You’ve polished your design resume, applied for a few UX design job positions, and finally got invited for an interview. What’s next? UX designer interviews can be quite intimidating, especially if it’s your first design job or you’re transitioning to UX design from another field. By discovering what questions a hiring manager may ask you and understanding the structure of the UX design interview process, you’ll feel less nervous when entering the interview room. Nail your next interview with these 15 UX interview questions and answers, and take the next step by exploring UX design jobs and other design-related positions on UX job boards.
1. Tell Us About Yourself
Alternative forms of this question:
- Tell us your UX story
- Why are you interested in UX design?
- Tell us a little about your background
This is your chance to give a glimpse into your background. The interviewer wants to hear about how you entered the UX design field, what or who sparked your interest, and how you started your journey in UX design. If it’s your first UX designer job and you don’t have any prior experience, think of the soft skills you have that make you perfect for the position and company culture. For example, mention problem-solving skills, curiosity, communication skills, and empathy.
2. What Are Your Biggest Strengths and Weaknesses?
Alternative forms of this question:
- What are your strong/weak sides?
- What makes you perfect for a UX designer position?
Review the company’s job description to answer this question effectively. When discussing your weaknesses, frame your answers so those weaknesses seem positive from a company’s perspective. For example, if the job description mentions a fast-paced startup environment, say you might get bored without being challenged or need a regular change of tasks to stay productive.
3. Where Do You See Yourself in Five Years?
Alternative forms of this question:
- How do you see your UX design career?
- What are your professional plans?
Provide an overview of your UX designer career goals and describe the steps you plan to take to achieve them. Mention any relevant UX design courses or degrees you are pursuing.
4. How Do You Define UX?
Alternative forms of this question:
- What’s the value of UX design?
- What is UX and UX design?
- What’s the difference between UX and UI design?
Explain UX design by focusing on empathy and a user-centered approach. Define UX design as the process of designing products or services with users’ interests and needs at heart. Bring up the value of user research and the design thinking approach.
5. Describe a Recent Challenge and How You Approached the Problem
Alternative forms of this question:
- Tell me about a time when something went wrong
- How do you face challenges?
- How do you handle stressful situations?
Explain what was unique about this challenging project, the steps you and your team took to achieve the end goal, and the insights you gained from this experience. Mention techniques and research methods used, such as user personas, user interviews, surveys, and task analysis.
6. What’s Your Design Workflow?
Alternative forms of this question:
- Guide us through your design process
- Describe common UX designer responsibilities
- How do you decide which research method to use?
Walk the interviewer through the steps you usually take when starting a new project. Mention important aspects such as competitive and content audits, empathy maps, surveys, user personas, interviews, customer journeys, sketches, and prototypes.
7. What Is the Process of a Design Handoff?
Alternative forms of this question:
- How do you collaborate with developers?
- How do UX designers interact with other team roles?
A successful handoff implies regular discussions and design reviews that involve developers. Mention assets like user flows, prototypes, animations, and design systems. Highlight how these assets help developers understand user needs better and keep things consistent.
8. How Do You Cooperate with Other Teammates?
Alternative forms of this question:
- Describe your ideal work environment
- How well do you work in UX teams?
Demonstrate your enthusiasm to empathize and the ability to put yourself in other people’s shoes. Provide examples of how you communicated with other UX or UI designers, UX leads, developers, business analysts, or project managers.
9. What Are Your Favorite Websites and Apps for UX? Why?
Alternative forms of this question:
- What is good UX for you?
- What does it mean to have good UX?
Talk about your favorite apps and websites and their aspects that demonstrate good UX. For example, mention Spotify for its personalized content or Duolingo for its use of gamification to encourage learning.
10. Tell Us About the Project You’re Most Proud Of
Alternative forms of this question:
- Walk me through your UX portfolio
- What’s your experience as a UX designer?
Describe a successful project that helped you fully exploit your strengths. Mention your contributions to the final product, any setbacks you faced, and how you overcame them. Highlight prototyping tools and visual design software used in your design process.
11. Tell Us About a Time When You Disagreed with Your Teammates. What Did You Do?
Alternative forms of this question:
- How do you handle conflict situations in a team?
- How do you react to criticism?
Disagreement is an essential part of the design process. Describe a case when you found valid arguments to prove your point or how you handled negative feedback and what you learned from it.
12. What Would You Improve About the UX of Our Product?
Alternative forms of this question:
- Tell us about a bad user experience with a product you’ve had. How would you fix it?
- What are the elements of good UX?
Take some time to test the company’s product and think of one or two things that can be improved. Guide interviewers through your thought process and explain what steps you would take to fix things. Be polite in delivering criticism.
13. What Excites You About This Position?
Alternative forms of this question:
- Why did you apply for this position?
- Why do you want to become a UX designer?
Talk about what you genuinely like about the position of a UX designer, such as the company’s culture, people, design challenges, or professional prospects.
14. Where Do You Go for Inspiration?
Alternative forms of this question:
- What do you do when you feel stuck in the design process?
- What is your design workflow?
- What inspires your work?
Prepare a list of your UX design inspiration sources. Include blogs, books, magazines, podcasts, YouTube channels, and UX design gurus you follow. Describe what’s remarkable about them or how they help you in your work.
15. The Whiteboard Task
During a whiteboard challenge, a UX designer is asked to develop a solution on the spot and demonstrate their way of thinking. Show your UX design process by asking questions about end-users, creating a user story, sketching wireframes, and being open to discussion.
[BONUS] 16. Do You Have Any Questions?
This is a common interview question, not just for UX design interviews. Ask about the company culture, describe an ideal UX designer from their perspective, or address concerns about working remotely. Demonstrate your interest and engagement.
By preparing answers to these questions, you’ll be well-equipped to impress potential employers and take the next step in your UX design career. Good luck!