How to become a usability professional?

July 12, 2007 2:46 PM

How do I become a usability professional?

Inspired by this NYtimes article, I now want to break in to the usability industry. What is the best way to do this? Is graduate school in ergonomics or human factors necessary? I have a BA in Psychology, and I am not a techie. However, I am more tech savvy than most and I have a keen interest in technology. Where can I find out about entry level positions or internships in usability? Are there any other job placement firms other than Bestica? Are there any firms or companies that specialize in usability? I already know of the various professional associations related to the field. I am looking for some insider knowledge. Any advice, tips and guidance would be greatly appreciated.

posted by AceRock to work & money (9 comments total)

You want to search this term: "HCI" You can get a bachelors in CS and get in a good graduate program that focuses on HCI.
posted by damn dirty ape at 2:53 PM on July 12, 2007

I did a training course with Human Factors International, and thought it was very useful -- HFI are also a consultancy, so what they teach is what they practice, and the instructors are actual consultants. I already had a technology Master's, but used this course to "top-up" my usability credentials - it's worked very well for me.

Not to say that a certification from HFI is an instant ticket into the industry, but you'll get a lot of real-world info from them, and can network with other usability professionals at the courses.

If you're really keen on networking, the Putting Research Into Practice course is updated every year, so a lot of seasoned usability pros take the course to stay up-to-date.
posted by ukdanae at 3:18 PM on July 12, 2007

What damn dirty ape says. You might want to consider going to an information school, like the School of Information at the University of Michigan, or the School of Information at The University of Texas.

Michigan has a masters' that focuses in HCI, and the dean of Texas, Andrew Dillon, is a well-respected scholar and researcher in this area.

Consider looking at organizations like the Usability Professionals Association, too. Meetup.com also often has local usability groups that you can use to network.

Basic reading that I'd suggest:
Don't Make Me Think
Information Architecture For the World Wide Web

Those two should give you a good idea of what Web sites ought to look like. Read Rubin for basic study design procedures.

Basically, you just need to find a way to get your foot in the door at an organization that funds usability work. Often a graduate program can be an effective means of doing so if you plan your courses carefully.
posted by rachelpapers at 3:27 PM on July 12, 2007

IAAUP. After speaking with many usability engineers and interaction designers and being surrounded continually by similar personality types, I can honestly say that all paths lead to usability.

I have a degree in Cognitive Science with a specialization in HCI. My company employs Industrial Designers, Psychologists, Graphics Designers, MFAs, Multimedia Designers and one ex-forest service employee. Really, this is yet another profession where education is a good piece of paper to have. But once you get in the door, you won't need much of what you had learned.

If you want to be over prepared, take a technical writing certificate program, or get a degree in "HCI" but be prepared to find that applied work is really a lot different than what academia is about. Like any other job, a good portion of it will be pushing paper and interacting with clients.

It also really helps to be in a tech centered community (the bay area or Seattle). If you have any more specific questions, my email is in my profile. I can give you some tips on your resume if you want to send it to me.
posted by |n$eCur3 at 3:54 PM on July 12, 2007 [2 favorites]

First, learn how to speak the language of business, then apply usability (or "user-centered design") principles to the problems you hope to solve.

For instance, it's one thing to be able to point out that the feature set for Product X doesn't reflect a very good understanding of how humans behave and what they need. It's another to describe the business impact of a poorly designed Product X when you're chatting with the design lead, product manager, brand manager or even the CEO.

The former approach will make you an expert; the latter approach will make you an expert with a well-paying job.

Reading the book Cost-Justifying Usability is a step in the right direction.
posted by diastematic at 5:33 PM on July 12, 2007

Read the above mentioned "don't Make Me Think" by Steve Krug but also soak up everything on his site Sensible.com.

Get the usability scripts on his site and use them. Study up a bit. Scout out some starving startup and propose a cheap deal. Usability is not a rocket science, I'm in education but I think going to school for usability is a bit of a waste . ..
posted by jeremias at 6:53 PM on July 12, 2007

Jakob Nielson has an article on how to become a usability professional.
posted by mmascolino at 7:44 PM on July 12, 2007

simple enough... become an industrial engineer, ergonomics/ human factors etc are all specialization in this field
posted by radsqd at 7:17 AM on July 13, 2007

Mark Hurst's Good Experience web site lists usability jobs, and has a lot of other good information.
posted by Joleta at 1:35 PM on July 13, 2007