By leveraging UX research and service design principles, we aimed to understand and address the challenges faced by The Gateway Program at the Boston Architectural College (the BAC). Our goal was to identify the root causes of problems and provide actionable insights to improve the experience for students, faculty, and community partners.
Background
The Gateway Program, established in 2008, offers novice designers hands-on experience in the professional world, focusing on socially impactful, community-driven projects. Despite its intentions, the program faced several challenges, including student dropouts, overburdened faculty, and confused community partners. Our task was to delve into these issues and provide a clear path forward for the BAC.
A problem well stated is a problem half solved.
– John Dewey
Stakeholder diagram
We conducted in-depth interviews with key stakeholders: faculty members, current and prospective Gateway students, and community partners. Our goal was to capture diverse perspectives and identify the pain points experienced by each group.
Our research revealed significant misalignments in the understanding of the program’s journey. Information was inconsistent, assumptions went unchecked, and the lack of compensation led students to prioritize paid internships over Gateway projects. This resulted in a lack of continuity and diminishing project teams over time, placing undue pressure on remaining students and faculty.
Empowered with Insights
With our final research report, the BAC received a comprehensive map of areas needing attention, a deep understanding of the roles involved, and detailed user journeys. The report highlights key inflection points for each persona with targeted questions for how to enhance these critical moments. This newfound clarity equipped them to make informed decisions and improvements to the Gateway Program.
The Gateway Student user journey
An example of how we summarized research themes into digestible blocks, including supporting interview quotes, and the targeted opportunity prompts that arose from the theme.
Working with an educational institution like the BAC was an enriching experience. The enthusiasm of the students was contagious, and it was refreshing to explore user journeys in a new (to me) domain.
This project reinforced the importance of thorough problem identification. Many organizations rush to find solutions without first fully understanding the problem. My experience with the BAC highlighted the value of taking the time to define the problem accurately, ensuring that subsequent solutions are targeted and effective.
Client:
My role on the project:
Design Director
Skills I used:
Contextual inquiry
Persona development
Journey mapping
User workflows
Presentation/Storytelling
