BSIS student Adaeze Asonye, who hails from the Near West Side of Chicago, discovered her interest in user interface (UI)/user experience (UX) before her freshman year. She looked for programs that would help her prepare for a career in this area and discovered the iSchool.
Asonye's favorite class at the iSchool was IS 226: Introduction to Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). The class helped jump-start her learning and gave her hands-on experience in Figma, an online UI application. "I was super excited to be in a classroom where I could practice my design skills, learn design theory, and be surrounded by fellow designers!" she said.
At Illinois, Asonye has been involved in the iSchool professional fraternity, Psi Eta Mu, and Design Innovation Illinois, a student organization dedicated to UI/UX projects.
"Both have greatly contributed to my college experience," said Asonye. "I was able to work on my leadership and project management skills, make friends with fellow iSchool students/designers, and add more projects to my portfolio."
In addition, Asonye has held two internships, one with the Molecule Maker Lab Institute, an NSF-supported AI institute for molecular discovery, synthesis strategy, and manufacturing located at the University of Illinois, and a second with Cargill at the Innovation Lab in U of I's Research Park.
"My internships gave me experience in actual workplace settings (remote, hybrid, in-person) and allowed me to observe how design positions vary in complexity and responsibilities, depending on the size of the organization," she said. "I was also able to learn a great deal from my fellow designers, including tips for how to speed up my workflow."
According to Asonye, her iSchool degree has prepared her for the next chapter of her life through coursework that focuses on ethics and the humanities in relation to technology. She hopes to carry the values she learned about the importance of technology's impact on society into her future work. After graduation, she plans to travel to Europe and then find full-time employment as a UI/UX designer.