Looking back over this semester, I feel like I’ve really deepened my knowledge and understanding of the UX process. Techniques like user flows and journey mapping were completely new to me at the start, and it took a bit of time to properly understand how to use them — and when to use each one. Now, I feel much more confident about incorporating these tools into my design process.

One thing I wasn’t expecting this semester was how much group work we would be doing. Although it was a little outside my comfort zone at first — especially working with classmates I hadn’t spoken to much before — it turned out to be a really valuable experience. Collaborating and bouncing ideas off others helped me see how important teamwork is in UX. I'm naturally quite precious over my work, so learning to share, discuss, and adapt ideas was a big shift for me — but a necessary one. I know that working collaboratively is a huge part of the UX industry, and this experience will definitely help me when I start placement.

One area I think I could have improved on was, ironically, procrastination. (If my project idea "Poco" had already existed, it would have helped me massively!) I still need to get better at balancing project work with maintaining regular blog updates. That said, I’m proud that this semester was my best yet in terms of staying on top of my blogs — even if there’s still some room for improvement.

I'm also really happy that I made an effort to read more this semester. Reading "Laws of UX" definitely deepened my understanding of design principles, and I tried to keep these laws in mind while designing. "Design for Real Life" was another standout — it made me think much more carefully about the different types of users who interact with products, and the challenges they might be facing. Reading isn’t something I’ve done enough of in the past, but I genuinely enjoyed it, and I hope to keep building that habit over the summer and during placement to keep learning and improving.

Interestingly, I would say my favourite week was Week 10: Service Design — which really surprised me! I enjoyed the task of observing people’s behaviour in the café, and it opened my eyes to how much thought goes into designing not just products, but full experiences. I had always assumed I’d lean more towards UI design, but now I’m curious to explore both service design and UX design more in the future.

To conclude, this semester definitely challenged me — through group work, learning new design processes, and stepping outside of my comfort zone. But because of that, I feel much more prepared for placement now. I know I still have a long way to go, but I’m proud of the progress I’ve made and the foundation I’ve built. Overall, this semester gave me a better understanding of what UX really involves — and it made me even more excited to keep learning and growing as a designer. I’m excited to take everything I’ve learned this semester into my placement, keep developing my skills in real-world projects, and continue building my confidence as a UX designer.