My name is Ruobing, and I graduated from the DMDL in 2022. I have a pretty diverse background—I pivoted my career from a reporter/journalist to visual journalism, and then to ux design. Right now, I'm based in the San Francisco Bay Area, working remotely for the University of Virginia Library as a UX designer. I'm a homebody—I don't go out much. I like staying in, reading, cooking, watching dramas, and spending time with myself and my family.

Tell us more about your experience studying in the LTXD  program. 

It's now called LTXD, but previously it was DMDL. My concentration was UX design. Besides the core classes everyone takes, I tried to focus on design-related electives, like Theories and Principles of Learning Analytics (Xavier), Intro to Design for Diverse (Tisch), Ideation and Prototyping, and Visual Design Studio (both from IDM), Narrative/Digital Media (ECT). It’s not a lot of classes, but I try to stay close within the design realm. 

It wasn't easy to enroll in electives outside of ECT. I tried, but it's a challenge. But that's something I wish I could have more opportunities to explore. My last semester was pretty light, so I could really focus on getting ready for my thesis project and building my portfolio. I think DMDL provides me a great flexibility in choosing courses based on my concentration, which really helped me to deepen my knowledge in UX, particularly, and also shape my design portfolio. 

How did you decide what courses to take? 

I used to work in the newsroom on data analytics and visualization, and I thought taking learning analytics would be a great opportunity for me to explore more about data. However, at the end of the semester, I found that I also learned how data could inform design decisions, and that wasn’t expected. Even though I am not a data scientist or a researcher, I found what I gained from this class incredibly useful as a designer to decode what research tells me and thus come up with a good solution to solve a problem. 

That being said, even though what is being taught at ECT is very concentrated on learning experiences, what I learned from the core courses and electives really equipped me with the skills I should have, and I can transfer and apply as a designer. 

What motivated you to join the program in the first place? 

First of all, I am not trained as a designer -  I learned design as I work at Business Insider as a visual journalist. And I feel like that's the part that actually drives me into exploring design, compared to writing stories that I had been doing for many years. I thought design is more interesting to me and has a brighter possibility for where I can grow in terms of my career path. I made up my mind pretty late, and ECT at that time still gave me an opportunity to apply for a master's degree. So I think, “Okay, let me try this because it seems like a good opportunity to pursue a design degree”.

In short, I was looking for a career transition at the time, and ECT seems to be a great stepping stone - it was not a complete alignment, but I thought I could learn a lot from its core and apply it to my design work. 

How does your experience in ECT help your current position? 

One of the most valuable skills I’ve carried into my work is storytelling. I had a foundation from my training as a reporter, but during my time in the ECT program, Maaike really emphasized the importance of storytelling in design. Every time we presented, she would say, “Tell us about your design process. Share your thinking.” That stuck with me. 

Now, when I present at work, I focus not just on the what but the why. I weave in research findings and theories to explain, “Here’s why we’re doing this. Here’s the problem we’re solving for our users.” I’ve found that stakeholders really appreciate that approach—it’s not just about saying, “This is the best solution,” but showing the logic behind it. That’s something I directly credit to ECT and to professors like Maaike, who helped us learn how to make our presentations compelling and grounded in evidence. 

What I learned in Learning Science and Cognitive Science also plays a big role. It’s shaped how I explain my design decisions, and I’ve noticed that’s not very common among UX designers. Those theories are surprisingly applicable across so many aspects of design. 

Another important lesson I’ve learned—especially from working with CoNNECT after graduation—is the value of building connections. It’s not just about landing a job; it’s about expanding your knowledge beyond the classroom. I think that’s something many students, myself included, tend to overlook, but it can make a big difference. 

I also really appreciated all the project opportunities at ECT, especially the thesis. It helped me form lasting connections with peers, alumni, and faculty. I’m still close with Maaike. A few of us co-founded CoNNECT after graduation and continue to collaborate with her on events like the Unconference. I even reached out to her when I had two similar job offers—she helped me think through my options. She’s not just been a great professor, but a true mentor.

Can you tell us more about your journalism job before joining ECT? 

Sure! My undergrad and first master's are both in journalism. I chose it because I like to write stories and learn about others’ lives. I have been in a reporter role for five years from my late undergrad to graduate school an Asian community newspaper in Boston. As audiences’ reading habits shift over time, I started to realize the importance and potential of multimedia storytelling, and that sounded more exciting to me - and that was the time when I joined Business Insider to work on data and graphics on projects such as the 2020 presidential elections and COVID. As you might imagine, that could be a time when everyone talked overwhelmingly about data on COVID-19 and the electoral college, etc, and I did experience quite a data fatigue: my passion for data gradually died out. That was where my career transition light bulb turned on! 

Tell us about your current role at UVA Library. 

I am working for UVA's library as a UX designer. We are a very small team that consists of two designers, one researcher, and one accessibility specialist. We work on a lot of different projects, such as the library's website, library catalog (Virgo), and other third-party vendors. 

80% of my job is directly related to UX design. I work on conducting comparative research, ideating solutions based on research insights, creating prototypes and mock-ups on Figma, and implementing the designs into the actual code base either by myself or by working with developers from other teams. I also do visual design such as digital signage, operational signage, promotional flyers, and swags. 

I was very lucky enough to get this job two or three months right after graduation. Compared to bigger companies, it's definitely lower-paced. We need to wear multiple hats, and the resources we have can be quite limited, and I think that’s something that could really keep me busy, but also not bored. It's a really good opportunity for me, as a young designer, to learn as I make mistakes, and have opportunities to pitch new projects or try different kinds of stuff. I really enjoyed working at the Library! 

Top Tip for current and upcoming students

• Plan your courses wisely! "Don't take Learning Science and CogSci at the same time!"

• Make good use of ECT to its full potential to meet your goals! All the resources, alumni, and flexibility in courses that ECT provides you could really be tailored down to your needs, whether it’s for instructional design or user experience design. Many things are sooo connected and related! 

How to start networking

• I'm a big introvert too, and I still get really nervous when I need to socialize with people … but I would say start small. Talk to alumni with shared interests or career goals — ask about their ECT experience, work experiences, ongoing projects, but not just job-related stuff. Most ECT alumni are really willing to help! Also, other than that, you could also Google some tips and tricks for networking from others as well - you want to be polite and respectful, but also get the most out of it by starting or maintaining a relationship with someone else.