To start the design process, I began by gathering data through quantitative research via a screener survey with 24 participants to better understand what sorts of issues students and parents had with the scholarship search and application process or to understand why they didn’t apply for more scholarships. The below graphs show the demographics of those surveyed.

Additionally, I also conducted qualitative research with three interviews. I kicked it off with an interview with the client to not only clarify expectations, but to discover more about her personal experience as a parent going through the scholarship search and application process with her high school senior daughter. I conducted two additional interviews, one with a student and one with another parent. Through research, I discovered that students and parents encountered the following issues:

• Overwhelmed with the resources

• Didn’t know where to start

• Missed application deadlines

• Lengthy application process

• Didn’t know about specific scholarships as they weren’t advertised or marketed well enough

• Didn’t think they would be able to get the scholarship so they didn’t apply

• Didn’t apply to smaller scholarships and focused only on the larger scholarships

• Busy with school, work, sports and other activities so they didn’t put much effort into applying for scholarships

• Hard to keep track of all the scholarships they were interested in or had already applied for

USER STORIES

I created the user stories from the perspective of the student user persona and came up with 7 user stories based on the client’s expectations as well as from the motivation and goals of the users.

I prioritized the first five user stories as they would be able to fulfill the business expectations and goals in creating the minimum viable product (MVP) within the 3-week sprint. They meet the user’s goals as well as the client’s expectations.

As a user, I want to be able to:

• Create a new account

• Search for scholarships that fit my criteria.

• Track the scholarships I apply for or am interested in.

• Get notifications so I don’t miss a scholarship deadline.

• Add a task or event to help me with the scholarship application process.

• Be able to apply for scholarships directly on the app.

• Have access to premium membership services like assistance with my resume, job application, internship/apprenticeship searches, career advisory services, etc.

USER FLOWS

I created four user flows that focused on the above user stories, which cover all the important features that meet the client’s expectations and users’ needs.

DIGITAL WIREFRAMES

Utilizing Figma, I created low-fidelity wireframes.

For the initial low-fidelity prototype, I conducted self-testing and also solicited feedback from my mentor. I assessed the pros and cons of each screen and in turn, I was able to iterate and improve the design to present to the participants for the user interviews and usability testing.

After the initial 3-week sprint, I spent an additional 3 weeks working on the user interface of the Scholarship Planner App as well as iterating the design. In assessing the user research, client expectations, personas and information architecture, I worked on the branding. I designed the logo, selected the typography and colors.

NAME

I incorporated the word “scholarship” into the name so users wouldn’t second guess the purpose of the app. I decided to add the word “planner” as it best described the app’s primary function as a scholarship planner or tracker.

LOGO

I wanted users to automatically associate the logo with education so I incorporated a graduation cap. Initially, the cap was more of a simplified drawing/sketch, however, I felt that it needed to be updated for a more professional look and feel. The final logo design uses the primary blue in the smaller version. I used black for the text color in the full version for visibility and accessibility on the splash screen.

Final Version Logo

COLOR PALETTE

The color palette went through a final update to ensure that they met the AAA accessibility standards. The initial colors chosen did not all meet the WCAG 2.0 guidelines for contrast accessibility. The main color chosen was a darker blue with a lighter blue and yellow as secondary colors. Orange and red were the tertiary colors.

In order to streamline the design process, I created a design system for the Scholarship Planner App, incorporating various components, buttons, forms and iconography.

We learned a lot as a team with the initial 3-Week Sprint. The design sprint allowed us to get more focused, complete tasks and adhere to a strict timeline.

LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

• The Prototype went through several iterations to reach the final version of the design. Usability testing was critical to getting feedback to improve the design.

• Buttons were not optimized in initial prototypes but were improved with iteration (i.e. name and location of button).

• Preference testing helped with getting critical feedback on the dashboard and scholarship search screens, although conducting more preference testing earlier on would have been useful.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Initial 3-Week sprint - This helped our team focus on the scope of the design and project. Allowed me to hustle to move through the stages of the project and work on my communication with everyone involved.

• Spent additional 2 weeks focusing on branding and visual design - the app looks more professional and visually appealing as well.

• Client Meetings and User testing offered Invaluable feedback throughout the design process. These were critical to the success of the project.

• Implementing a Design System on Figma helped to streamline the design process.

• Met User/Client Expectations - I created a product that met both the client’s and user’s expectations and is simple to navigate as well as unique and useful with the dashboard feature.