Welcome to UI High, the worldâs only fictional secondary school dedicated to the study and practice of User Research!
Youâll find no weary school administrators, lunchroom politics, popularity contests, or exclusive in-groups here. The students of UI High value collaboration over competition and donât tolerate the bullying or exclusion of their peers (or anyone, really). And you can forget about messy lockers or last-minute reportsâthis is one organized bunch!
The User Research Yearbook is a directory of essential voices in User Research: In one way or another, all of the folks in the UI High Class of 2022 have contributed their voices, energy, and time to educate, champion, challenge, and drive important conversations within the field.
In this inaugural year, we decided to focus on two distinct but related themes:
â
1. Democratizing + scaling + operationalizing research.
2. Inclusion in research and design.
Together, âresearch for all.â
This project is brought to you by User Interviews and is meant to celebrate the thought leaders and change makers in our field. We know that there are many, many thousands of inspiring folks who are not in this directory⊠yet.
User Research is an ever-growing and ever-changing field, and weâre eager to shine the spotlight on additional, equally essential voices who arenât yet represented here. Which is why we plan to grow this directory with new cohortsâand new themesâeach year.
In the meantime, weâre hugely grateful to all of the folks in the UI High Class of 2022 for taking the time to be a part of this project. Their innovative approach to problem-solving, generosity of spirit, tireless activism, and dedication to making User Research and its outcomes more accessible, equitable, and relevant are truly inspirational.
The #UIYearbookCommittee is predominantly made up of marketers and let us tell âyaâit is such a privilege to create content with and for people making a real-world impact.
So thanks for being wonderful, #UIHSClassof2022! Excited to see what yâall do next.
âThis yearâs theme brings together two distinct but related trends in User Research: democratizing + scaling + operationalizing research and inclusion in research and design under the umbrella of âresearch for all.â
Itâs an ambitious-sounding phrase, to be sure, and one that reflects an ideal rather than our current state. But hey, weâre optimists and thereâs a certain power in naming things (plus, âresearch for more, by moreâ doesnât really have the same ring to it).
The members of the Class of 2022 have all contributed, in varying ways, to a future in which User Research and its outcomes are more relevant and accessible to the people they impact.
They've done this by:
Which UXRs are pictured here? Hover for the answer!
Which UXRs are pictured here? Click for the answer!