlab alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed Designlab and rate their overall experience a 4.78 out of 5.
Is Designlab accredited?
While bootcamps must be approved to operate, accreditation is relatively rare. Designlab doesn't yet share information about their accreditation status.