Breaking Into UX/UI from Another Field: How to Stand Out Without Direct Experience
Transitioning to UX/UI design from an unrelated field might seem like an uphill climb. With so many polished portfolios and design graduates competing for similar roles, how can someone without formal experience stand out and cut through the noise?
Here’s the good news: if you’re coming from an entirely different industry, you bring a fresh perspective and diverse skill set that can actually make you a unique and appealing candidate. Many UX/UI hiring managers are not just looking for technical expertise but for problem solvers, creative thinkers, and people who understand users in a meaningful way.
In this short guide, we’ll explore practical strategies for making a successful pivot into UX/UI design—ones that will help you show employers your value, even if you’re starting from scratch.
Show Your Design Thinking, Not Just Your Designs
Let’s say you don’t have any commercial UX/UI experience. You might not have worked on a big brand’s app redesign or tackled a company-wide UX initiative. But you probably have experiences where you’ve had to solve complex problems, understand an audience, or create something meaningful. In UX/UI, these abilities are invaluable. It’s great to make things look pretty and focus on the UI, but actually demonstrating the User Journey and Experience behind the final product is essential in showing that your project is holistic, and you have a firm understanding of UX and UI.
How to do it:
Create case studies that highlight your thought process. Even if these aren’t “real” projects, think through a challenge you’ve faced in another role. Document your process, your understanding of the problem, your approach, and how you arrived at a solution. This could be something as simple as redesigning a process in your former role that improved efficiency, or it could be a project you worked on independently to develop your design skills.
Be intentional about storytelling in your portfolio and on LinkedIn. UX/UI is about empathy—understanding the users’ needs and how your design addresses them. Tell a compelling story about the design journey, showing why you made specific decisions and how you assessed their impact. Employers want to see that you understand the “why” behind your choices.
Remember, your portfolio doesn’t need to be a polished, client-driven masterpiece. If you can show your problem-solving skills, thought process, and user-centred mindset, employers will see the UX/UI potential.
🚫 Common Mistakes to Avoid:
- Copying dribbble designs without understanding context
- Skipping the research phase in portfolio projects
- Not showing your problem-solving process
Upskill and Network Intentionally
The UX/UI field is rich in accessible learning resources. With an industry always hungry for skilled designers, there’s a wealth of online courses, meetups, and communities dedicated to UX/UI—many of which are free or affordable. So, while you might be worried about not having a design degree, know that a strong foundational understanding of UX principles, tools, and best practices can be learned.
How to do it:
Get hands-on with the tools: Spend time getting comfortable with design software like Figma, Sketch, and Adobe XD. Completing hands-on projects or courses will help you build familiarity with the digital tools widely used in the industry. We’ve included some examples of free or affordable courses below.
Take part in design challenges: Platforms like Dribbble, Behance, or the #dailyUI challenge offer ways to practice regularly. These exercises won’t just develop your skills; they’ll give you projects to showcase in your portfolio.
Network and attend events: Reach out to people already working in the UX/UI field, join LinkedIn groups, or attend virtual events and webinars. UX/UI professionals are often happy to chat about their journeys, and some even look for ways to mentor newcomers. Many of these connections can lead to opportunities, advice, and sometimes even referrals. Show up to these conversations ready to ask thoughtful questions, express genuine interest, and stay open to learning.
You can also source out some Reddit and Discord servers with UX/UI professionals happy to provide critique of your work.
Being visible in UX/UI communities gives you a better understanding of current trends, which can help make your work more relevant and valuable. Plus, networking could lead to an opportunity that wouldn’t have been accessible otherwise.
Craft a Resume and Portfolio That Highlight Transferable Skills
If you’ve worked in any role that involves communication, problem-solving, research or understanding customer needs, you’re already halfway to having UX skills. Many employers value transferable skills as much as technical ability, so think about the ways your previous experience already aligns with the demands of UX/UI work.
How to do it:
Use clear, UX-friendly language in your resume. UX/UI is about making things intuitive and user-friendly, so make sure your resume demonstrates these qualities. Avoid jargon from your old field that UX hiring managers may not understand, and focus on skills that bridge the gap between your past experience and your new career aspirations.
Highlight relevant experience. Did you work on a project that required extensive research or user feedback? Have you worked cross-functionally with different teams to solve a problem? These are all things you can translate into the language of UX/UI.
Create sample projects in your portfolio that showcase your skills. If you’re transitioning from a marketing background, consider redesigning the user interface for an existing website or app that you think could benefit from better user experience. These sample projects don’t need to be for real clients—many hiring managers appreciate seeing hypothetical work, especially when it’s well-thought-out and presented professionally.
A polished portfolio showing even hypothetical or volunteer projects demonstrates your skills and helps hiring managers see you as a designer, even if your experience is outside the industry.
Starting Your Journey? Sign Up for Future UX/UI Opportunities
Pivoting into UX/UI design from another field might feel daunting, but the reality is that many employers value fresh perspectives and transferable skills just as much as industry experience. Remember, UX/UI is all about understanding users and solving problems, not about having the “perfect” background. By building a strong portfolio, mastering the basics, and showing your ability to think like a designer, you’re putting yourself in a great position to break into the field.
If you're on this journey and interested in hearing about UX/UI roles, we invite you to sign up for our candidate database. Stay in the loop for new opportunities and resources designed to support your transition into this exciting industry: https://www.weareninetwenty.com/
Or reach out to Fraser at fgillespie@weareninetwenty.com
Useful Courses:
Google’s UX Design course is highly recognised as a comprehensive qualification:
Google UX Course
For other free courses, we found this article helped sum up the best of 2024:
https://careerfoundry.com/en/blog/ux-design/best-free-ux-design-courses/