Mastering Interface Design (MID) is a 100% online UX and Product Design Certification Program that aims to help people become UX and Product Design talents, with the possibility of working in the best and biggest companies in the world.
At the MID program, students get in touch with the principles, fundamentals, and the latest UX/UI design tools, while also having the possibility to develop real projects that will be part of their portfolio.
Diverse backgrounds
A common question when switching careers to UX/UI Design is whether it is necessary to have a background in design.
So let us reassure you: the answer is no.
What happens is that many Graphic Designers jump into UX because it's a linear progression, but that doesn't mean that you need to start from there.
The MID is a program that teaches UX/ UI Design from scratch! So you don't need to have a related background.
We have many examples of students that transitioned to UX/UI from other fields, like Marketing, Journalism, Business, and Psychology.
Alexandre Borges
Alexandre was a Facilitator at Avon before transitioning to UX Design.
But he was always passionate about Design, so he started studying Graphic Design while also attending MID.
"I was researching and learning more about the field until I came across the MID program. At the same time, I decided to pursue a college degree in graphic design."
At first, he thought MID was just another online course, but he soon realized the level of excellence at MID and the knowledge he gained.
"Aela sets a quality standard, which makes you truly learn. To that end, you have the fundamental support of Aela's mentors, who are always there to provide you with valuable feedback. As a result, the same assignment can go back and forth several times until you truly master it and pass."
Amanda Damasceno
Amanda Damasceno was working as a Graphic Designer when she began to feel stuck and unmotivated. That's when she decided to study and transition to UX/UI Design.
Even though she didn't know much about UX, she studied a lot and achieved great results in her development. See below what she said about the course:
"It's amazing that in the course, even in level zero, you (mentors) ask us to make a redesign project of websites, like the Wikipedia case study, and it's actually humiliating to look at it now, because it was horrible, lol. But I look at my old work and it's clear how much I've evolved since I started."
Amanda, with just 3 months in the course, was hired by a startup; she said that even though it wasn't totally UX Design related, the course helped a lot in the interview and that with this work, she picked up the confidence she needed to take more risks.
"The mentorship (from the course) made all the difference for me. It's very important to get feedback on what I'm doing right or wrong, and how I can improve. The interviews with the professionals that you guys promote here (Aela's community) I also found very important. It really opened my mind."
"The most important thing is that person leading you to the right path. On the internet, it's easy to get lost, and not know where to turn. But with the course, you get a lot of direction and it really opens your head to another world, because it's really quite a lot."
Reading Tip: The Dunning-Kruger Effect And Its Impact On Your Career
Inis Leahy
Inis Leahy attended the very first MID class and had no previous experience with design. She worked in the psychology field and decided to pivot to UX/UI Design. She moved from Salvador, Brazil, to Dublin, Ireland, and got her first UX position on Facebook.
Today, she works as a Product Designer at Udemy in Dublin.
"The MID course helped me a lot, because, in Salvador, when I was searching for jobs, I noticed that a lot of them asked for courses in this area. That's how I really decided to enroll in the program."
"On my first day at the agency, they sent me a wireframe to develop with Adobe XD. Thankfully, I had learned this at MID. And I think if I didn't know how to do it, I wouldn't go back to the agency (chuckles)."
"What made me decide to take the MID course was seeing the number of openings for UI/UX designers. Then I found out that it also had something to do with psychology and decided to go for it."
"It was my first class, and I didn't know anything. I started from scratch and it helped me a lot. From the software part, the mindset of thinking about the user, what you are doing, and why you are doing it. That's what saved me in Dublin. Without that, I wouldn't have landed my first UX role."
Reading tip: UX Design In High Demand
Portfolio: practical development
Intending to prepare students for UX roles, MID introduces study cases that allow students to build real projects, which become part of their portfolio.
During the execution of these projects, students have constant feedback from Aela's mentors. In addition, students can present their projects during live classes, which take place once a month and simulate a job interview.
Recruiters have praised and hired our students for their quality MID course projects. See below for student testimonials:
Fábia Coelho
Fábia transitioned from Graphic Design and got two job opportunities in UX/UI Design in a short period of time.
First, she began at a startup, working as the only UX Designer in the squad, and then joined a larger team at Atech, a multinational company from the Embraer group.
"The MID course gave me a solid foundation in UI and UX processes. And this was crucial for me to do well in UX challenges (recruitment process), and in several interviews. Everything I have studied and in all the interviews, I always used the course exercises and sketches to show my skills and the development of a project."
Our UX and Product Design Certification Program helped her gain confidence as a UX Designer and prepared her for the job market through the various exercises introduced in the course. Ultimately, the exercises also served as a portfolio, allowing her to pivot to UX successfully.
"…during the program I was building my portfolio with the redesign projects and the meticulous guidance from Aela's mentors and the help from Aela's Community. So, everything I was doing, I used as a resource to build my portfolio and present them in the interviews."
Reading Tip: What’s The Difference Between UX And UI Design? – Understanding Once And For All
Victor Rosato
Victor transitioned from Art Direction to UX Design, and for him, the exercises done at the course were a game changer to land a UX role.
Rosato noticed that the feedback was not great when he released the first draft of his portfolio (before the mentorship). The second version, on the other hand, was quite different. Check it out:
"Then, in the second stage, more focused and guided by Aela's mentors, I revised my portfolio, giving more atenttion to explaining my process, using the storytelling technique. I studied hard, made the first projects of the course, and put my new portfolio online. Then I applied again for job opportunities and already got better feedback just with these initial twitches."
After the mentorship, Victor says he felt better prepared and confident for the interviews, besides receiving many compliments from companies.
"…the first feedback was fundamental to align my portfolio to the requirements of the field and to apply the guidance and tips I got at the MID to see how the market would respond. This change improved my networking – I made more contacts, I received more messages, even today – and had more job opportunities."
Bárbara Niriz
From Graphic Design intern to Product Designer, Bárbara Niriz has come a long way in her career. One of the biggest reasons for her development was improving her portfolio and following our mentors' guidance.
"What impacted my portfolio the most were the projects I developed during the first levels of MID. If I didn't have any direction I wouldn't have known how to build such a complete portfolio that received so much attention from recruiters and companies."
"The (job) interview was very productive and we had a very open dialogue. They praised my portfolio a lot, especially the projects I prepared during the MID course. After that conversation, I received a message from them saying they wanted to hire me."
Felipe Borges
Felipe switched careers from Graphic Design to UX and got his first opportunity after only one month! He followed all the mentors' guidance and got great feedback.
"The process of finding this job was really crazy, because I started doing the Mastering Interface Design program in December 2017, and at the same time I started listening to Aela's podcasts, videos, and lectures. In short, everything you guys posted. I followed all your tips, updated my LinkedIn, changed my resume to English, in short, I did everything Aela told me to."
Out of the 5 jobs he applied for, he was called for 4! And that was only one month into the course, still at the initial levels, and using the projects he had done at the MID as his portfolio.
"I did these cases according to what I learned in the course, even though I wasn't very advanced in the levels yet. I looked at some classes and also researched a lot on the internet and in books… these 2 cases were what saved me in the interviews.
Reading Tip: 4 Fundamental Principles of User-Centered Design
Aela Community: a big plus for your career
Aela offers an exclusive community with all the students and mentors of the course. The students share several study tips, job openings, achievements, and challenges, among other topics.
This interaction is extremely beneficial for the parties involved because it is a place where you can vent, meet people in the same situation as you, and receive advice, tips, and recommendations.
Several of our students tell us that the Aela community was essential in their career change to UX Design. Check it out:
Alyson Ambrosio
Alyson Ambrosio says that the network he built by participating in UX/UI Design events was essential to get his first UX design opportunity. In addition, he talks about how the Aela community was essential for exchanging experiences and motivation in his career and studies.
"I think what had, and has, the most value for me is the Aela community. Being able to exchange experiences, the motivation and positive energy that goes around when someone gets a nice position, especially abroad, is very cool and encourages you to continue studying."
Rodrigo Guilherme
Rodrigo felt he needed to get more involved in a project and interact with a team. But he felt insecure about changing careers due to his age, then 39. After 13 months after deciding to pivot to UX, Rodrigo landed his first UX Design role.
"I had a lot of support from the Aela community – I received several recommendations of readings for study and references. That was great. Seeing the results from the MID students also gave me new fuel to keep dedicating myself to the classes and projects."
Daiane Thomé
Feeling frustrated with Graphic Design, Daiane decided to switch to another field after learning about our course. To achieve her goal, she decided to map out a career strategy that would lead her to conquer her first opportunity in UX Design.
"The knowledge exchange with the mentors and the students from different levels also brought me a lot of peace of mind. I think what made the most difference about the MID is the community."
Reading Tip: Gestalt Principles: How To Apply Them In Your UX/UI Design Projects
Daniel Hildebrandt
Daniel Hildebrandt tells about his experience from Graphic Designer to Product Designer. He also tells us about his relocation process to Canada, where he currently lives.
"The community is great, and the amazing thing is that everyone is active when it comes to exchanging knowledge and information."
Juliana Nieri
Juliana transitioned from Industrial Design and Motion to Product Design. According to her, the main factor that motivated this change was the desire to participate more actively in the discovery and decision processes of the projects.
"Something very interesting that we had at MID was becoming partners with other students, that is, having someone to discuss our questions, difficulties, and project development. It's very nice to have access to people who are doing the same thing as us, or at least what we want to do. It really helps to build confidence in your own portfolio."
Other testimonials about the MID
"I have a lot of friends who ask me about how to get into UX. The first tip I give is to take the MID course. In the course there are many tips, book suggestions, and help for everyone through the mentorships." - Jey Castro
"…I really had no idea, even though I was self-taught in the UI part, my UX knowledge was zero. I didn't even know what the concept was, basically… Not only MID opened my head a lot, but also the tips that the mentors give all the time on social networks." - Felipe Borges
"My tip is to empower yourself, study, and do your part. Seek help from professionals, like Aela and the MID program. Besides the projects and exercises we do that help in the portfolio, we have all the support from the community and the possibility to exchange experiences and learn even more." - Rodrigo Guilherme
"The first thing is to make a decision. Second, take the MID. We have a lot of support from people with vast knowledge. For me, the course was essential to making this turnaround." - Daiane Thomé
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