How to Break into User Research
Becoming a user researcher is not easy.
One of the number one questions I get every week are people asking me how to break into the field of user research from another role or right after graduating. I speak with people from all different disciplines, some closer to user research, such as marketing, psychology or design, and others further away, such as accountants or writers.
One thing I love about user research is that the skills you need to break into a field are about relating to and empathizing with humans. For me, it has been one of the most rewarding jobs I could ever have imagined. Through user research, I can have a positive impact on both users and team members. Another great thing? I genuinely believe most people can become great user researchers, without paying loads of money for a degree or certificate.
To prove this, here is my story of how I broke into this field and some tips to go with it.
How I got into user research
Getting into user research was one of the least straight-forward paths I have taken, and that is often the case for most people breaking into this field. There is no one magic course to take or one perfect path that will guarantee you an entry into any user research job. It is one of the more difficult specialties to get into because of the indirect pathway, especially when even the entry-level jobs seem to have a mountain of requirements. A lot of my students ask if they should go back to school to get a Masters. With this degree, they believe there will be a higher chance of them getting noticed. That isn’t necessarily the case.
Most of the time, I would, quite honestly, say no, you don’t need to go back to school and get your MA. The only exception is if the degree encompasses other interests and potential career paths. For example, one of my students is potentially interested in becoming a user researcher, but also might end up in policy research. In this case, it might make sense for him to pursue this degree. Aside from that case, I would argue that it is not necessary to go back to school to get into user research.
I was able to get into user research through an internship in New York City. I had just finished my MA degree in psychology (yes, I know I said you don’t need a higher degree to get a job, but wait for it), and decided I didn’t want to continue with pursuing my Ph.D. Instead, I wanted to join the world of user research. My MA degree was in clinical psychology and came with some knowledge of statistics. The role I finally received was as a user research intern, with a qualitative focus, at a tech company. I had never worked at a tech company before, and let me tell you, my Master’s degree could never have prepared me for the experience.
How did I go from an MA in psychology to a UX research role?
I took a few different steps when I started looking at and applying to different UX research positions. Below is (what I remember) of my crazy process of diving into this unknown world:
- Look at 100 user research job postings and scour the responsibilities. I found the most common to be conducting research sessions, usability testing, note-taking, recruiting. Then I tried my best to make my previous experience sound as relevant as possible in this context. It wasn’t easy. Yes, I had experience recruiting participants and some interviewing experience, but usability testing was out of the realm of my knowledge, as well as understanding how a tech company worked.
- Stalk all the well-known user researchers on LinkedIn. I read about their day-to-day descriptions of what they did. Reading their responsibilities helped me understand the different skills I needed, outside of what recruiters posted on job descriptions. It also helped me know if this was something I wanted to do with my life
- Find companies that have an established research team or a senior researcher. This way, you can learn. I was the only UX researcher at my first internship and had to leave after eight months because I needed a mentor. I was lucky enough to find one in my next role. He helped me take my researching skills to the next level and is one of the reasons I have succeeded in this field
- Apply to a million jobs. I think I applied to something like 67 jobs when I was first starting. Some of them, I would have never got in a million years, but it was worth applying. What is the worst that can happen? You never hear from them again, or they say no thanks. I disregarded some of the “requirements” and I think you should do the same. In the beginning, I looked at and applied to roles where they wanted 1–2 years of experience. Even if they say they want an MA or MSc degree, APPLY ANYWAY. As Dory might say, just keep applying.
- Go to meetups and meet user researchers. Connect with others in the field and ask them how they got into user research (there are many weird ways). Networking is also fantastic for finding internships or potential opportunities. Hate networking? Check out my guide to networking as a user researcher.
- Many positions were looking for a portfolio or a case study. Now we get to the hardest part. I had NO idea what a case study for user research was. After some googling, I understood this was an example of work. Well, I hadn’t done any UX work that I could show. I started working on a few personal projects. This, right here, is my number one tip: If you have never done user research before, the best thing you can do is read up on it and START DOING RESEARCH. Pick an idea and try to map out how it would work at a company. I created a competitive analysis, wrote a research plan, did some discovery research, card sorting, usability tests, and came up with some insights. Pick something you are interested in and do a research project on this. I post weekly prompts on Medium and feel free to respond to those.
Practicing user research is an essential part of creating a portfolio and getting “experience.”
Yes, I honestly look back on those pieces now and laugh, BUT, I got an internship, and a few other interviews because of those small projects. I put in a lot of amount of effort into three case studies, and it helped me when I went to apply and interview. They weren’t perfect, not even close, but they showed initiative and my passion for learning and being a part of this field. What else do you want for an intern or junior role?
I have some final thoughts on why a degree won’t help you as a user researcher. The most critical and best way to learn user research is to be in an environment with user research. It is absorbed by practice, not by theory. Unfortunately, at this moment, user research is not being taught this way anywhere. There may be aspects of this in an MA program, but I believe the best thing you can do for yourself is to get into an environment in which you are learning user research through doing and observing. MA programs will give you a theory to work off of, but the practical experience isn’t there.
I prefer aspiring researchers to spend two years trying to get into an apprenticeship or internship than spend two years learning, and then try to get into an entry-level research position.
Check out my website for some resources to get you started on user research (such as templates and guides): www.userresearchacademy.com.
As always, feel free to leave any questions or comments.