GradPath
Navigate the graduate school application journey with ease.
Finding the right graduate school and preparing for entrance exams can be a daunting and overwhelming task for many students. Further research reveals that the reason for this difficulty is a lack of a central source of information. The information about graduate school programs on the internet is dispersed and scattered around which can make the entire process daunting.
In order to make the process smoother and more manageable, I designed a mobile application to help students navigate their search for the right graduate school and assist them in preparing for exams like the GRE and TOEFL. This application is divided into two primary sections namely: The Exam Study section and the Search for Graduate School Section
The idea for this project came when I watched my younger ones struggle through navigating the rigors of graduate school application. Being a product designer, I wanted to see what I could to help make this process easier. I interviewed them and a couple of their friends about some the areas they find difficult and stressful through the application process and what features they would love to see in app dedicated to making the process easier.
The feedback gotten from the user interviews influenced the design decisions made in my design.
For the project, I interviewed 12 graduate school applicants. During the interview, I asked the following questions so as to know exactly the major problems they face when looking for graduate schools with their interests.
- What are some applications and websites you use when looking to study for the GRE and for the right graduate schools to apply to?
- What factors do you consider when looking for the right graduate schools to apply to in order to maximize your chances of admission?
- What features would you love to see in a mobile application targeted at making the graduate school application process easier?
- What are some difficulties you encounter when looking for graduate schools and faculty with your research interests?
These are some of the responses I got from the questions above that guided my design thinking for this project
- “I made use of GregMAT’s videos on YouTube, Kaplan and Magoosh mobile apps when studying for the GRE. For grad school search, I made use of google search, csrankings, gradcafe, various university websites”
- “I usually check if the schools require any entrance exams like GRE, TOEFL and their cut-off marks if they do, I look for faculty with funding who are looking to add new students to their group. I also look for other admission requirements to see if I meet up to the requirements before I apply”
- “I would love an app that has both the exam study feature and the school search feature. I want to be able to see posts from faculty looking for new students just like on LinkedIn, I just want an app that will reduce the use of multiple platforms for the search”
- “I find it hard knowing the professors who are looking for new students because most schools do not indicate it on their websites. Also, some schools do not make the application deadline date visible enough”
Based on the responses gotten from my interview, I was able to come up with user personas shown below:
Occupation: Undergraduate student at the University of Florida, studying psychology
Personality: Emily is a driven and ambitious student who is always looking for ways to improve her academic performance and reach her goals. She is organized and focused, and values efficiency and productivity. However, she can also be a bit anxious and prone to procrastination, especially when it comes to completing large projects or studying for exams.
Goals: Emily is currently in her junior year of college and is starting to think about applying to graduate school. She is looking for an app that will help her stay organized and on track as she begins to prepare for the graduate school application process. She is particularly interested in finding resources and tools that will help her manage her time effectively and reduce her stress levels.
Challenges: Emily is juggling a heavy course load, a part-time job, and extracurricular activities, which leaves her with little free time. She finds it difficult to stay motivated and focused, especially when she is feeling overwhelmed or stressed. She also struggles with time management and often finds herself procrastinating or wasting time on unimportant tasks.
Occupation: Undergraduate student at a small liberal arts college, studying economics
Personality: Jake is a confident and outgoing student who is always looking for new opportunities and experiences. He is a natural leader and is known for his ability to bring people together and get things done. However, Jake can also be a bit impatient and prone to taking on too much at once, which can lead to him feeling overwhelmed and stressed.
Goals: Jake is in his final year of college and is starting to think about his career options after graduation. He is interested in pursuing a graduate degree in economics and is looking for an app that will help him navigate the application process and prepare for his future career. He is also hoping to find resources and tools that will help him develop his leadership skills and build his professional network.
Challenges: Jake is heavily involved on campus, serving as the president of his fraternity and participating in several extracurricular activities. He often finds it difficult to balance his busy schedule and meet all of his responsibilities, and he can get overwhelmed when he has too many tasks on his plate. He also struggles with finding the time and energy to devote to his coursework, especially when he is feeling burned out.
I use wireframes to help me create an outline for my design, focus on key elements and actions I want the users to see, this enables me to generate content aligned with the brand. For this product, I made use of a medium-fidelity wireframe design.
Taking feedback from the user interviews, I came up with a 2-sided application design.
- The Grad School Exam Prep Section
- The Grad School Search Section
I made onboarding as simple as possible. The registration process for new users is designed to be fun and precise. Users fill in account details, select a plan, choose their preferred payment method and voila!
After onboarding, the user is shown a page where he/she/they can choose the service that is most dire to him/her/them at that very moment. The user flow of a typical user looking to study for the GRE Quant is shown below:
After onboarding, the user is shown a page where he/she/they can choose the service that is most dire to him/her/them at that very moment. The designs for the graduate school search is shown below:
Participants from the interview indicated that they issues keeping track of all their applications; the requirements and deadlines. To solve this, I designed an 'Applications' section solely to help users keep track of their applications. In addition, should the app be developed, it will have the reminder feature, to send reminder alerts to users of the application deadlines and also alerts to users who are yet to submit/fulfil a certain component of the application.
Also, during the interviews, participants said they make use of LinkedIn to search for advertised graduate positions to apply to if they match their research interests. Realizing that, I included a community in my design where prospective graduate students can view advertised posts from faculty in various schools and possibly reach out to the faculty that posted the position.
In conclusion, the graduate school application process can be overwhelming and stressful for students. However, this app was designed specifically to assist with this process. From user testing, most students were able to navigate the various steps with ease and confidence. The app provided a clear and organized platform for students to track their progress, submit documents, and receive notifications on their application status.
For this project, I enjoyed going back to my research interview notes and conducting more research to design a better iteration. I particularly enjoyed checking for design inspiration on Behance, Dribbble and Mobbin.