This project was a part of a startup that I helped cofound in 2021. HERO (Higher Education Research Organization) was founded after conversations at the end of 2020 developed into a shared frustration for the many technology systems we used on campus at Loyola Marymount University.
We found that many of the already existing tech platforms for universities are built for the administration and professors in mind, not students or their student experience. We wanted to create a platform which was student focused, but also worked well for university faculty and staff.
Role: Design Lead
Focus: UX Research, UI Design, Brand Design
Year: 2021
Focus: UX Research, UI Design, Brand Design
Year: 2021
The Problem
1. A plethora of disorganized and outdated/confusing university applications, softwares, and websites.
2. Current systems are not built for the student, or with their needs in mind.
3. Lack of easy to use, streamlined communication tools for students, professors, and administration.
2. Current systems are not built for the student, or with their needs in mind.
3. Lack of easy to use, streamlined communication tools for students, professors, and administration.
The Question
How might we create an experience that houses all things a university student could need, right at their fingertips?
The answer we came to is HERO, an all-encompassing student experience platform which reduces friction & streamlines communication.
Made with the student experience in mind, it’s meant to provide students with the most interconnected experience possible. It’s goal is to help facilitate connection, community, self development, and educational experiences on campus- all under one roof. HERO is the bridge between virtual and reality that is currently missing on college campuses.
Student Interviews
I conducted some interviews with fellow students to better understand their experience with technology and learning online during the pandemic. I based these conversations on the following question:
Do students prefer online or in-person communication?
And some subsets of that question:
Can technology help and/or hinder students with specific communication needs? Will this technology allow some students to prevail in situations they would have otherwise not been comfortable with or have heard about? Might it cause some students to face more hardships given their preferred method of communication?
These questions were really on the forefront of my mind during the height of the pandemic, as a student at the time, and as someone with social anxiety who seemed to blossom socially with the addition of virtual communication.
Do students prefer online or in-person communication?
And some subsets of that question:
Can technology help and/or hinder students with specific communication needs? Will this technology allow some students to prevail in situations they would have otherwise not been comfortable with or have heard about? Might it cause some students to face more hardships given their preferred method of communication?
These questions were really on the forefront of my mind during the height of the pandemic, as a student at the time, and as someone with social anxiety who seemed to blossom socially with the addition of virtual communication.
The Responses
The Conclusion
Online communication creates both a positive & negative barrier- seen as a negative for the more social students (which was unanimously agreed upon that it may be helpful in certain situations, but just creates friction for them) and a positive for those who are more socially anxious as it allows them to feel more relaxed and prepared to communicate.
I think this was quite insightful given how the workforce has (post pandemic) mostly realized the benefits of a hybrid work environment. I think these student responses prove that it’s also important to have a hybrid relationship with technology and communication.
In applying this insight to HERO, I think it validates the need for students (specifically with social anxiety) to have a virtual platform which represents their student experience, and allows a hybrid experience to be more easily accessible.
I think this was quite insightful given how the workforce has (post pandemic) mostly realized the benefits of a hybrid work environment. I think these student responses prove that it’s also important to have a hybrid relationship with technology and communication.
In applying this insight to HERO, I think it validates the need for students (specifically with social anxiety) to have a virtual platform which represents their student experience, and allows a hybrid experience to be more easily accessible.
Mid-Fi Prototype
The following sections showcase the mid-fi prototype, which we tested with a small group of students on campus. It was a clickable prototype made on Adobe XD which we allowed these students to click through as we asked them questions about what they were doing. We unfortunately never made it to the step of iterating further after these user tests.
Home Page
We designed the home page with customizable widgets, with options to see what’s going on on campus at all times, see your upcoming classes, frequently visited pages, notifications from professors or classmates, and a to do list.
The goal with this page was to provide a snapshot of everything going on for an individual student on a day to day basis, as we discovered one of the biggest pain points to be a lack of knowledge of things happening on campus.
Examples 1 and 2 were presented to students during testing to see what their opinion was on some sort of social feed. The third prototype presented was the next iteration, without a social feed, as it was deemed unnecessary.
The goal with this page was to provide a snapshot of everything going on for an individual student on a day to day basis, as we discovered one of the biggest pain points to be a lack of knowledge of things happening on campus.
Examples 1 and 2 were presented to students during testing to see what their opinion was on some sort of social feed. The third prototype presented was the next iteration, without a social feed, as it was deemed unnecessary.
A Comprehensive Class Hub
The Class Hub was built with the student interviews in mind, and also maintaining that goal of providing the student with everything they could need. In the Class Hub, the student can see all of their classes with their locations and meeting times and a comprehensive view of their schedule.
When a student selects a class, they are able to see students in their class, if said student elected to be visible to others. Students can contact their professor, schedule office hours appointments (in person or via Zoom), or communicate with fellow classmates.
The chat feature with classmates was a huge pain point for me during my university experience. There’s a lot of fear for someone with social anxiety to ask someone for help or to study with someone. As mentioned in the interviews, the online aspect allows for a little bit of that anxiety to be released.
When a student selects a class, they are able to see students in their class, if said student elected to be visible to others. Students can contact their professor, schedule office hours appointments (in person or via Zoom), or communicate with fellow classmates.
The chat feature with classmates was a huge pain point for me during my university experience. There’s a lot of fear for someone with social anxiety to ask someone for help or to study with someone. As mentioned in the interviews, the online aspect allows for a little bit of that anxiety to be released.
Student Profile
This is a personal view of a student profile. With the API plug in access to the different university softwares and applications, we can pull data and present it to a student in a quick snapshot so they can easily understand their standings.
By including a snapshot of a student’s participation on campus as well as clubs and organizations they are involved in, the idea was to provide them with healthy motivation to maintain involvement with different activities on campus.
There would also be a public view, which students can customize to their own privacy needs, so other students can view if need be.
The second image shows a view of a student editing their profile, with options for privacy and account settings available.
By including a snapshot of a student’s participation on campus as well as clubs and organizations they are involved in, the idea was to provide them with healthy motivation to maintain involvement with different activities on campus.
There would also be a public view, which students can customize to their own privacy needs, so other students can view if need be.
The second image shows a view of a student editing their profile, with options for privacy and account settings available.
The Involvement Hub
On the Involvement Hub Home Page (1), we see a more detailed snapshot of involvement on campus, with a Recommended For You section to encourage and notify the student of opportunities. The student can also make reservations, at a study room for example, or create an event.
On the Club Page (2), the student can see details about the clubs they are a part of, see when and where the next club meeting is, and view a snapshot of their calendar.
On the Club Page (2), the student can see details about the clubs they are a part of, see when and where the next club meeting is, and view a snapshot of their calendar.
The Calendar
This is a view of the main Calendar, toggling from Monthly to Weekly to Daily views. The third image shows an example of how it looks to create and schedule a new meeting, with those details presented on the daily view (4). The idea behind this section was to create a user test task of asking a student to toggle between monthly, weekly, and daily calendar views.
The goal of the calendar was to provide students with a detailed view of their classes, club meetings, activities across campus, or meetings with professors.
The goal of the calendar was to provide students with a detailed view of their classes, club meetings, activities across campus, or meetings with professors.
