EDU LINX

A responsive web app that helps students find internship opportunities aligned with their skills and career goals

My Role

UX Designer

Project Type

Responsive Web Platform

Background

The job market is tough out there 😮‍💨

Recent graduates face a daunting job market where entry-level roles often demand years of experience, making it difficult for them to stand out and secure their first professional role. With employers placing a strong emphasis on hands-on experience and internships as key pathways to employment, many graduates and uni students face challenges in gaining the experience needed to succeed in their desired career fields

There is an evident learning gap in today’s world between between education and employability

67%

of hiring managers prioritize applicants with hands-on experience

80%

of employers view internships as a top recruiting tool

The Problem

Students & graduates struggle to find internships that not only align with their career goals but also offer relevant hands-on experience, leaving them underprepared for the work force

The Vision

To design a platform that connects users with secure, skill-building internships tailored to their career aspirations, bridging this gap between academic learning and real-world experience

Research Phase🧐

Objectives

✔ Understand user's needs when searching for internship opportunities

✔ Identify the pain points users face when comparing and searching for these opportunities

✔ Investigate factors (e.g., location, compensation, housing support, program quality, etc.) that influence users' decision-making in selecting opportunities

✔ Explore qualifications and skills that users prioritize for relevant roles

✔ Discover what motivates users to intern

User Personas

To help visualize my gathered data, I’ve characterized the university student and recent graduate personas to ensure most decisions throughout the design process align with their needs and goals

Being a recent gradate myself and having connections within my community, I was able to interview 4 undergraduate university students and 4 recent graduates to gain insights on their stories and experiences. Below are the main findings of their responses which stand as a guide in defining the key features and functionality of the platform

User Interviews

Decision-Making Criteria

Program Reputation: 8/8 participants emphasized how program reputation significantly impacts their decision to apply
Location & Flexibility: 4/8 participants prefer local internships while the other half are open to remote/international opportunities if support is offered
Compensation & Benefits : 6/8 participants stated that compensation & perks are key factors in selecting an internship

Motivations

Career Growth: 7/8 participants stated internships are crucial for building their professional network & increasing future job opportunities
Skill Development: 7/8 participants highlighted their desire to apply theoretical knowledge in real-world settings
Passion and Interest: 3/8 participants are driven by personal passion for contributing to meaningful work in fields they care deeply about

Pain Points

High Competition: 7/8 participants expressed frustration about competing for a limited number of roles
Limited Hands-On Experience: 6/8 participants find it difficult to locate roles that offer meaningful, practical experience
Lack of Mentorship: 5/8 participants feel unprepared for their roles due to poor guidance or unstructured programs

I prioritize programs that have a clear focus on professional development. Too many times, I’ve been blindsided by programs that looked promising but turned out to be a waste of time, filled with ‘busy work’ and useless tasks rather than meaningful skill-building that contributes to my development”

— Participant #3 (4th year undergraduate student)

Affinity Mapping

Patterns and trends were identified across interview responses. I organized key insights—including users' thoughts, frustrations, and suggestions—into overarching themes to help clarify shared pain points and opportunities to lay the groundwork for actionable design solutions

Empathy Map

Empathy maps were created for both personas to deeply connect and visualize their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours during the internship hunt. Through this process, I captured their fear of rejection, the pressure to stand out in a competitive market, and the strong need for mentorship

Beyond practical search barriers, emotional support and security are equally critical and therefore EDU LINX should not just be a platform but a trusted partner in user’s career journey

Reframing challenges into actionable opportunities

How might we make it easier for university students to discover relevant internship positions that allow them to apply their classroom knowledge in practical scenarios?

How might we create opportunities for graduates to gain industry-specific, hands-on experience that accelerates their transition into professional practice?

Prioritization ❗️

Let’s revisit our goals

I used FigJam to create a Venn Diagram to help me analyze the user’s and business’ shared goals. This focus will ensure that EDULINX not only meets user expectations but also drives value for the organization

Site Map

EDULINX’s site map is centered on clarity and ease of navigation, ensuring that users can confidently explore opportunities tailored to their preferences and career aspirations

Success stories & company partnerships to build trust

User Flows

I established 3 essential user flows to address the key touch points in the user’s journey. This consists of the user onboarding, finding an internship program and applying

Each flow was designed to minimize friction and guide users intuitively, ensuring their path from discovery to application feels effortless and tailored to their needs

Branding 🖌️

Logo Creation

I explored different symbols that resonated with the mission of my platform—concepts such as networking, connection, and bridging opportunities. This creative exploration led to the design of the EDULINX logo, featuring a link symbol that represents connecting students and graduates to meaningful career opportunities

Style Tile

To build on this foundation, I developed a style tile to establish the platform’s visual identity. Blue was chosen as the primary brand colour to represent the platform’s core values of trust, professionalism, and career growth

Wireframes

Responsive wireframes were created on Figma for both web & mobile screens, corresponding to each user flow. Each screen was designed with accessibility and user goals in mind

Low Fidelity Wireframes 📝

User Onboarding Screens

The most important questions (based on key motivators from research) were incorporated into the onboarding process. However there was one screen that did not make the cut after user testing…

Discovering & Applying to an Internship Program

I proceeded to wireframe the landing page, search results , program details and application page for both screens….

User Testing 👥

Flow 1 Findings

Streamline Onboarding

Initial onboarding experience needed to be more quick & engaging
Users value a simplified onboarding process (they are more inclined to proceed with sign-up if it was brief)
Onboarding steps need to focus on essential questions towards the users’ core goals: career and skill-building

🙅🏻‍♀️

This onboarding question was removed as location preferences come secondary to the user’s main goals and can be addressed post-onboarding through filters

Quicker onboarding = more sign ups

Flow 2 Findings

Highlight Key Motivators

Make company logos & names more prominent (very importance in user decision-making)
Highlight skills & benefits of the internships (key motivators for applicants)

Build Trust and Clarity

Prominently retain trust-building elements (e.g., top company partnerships, star reviews) as they significantly affect user confidence
Improve clarity & ease of navigation by replacing the dropdown menu on the landing page with 3 three segmented buttons

Final Product

The updated screens retain the core flows but now reflect refinements based on user needs to ensure users can confidently navigate the platform to achieve their goals