Hi designers!
Welcome to the 22nd edition of CUxD newsletter for Fall 2025 – a curated set of learnings, inspiration, resources, and tips. We’re Clément & Sia, Internal Outreach Leads, and we’ll be writing to you on behalf of CUxD every week.
If you’re not familiar with CUxD (Cornell User Experience Design), we’re a centralized community for UI, UX, and product designers at Cornell. We learn and grow together both professionally and socially!
Want to be more learn more about UX design?
Table of Contents
Usability Testing
Every week, we’ll explore a topic in design. This week, we are looking at usability testing. It’s an important method to understanding how real people interact with your designs. Some of the benefits of user testing is that it helps catch issues early, validate your design decisions, and builds products that actually work for the people that use them.
What is usability testing?
User testing is a process where real users try your product so you can observe how they complete tasks, where they struggle, and what can be improved.
Why do we test?
We test because we are not our users. Usability issues often surface only when real people attempt real tasks. Testing reduces assumptions, saves time/money before development, and increases confidence in design decisions.
Roles in a User Test
A typical session includes a facilitator (you) and a participant (the user).
The facilitator guides the session, gives tasks, and listens closely.
The participant performs tasks while thinking out loud to reveal insights.
Tasks
A core part to usability testing are the tasks. Tasks are realistic scenarios that mimic what users would do in real life. Good tasks are clear, simple, and goal-oriented—not step-by-step instructions.
Internships
New York, NY, $31 – 40 / hr
Emeryville, CA, $41.40 / hr
Pittsburgh, PA $42 – 44 / hr
Remote
Advice from a fellow designer
About
Shun Tanaka, Information Science Major, with Minors in Landscape Architecture and Environment & Sustainability. Born and raised in Tokyo, Japan.
Fav Figma shortcut
I know this isn’t a shortcut but making use of plugins can really help expand the range of design work you can do in Figma! The “Filter/effects” plugin allows you to make adjustments similar to Adobe Illustrator.
Previous work experience
2x Consultant (Opportuna VC, Klook) and Graphics Chair @ Design Consulting at Cornell
Product Designer (CHEM Subteam) @ Cornell Hack4Impact
Proudest design project
Being the Graphics Chair for Design Consulting at Cornell this year was simultaneously challenging yet rewarding as it required me to rigorously design in iterations and think outside of the box. My goal was to pilot bold branding distinct from previous semesters, and what ultimately assisted in my decision-making was taking inspiration from my personal landscape architecture background, which led to the creation of 3D motifs. Leading a team of designers for Design Fest branding was also rewarding as we were collectively able to realize bold, tetris-inspired graphics that gave the event a distinct identity. All of the graphics were finalized as a result of numerous iterations over weeks to ensure that the designs aligned with recruitment goals, which I found to be especially rigorous. However, my efforts were ultimately rewarding as for the DCC Instagram I was able to attract 200K+ views, 11K+ users, and ultimately increase engagement by 372.5% in 90 days.
Advice
As a designer in this market, visibility is extremely important! Showcasing your designs (eg. putting your portfolio on your LinkedIn, posting consistently on social media, etc) can lead to unexpected connections. I also really value coffee chats even with people who you think you might not know well - reach out to other designers on LinkedIn and I guarantee that every single person will offer unique insights that will allow you to become a more well-informed designer.
Design inspiration
Some cool designs for your dopamine hit.
Outro
That’s all for this week!
Have any feedback or want to see something on the newsletter next week? Email us at [email protected] or reply directly to this email.
See you soon,
Clément & Sia @ CUxD