In this talk, Sidnei shared his career transition from Graphic Design to UX Design.
He began his studies with us when he was already living in Dublin, and being able to switch to UX Design was crucial for him to remain in Ireland.
Keep reading to learn more about his story and find out more about what it's like to be a UX Designer in Dublin!
The more you can adapt your portfolio case study to the reality of Ireland, the easier it is to grab the attention of the Irish. – Sidnei Santos
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Sidnei, can you tell us a little bit about your background?
Felipe, thank you for the opportunity to share my journey and inspire some people to enter UX Design.
I've been working in the design industry for about 10 years. I graduated in Graphic Design in Brazil.
When I had about 5 years of experience in Graphic Design, I had already heard about UX, but not specifically UX Design. I always heard it as Interaction Design.
In fact, my final project in college was about Interaction Design. I had this first contact with the field but didn't pursue it further due to my work routine and day-to-day life.
At a certain point in my career, I decided I needed to learn English. The companies I worked for demanded the language a lot, and my level was barely basic.
That was when my girlfriend and I decided to do an exchange program in Dublin in 2017. One year before, in 2016, we had already visited my sister-in-law in Ireland and liked it there so much.
We decided to do the exchange program in that country precisely because my sister-in-law also lives there.
This way, I made out a plan to move to Dublin and take at least the initial 8 months of the exchange program.
You work in Dublin, but you're in Brazil? Can you explain that to us?
I came to Brazil to spend some time with my family, and since the company I work for offers remote work, I took the opportunity to stay here for a while.
It had been a long time since I was home. I planned to come to Brazil but then the pandemic happened and we had to stay in Ireland.
Now, I'm working remotely and spending my vacation here in Brazil. I'll be going back to Dublin in February.
What attracted you the most to UX Design that made you switch careers?
I think I have always had a feeling for trends. When I was in college, many friends worked with website development.
I was interested in that then, but after I learned about Interaction Design and did my final project on the topic, my mind changed.
Mobile apps started to appear, and Apple came on strong in terms of mobile development.
I realized that I related much more to this issue of talking to the user, thinking about interactions, and providing good experiences for those who would use the app. That's what led me to the UX Design side.
I even found website development cool, but personally, I'm not such an enthusiastic person about programming, despite finding it interesting. It's not my thing, as it is for many of my friends.
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How was the transition from Graphic Design to UX Design? Did you feel a big difference?
When I was still working as a Graphic Designer, I worked for a company where the demands were no longer making sense.
The process of thinking and developing each project was dying. I was just living to meet deadlines. It seemed like the same agency routine, those who have worked in one know what I'm talking about.
So I looked at the market and tried to understand what was happening. I began taking some Design Thinking courses, and out of curiosity, I took a course at a university in Brazil and met Fabia, who was a MID student; it was because of her that I got in touch with Aela.
I needed to be updated for the market. I ended up leaving the company I was working at and joined another one, still as a Graphic Designer.
In this other company, I was in a senior position as a Lead. The company was small; it was just me and the founders. So we were still structuring this design and marketing area.
I began to try to implement new things in this company. Design Thinking was something I was bringing into my daily life and wanted to work with in an attempt to think like a designer again and not just execute.
There’s indeed a bit of a difference between Interaction Design and UX. At least when I had contact with Interaction, I think it was very focused only on interactions. It even contemplated a bit of UX, but I see UX as a broader concept, dealing with people and putting users at the center of everything.
If I were to make this distinction, at the time, maybe Interaction would be more about features, and today it is much more about the experience as a whole.
Regrettably, Brazil's advertising and Visual Design market faces an issue where tasks are completed based solely on client requests, with limited emphasis on the value added by designers.
The focus is more on execution rather than strategic thinking, resulting in a culture of task-oriented work rather than thoughtful design approaches.
Exactly. I like Visual Design; I like to get my hands dirty and make a consistent delivery.
But it's not just about that.
In Graphic Design, the visual was treated without understanding much of what comes before that and what is behind the finished layout.
Why did you decide to enter the MID program?
There were a few factors, but I believe the main one was that it was very difficult to obtain a visa in Dublin as a Graphic Designer.
This is not an eligible career within Critical Skills, and it would allow me to obtain a residence visa in Ireland.
So, I made some applications in the area, my portfolio was okay, and I did some interviews, but the visa issue always got in the way. Whenever they saw that I had a student visa, the processes didn't follow through.
By coincidence, it was when I saw a post from Fabia on Facebook and she was in the MID, transitioning careers. At this time, I was already checking out some materials on UX Design.
I contacted her and asked her opinion. She highly recommended the MID. With that, I made up my mind and enrolled in the MID.
However, due to a visa issue, my time as a student was ending, and I had to decide to either stay in Ireland as a student or go back to Brazil. If I were to continue in Ireland as a student, I would have to raise the level of my studies and pursue an undergraduate or a graduate degree.
Initially, I had enrolled in the MID, thinking I might return to Brazil. But one thing that caught my attention about the program was the experience of the teachers and mentors in the European market. I thought, "Why not give it a shot?"
I started in the MID in the last months of my student visa. But I had to stop studying to raise funds and be able to pay for the graduate course here in Ireland, which is not cheap. I made this move to be able to stay with a visa here.
I paused around mid-2019 and returned in early 2020. In this return, I focused more on my studies.
So, that's it, actually. What led me to make this decision to switch to UX Design was the difficulty of finding a job in Ireland and putting myself in a profession that would give me a visa.
In addition, UX Design was a profession that was, and still is, very much on the rise.
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I think that one word that defines you well is "determined". I know this whole situation is very complicated; you can't choose. It all comes at once.
Yes, it is indeed a bit complicated.
You can't choose, it all comes at once. If I could choose, I would have chosen to study the MID. But due to my situation in another country, without much support from family, housing, and such, I had to work hard and do what needed to be done.
When we imagine a path, we think it's straight and upward. But in real life, there are many ups and downs.
Was it all worth it, man?
Yes, it was definitely worth it! Everyone who asks me about the MID, I tell them I am living proof that the program is excellent.
I even compare it to my graduate degree. Although it wasn't about UX, it was about Interaction. The UX content of the graduate course doesn't come close to that of Aela or the MID.
The MID is really comprehensive. The only thing I regret is that I was not able to dedicate more time to it.
Since I had to juggle multiple things at the same time, I had to set aside the MID to focus on something else.
But other than that, I consider it a great investment. Not only because of the content but also because of the platform and the community which helps a lot!
Whenever you post anything there, the students interact a lot with each other. In the monitoring process, you can get a lot of feedback and information. I don't regret it.
But beyond the MID, regarding everything you went through – visa, work, studies. Was it all worth it?
I think the ultimate goal would always be the same.
If I could go back and change something, it would be my planning. Whenever someone contacts me on LinkedIn – usually the MID students – asking for tips, I always say that the more planning you do, the better.
In my case, I think I took too long to decide whether I would stay in Dublin or not.
Today, when someone asks me about Ireland, I tell them to take the first 8 months – because of the student visa – and see if they like the country. Ireland is not a country for everyone.
You need to have time to feel if the country is for you. If you like it, I think after the first 8 months, you should sit down and plan what you need to do and become a UX Designer and work towards that.
There are many details that matter on the way. If you are already a MID student and want to come here, having a Level 1 or 2 portfolio already helps you a lot.
I had to start from scratch, so I had to create a UX Design portfolio from scratch.
I decided to stay in Ireland, had to attend graduate school, raise resources to pay for it… If I had decided 2 years in advance, maybe I wouldn't have had to attend graduate school, and I could focus only on the MID, create a portfolio, and apply for jobs.
Maybe that would have worked, and I wouldn't have had to invest in a graduate degree. But I could have also reached the same result.
There are several technical issues in the middle. But I repeat, the more you get yourself organized and prepared, the better.
Then, start looking for what you need to do to stay in the country, if you need to improve your English, get a language certificate, create a portfolio, etc.
Figure out what level you need to be at to get an opportunity. For those who are in the MID, try to figure out if Level 1 or 2 are already enough and study these levels so that you can apply for job openings. Learn what works and what doesn't work.
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Strategy is everything, right? Especially for those who want to live and work abroad.
The MID methodology allows each person to study at their own pace. In your case, I remember you stopping a few times but then coming back with full energy to study.
What did you do to keep that energy up?
I didn't do anything specific about that. It was much more the determination of what I wanted to achieve.
Sometimes I would go 3 or 4 months without seeing anything from the MID. But I always kept in touch with UX. I read the "knowledge pills" and went into a mentoring session to get insights. Although I wasn't focused on projects, I was always in touch with everything.
I think I dedicated myself most to the MID while I was attending graduate school. When I could get rid of some paperwork and relax, I would take some time to relax and then focus on the MID.
I always believed that the MID was important to help me reach my goals. I would really like to give some specific tips here, like doing meditation, sports, or something like that.
But in reality, I needed to do that because I wouldn't get anywhere if I didn't. It was the commitment to myself to where I wanted to go. That's what gave me energy.
During the pandemic, it was very complicated. I remember we had monitoring sessions where students talked about their difficulties and uncertainties.
At that time, we had a chaotic period of uncertainty in Europe. I was insecure and unemployed because everything was closed.
But the fact that I was a little stuck in terms of employment at the time meant that I had some free time. So, I made the most of that time because I didn't know when I would have that amount of time available again.
I would then submit my graduate school work and study in the MID with more focus.
Dublin is a very interesting place. Almost all global tech companies have an office in Dublin.
At the same time, I have the impression that the difficulty bar to get an opportunity there is very high. Did you notice that too?
Regarding my portfolio, one of the things I always sought was to do work for Irish companies. I did a project for the Bank of Ireland and another big bank.
I got this tip as I watched some live streams of designers who worked in Ireland and gave tips to anyone who wanted to enter the market. One of the things was to try to get cases and studies that they could see and relate to.
As Brazilians, we tend to work on products we have in Brazil from companies we know. But it's difficult for the Irish to notice a Brazilian company unless it is renowned.
So every project briefing from the MID that gave me the possibility of choosing the company, I looked for an Irish company. They have a strong pride in their companies and brands from any segment.
For example, when you go to a restaurant, they tell you that all dishes are made with Irish products. I think this applies to UX Design too. The more you can adapt your portfolio case study to the reality of Ireland, the easier it is to grab the attention of the Irish.
In the company I am in today, however, it was the process that I showed my portfolio the least. They evaluated my soft skills and alignment with the company more than my technical aspects.
But in other interviews, I noticed that having cases from their companies helped a lot.
Just to contextualize, at the end of each module of the MID, there is a project to be done. Although they are based on real companies, these projects are still academic.
Did you have any difficulty presenting these academic projects to the Irish? How was this process?
I did have this kind of difficulty.
Many companies didn't care so much about me having academic projects in my portfolio, but in interviews, they demanded a very high level of experience in UX Design.
I'm very experienced as a graphic designer, I have even taken leadership positions in this profession.
But in UX Design, I am a junior professional. I can bring some knowledge from my experience in graphic design, but they are completely different fields.
When I went for interviews, they always pulled me to a very senior level, and that was a hindrance for me.
There were companies that even praised my academic projects, in terms of fundamentals. But then they asked what tools I used, whether I used Maze, A/B testing, or Hotjar. In other words, they were focusing on tools a lot.
And there were other companies that understood that my portfolio projects, even though they were academic, had substance and structure and that I knew about UX processes there.
I realized that these companies that accepted my academic projects more calmly were companies with more maturity in UX Design.
They were more concerned with the thinking behind it, and how the experience was thought out and structured in the face of a problem. How the solutions were arranged and how you used the data to direct your decision.
It wasn't just a matter of tools being used. I think it was only in this aspect that I had some barriers in the interviews.
At the time, there weren't as many junior positions as there are today. Coincidentally, after about 2 months that I got my job, there were a lot of vacancies for junior positions. I think it was an effect of the market that was very heated.
Companies are beginning to understand that there are not enough senior professionals in the market to meet the demand, and they will have to start investing in entry-level professionals.
One curious fact is that the week I signed my contract at the company I work for, I had 4 job processes open. In 2, I had already done design challenges that were not difficult.
Companies are beginning to understand that there are not enough senior professionals in the market to meet the demand, and they will have to start investing in entry-level professionals.
Talking to some people, I see that there are a lot more junior designer positions coming up. I've had contact on LinkedIn with about 3 recruiters, all of them offering junior positions. So I find this movement really cool.
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The market is really booming, and there is a real shortage of professionals in the area. I see people wanting to switch to UX Design but without any further studies, believing that creating a portfolio is enough.
Yes, and adding a point, I think planning is very important indeed, because the person who is reading this here may think that it was the post I did that helped me secure the job, instead of the MID.
There were several factors. I didn't prepare my resume alone. I hired a recruiter to help me adapt it to European standards to increase my chances.
In all the MID projects, I tried to get the mentors' feedback, to have a more compatible structure aligned with the market practices.
So, it's important to think and pay attention to some things.
Of course, when I say planning, I don't mean that everything was mapped out perfectly. Many times I had to make do with what I had.
You go to an interview and the person there mentioned something interesting. So, in your next project, try to use what was said to improve the delivery.
These are things that may seem like they don't make a difference, but they do.
For example, you can do the user test on Zoom, but if you do it on Maze, it will have a very different connotation in an interview. They will find it very cool, and maybe the company doesn't even use such a tool!
To satisfy the curiosity of many people, what is the life of a designer in Dublin like?
Nowadays, we are still remote and work in squads. The design team is very small, so it's me and my partner. We have plans to grow the team this year, so a third person will be added.
We work very focused with the developers. As I said, we are still remote, so even though I'm in Dublin, I work from home from 9 am to 5 pm.
We go to the office at least once a week to maintain team interaction or, depending on demand, to have meetings with clients, do workshops, etc.
I thought it would be more difficult than it really is, especially because of the language. I think we Brazilians have this issue with English. We think our English has to be perfect.
Of course, the better the English, the easier day-to-day life will be, and many doors will open.
But I also think that we have to put it in our heads that if you have communicable English, the other things you'll be able to learn in your daily life.
For example, specific technical terms of a company. I work for a registry sector company, which is something I had never heard of before, and I'm learning about the topic every day.
The interaction with the team is smooth, and everyone is very receptive. The company is very cosmopolitan, so we have people from various nationalities. I think I'm the third Brazilian who is currently in the company.
We have people from India, Portugal, Spain…
The Irish understand the barriers that we – immigrants – face and admire foreigners a lot for mastering a second language with all the obstacles that it brings. This is highly valued, I have to say.
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