Work Experience
A New Search Experience for Libraries in Higher Education
Reimagined library's search experience by implementing intuitive catalog navigation, transforming how students and faculty access research resources.
Role
UX/UI Designer, UX Engineer
Year
2023 - present
Team
2 Product Managers, and 1 Software Engineers
Product Platform
Desktop / Mobile
Project At A Glance
Reimagining library search to simplify access to academic resources
The UMD Libraries' catalog system migration necessitated updates to the search experience on the main website. User researches revealed that the existing bento-style search results created confusion among users. Based on these findings, the redesign focused on streamlining the search journey and restructuring result presentation to align with user needs and research patterns.
This ongoing project demonstrates my approach to user-centered design in academic resource discovery.
problem
Multiple search tools with overlapping functionality created cognitive overload, while the bento-style results layout fragmented the user experience and hindered efficient resource discovery.
solution
A unified search interface serves as the intuitive entry point on the homepage, maintaining the bento-style results while changing the default search to the new catalog system. This adjustment reduces cognitive load and guides users more effectively through their research process.
On the side, I always think about how the product design influences users' behaviors and the design mindsets/strategies behind it, which always surprises me. I enjoy talking to random people and learning something new from them, either their life experiences or tips for finding a parking space in an overly crowded city.