Student Success Story: Zeb Cumberland

Zeb completed our 12-Week full-time UX/UI Career Development Bootcamp in April 2023. He has recently started a UX Design Internship at Softwire.

We caught up with him recently to see how the course helped him achieve his goals and his pearls of wisdom for any budding product designers.

Tell us a bit more about what you were doing before you decided to pivot into design?

I finished university having studied Politics and Economics in June and went travelling around Asia for 2 months. After meeting with others in the tech industry, I decided to take the leap into UX upon returning and enrolled in the Experience Haus bootcamp.

How was training at Experience Haus different from other providers?

The real-world experience you are exposed to and the small, intimate group sizes is what sets Experience Haus apart. You are able to ask loads of questions and get plenty of exposure working with others.

What was the highlight of your course?

The highlight for me was working with GeneHub, a health-tech startup, because of the important issue they were trying to solve. It was also amazing to see our work actually being used by them!  

What was the most challenging part of your learning experience?

For me, the most challenging aspect was coming to grips with user research as I’m naturally a more reserved person. However, being taken out of my comfort zone was so important for me and I feel like a more accomplished designer because of it.

Job Hunting & Your New Role

Where is your new job and what is your role?

I have recently landed a UX Design Internship at Softwire.

How did you find the job search process after you finished the course?

It took me 2 months to find my job after applying to dozens of companies. The opportunity to go through interviews and design challenges was great experience and helped me reach a point where I was super confident speaking about my design skills.

What did a typical working day look like for you 2 years ago?

I wasn’t working 2 years ago as I was at university, so it was filled with lectures and seminars!

What does a typical working day look like for you now?

I have just begun my internship and so far no day is the same. I am learning so much and meeting so many great people who are working on amazing projects.

What are your top 3 tips for preparing for a design interview?

Practice, know your portfolio inside out, and be yourself!

What advice do you have for anyone breaking into the industry? Is there anything you wish you’d known when you were first starting out?

Rejection is part of the learning process. At first being rejected about job interviews knocked my confidence but I soon realised that the more interviews you go through, the more confident and prepared you feel for the next one.

Get in touch with Zeb

linkedin.com/in/zebcumberland/

Posted on : Thursday July 27, 2023