User Experience Designer

This position is eligible for fully remote work. For your application to be reviewed, please provide a resume and cover letter that speaks specifically to how your qualifications align with the requirements of the position.

NOTIFICATIONS

UC Vaccination Policy: With limited exceptions, COVID-19 vaccinations are required for Covered Individuals under the Policy. Covered Individuals include all employees, students, or trainees who physically access a University facility or program in connection with their employment, appointment, or education/training.

Covered Individuals do NOT include employees who work 100% remotely with NO expectation that they will physically access any University location or program at ANY time. If 100% remote work ends, the employee is subject to policy.

INITIAL REVIEW DATE (IRD)

UC Santa Cruz staff jobs are posted until filled. Application materials submitted by 11:59 pm on the IRD will be routed to the hiring unit for consideration. NOTE: Materials submitted after the IRD will be forwarded only at the request of the hiring unit. Submit your materials before the IRD to ensure consideration by the hiring unit.

The IRD for this job is: 03-27-2023

ABOUT UC SANTA CRUZ

UC Santa Cruz is a public university like no other in California, combining the experience of a small, liberal arts college with the depth and rigor of a major research university. It's known as an unconventional place where innovation and experimentation is part of the campus's DNA. That playful, bold spirit still thrives today, all on a campus renowned as among the most beautiful in the world.

DEPARTMENT OVERVIEW

Information Technology Services (ITS) is the campus's centralized resource to support and amplify research, instruction, learning, and digital experiences at UC Santa Cruz. We are a group of over 200 diverse, enthusiastic people who produce extraordinary results.

Our guiding principles are integrity, client focus, teamwork, knowledge, and fulfillment. We are looking for people who are deeply curious, hard-working, resourceful, kind, and committed to inclusion.

ITS strives to continually improve service quality, experience, and value for our students, faculty and staff. We are deeply committed to nurturing and strengthening an organization that values equity, work-life balance, and supportive culture. Prioritizing career paths is important to us and we devote resources to skill and professional development for our staff.

We hope you are inspired by what we do and are excited to contribute to our mission. We are looking for candidates who do great work from different backgrounds and practices, and who will support our aspirations to shape an increasingly diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization. We encourage you to apply even if you do not believe you meet every qualification for the position but possess transferable skills and experiences.

University of California offers competitive benefits including Medical, Dental & Vision Care Insurance Plans, University of California (UC) retirement, Paid Family Leave, and Paid Holidays plus accrued vacation and sick leave. Visit the UC benefits page for more information at UC Compensation and Benefits.

JOB SUMMARY

The UX Designer is an essential part of the User Experience (UX) team at UCSC. Together with the UX Manager, Service Designer, and UX Researcher, they will help IT Services deliver more effective services to the university, and create experiences that are usable, useful, and easy to use.

The UX Designer works co-creatively to design a digital landscape that considers the user-centered, holistic experience of our staff, faculty, and students. They will help ensure that our online systems are intuitive, and create engaging interfaces that improve user experience.

They will collaborate with teams and stakeholders to conduct usability testing, create wireframes, mock-ups, and prototypes, and contribute to the development of UI for websites and web-based applications. They promote design practice, mindset, and methods.

APPOINTMENT INFORMATION

Budgeted Salary: $37.36 - $43.10/hour. Salary commensurate with skills, qualifications and experience.
Under California law, the University of California, Santa Cruz is required to provide a reasonable estimate of the compensation range for this role and should not offer a salary above the posted range. The salary shown above is the budgeted range the University reasonably expects to pay.

No. of Positions: 1

Benefits Level Eligibility: Full benefits

Schedule Information:

• Full-time, Fixed
• Percentage of Time: 100%, 40 Hours per Week
• Days of the Week: Mon-Fri
• Shift Includes: Day

Employee Classification: This is a Career appointment

Job End Date: None

Work Location: This position is eligible for fully remote work

Union Representation: Non-Represented

Job Code Classification: 007349 (USER EXP DESIGNER 2)

Travel: Never or Rarely

JOB DUTIES

60% - Design

• Creates simple prototypes and user interfaces (UI) for digital materials, websites, and web-based applications.
• Participates in the creation of visual designs and user interfaces that align with UCSC branding guidelines and user experience standards.
• Guides the information architecture and taxonomy of websites and knowledge bases.
• Creates simple user flows, current state diagrams, prototypes, and other UX artifacts.
• Participates in the creation of the visual look and feel for user interface components and page layout.

20% - Research

• Helps conduct usability and heuristic evaluations for websites and user interfaces.
• Helps conduct other user research such as ethnographic or field research, user interviews, and surveys.
• Gathers, analyzes, documents, and organizes the results of usability evaluations.

20% - Facilitation and Community Building

• Participates in the planning and facilitation of co-designed working sessions with cross-functional teams.
• Advises various stakeholders on user-centered and accessible practices.
• Guides teams through the tools and best practices of user experience design.
• Promotes user-centered design practice, mindset, and methods.
• Participates in UCSC and UC System design communities and discussions.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree in related area and / or equivalent experience / training.
• Knowledge of basic design principles such as human-centered design, visual design, interface design, interaction design, content design, and/or graphic design.
• Knowledge of UX design methods and artifacts such as usability testing, user interviews, diary studies, ethnographic studies, personas, journey maps, task flows, etc.
• Experience in a professional or customer-facing environment.
• Excellent interpersonal, and communication skills.
• Ability to synthesize information into insights and easy-to-understand visualizations and artifacts.
• Self-motivated and able to work independently and as part of a team, and meet deadlines.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Demonstrated experience implementing user experience design best practices and guidelines.
• Experience with diagramming, wireframing, prototyping, and using design tools.
• Familiarity with UCSC or higher education systems and platforms.
• Knowledge of digital accessibility (ADA and WCAG standards), and digital equity and access.
• Demonstrated creative problem-solving skills, working with ambiguity and complex problems.
• Demonstrated ability to work with others from diverse backgrounds.

SPECIAL CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

• Selected candidate will be required to pass a pre-employment criminal history background check.
• Ability to work long periods of time at a computer with or without accommodation.
• Must be able to work remotely from a home office and be able to fulfill requirements of the UCSC telecommuting agreement.
• Ability to work occasional evenings and weekends as directed.
• Selected candidate will be required to complete training within established time frames as directed including UC compliance training.
• The University of California has implemented a COVID-19 Vaccination Policy covering all employees. To be compliant with the policy, covered employees must submit proof of vaccination or have an approved exception or deferral, eight (8) weeks from date of hire.
• Per the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act (CANRA), this position has been identified as a Mandated Reporter. The selected candidate will be required to report known or suspected child abuse or neglect as defined by CANRA and will be required to sign a Statement Acknowledging Requirement to Report Child Abuse prior to commencing employment. CANRA Penal Codes, and related definitions, requirements, and responsibilities may be obtained here.

SAFETY STATEMENT

All UCSC employees must understand and follow job safety procedures, attend required health and safety training, proactively promote safety at work, and promptly report actual and potential accidents and injuries.

HOW TO APPLY

Attach your resume and cover letter when applying for this job opening. Do not attach any documents to 'My Activities'. Visit our How to Apply tutorial for detailed instructions on our applicant process.

EEO/AA

The University of California is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status. UC Santa Cruz is committed to excellence through diversity and strives to establish a climate that welcomes, celebrates, and promotes respect for the contributions of all students and employees.