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A couple of weeks ago, I graduated with an MS in Experimental Psychology (Emphasis in Human Factors and Ergonomics). I've been interested in web design ever since high school, which morphed into an interest in UX design while I studied Human Factors. I'm hoping to get any advice that I can while I prepare and submit job applications.

  1. What can I do to set myself apart from other applicants given that I have limited real world experience?

  2. How hard will it be for me to find work with a Master's and no professional experience?

  3. What UX related resources can I use to further educate myself while I search for work?

I'm completely in the dark about the UX industry, so any advice would be appreciated.

dmacfour
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  • Hi @dmacfour. Welcome to the site! Please consider editing your post to ask only one question. Asking three questions on a Q&A site doesn't work very well for voting on answers. Also, try searching for existing posts. There have been several similar questions asked on this site. – Graham Herrli Dec 31 '13 at 21:26
  • The suggested duplicate answer differs in that the person who asked it has a different kind of background. – PhillipW Jan 01 '14 at 17:35
  • To answer part 3 - A suggested 'crossover' book for someone with your background would be Don Norman's 'The Design of Everyday Things'. It's a standard UX text but actually is more of an HF book written by a pyschologist. – PhillipW Jan 01 '14 at 17:39
  • Thanks for the suggestion Phillip. I have a copy of that book lying around somewhere. It was used as supplemental reading in one of my HF classes. – dmacfour Jan 02 '14 at 03:43

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  1. Depending on what kind of job you want, you might want to present your resume as an awesome user experience. While your resume will lack past experience, it will be a display of your current abilities.

  2. Personally I think employers are more impressed with experience than they are with degrees.

  3. You might want to consider an internship - which I know is hard for someone with a Masters - because hands-on experience is the best education you'll get. To learn more about UX, check out ux.stackechange and see what questions people are asking, how they're getting answered and which answers are generally accepted.

You can also sign up to become a beta tester on sites like http://www.usertesting.com/, which will enable you to test the UX of various apps and websites so you can see what people do right and what they do wrong.

Best of luck!

avi
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