Have you ever struggled with a webpage that looks outdated? Or perhaps, you felt like the process of buying from a business website itself felt like going through a maze? These can be solved with a good user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) design.
In today’s digital era, companies spend millions on skilled UX and UI designers to boost their digital presence from websites to apps and optimize their processes there.
In this post, we’ll explain what UI and UX are, and how you have better chances at being able to pursue the field with a computer science degree at tow.
Definitions: UX vs. UI
UX and UI are terms that are often used interchangeably. However, there’s a huge difference between the two concepts. Learning the difference allows you to understand how they work and why they’re dependent on each other.
User Experience (UX)
Everything from the way you interact with your devices, to the impressions you make after interacting with them is covered by the term user experience or UX.
It’s a broad definition that involves every interaction a user or customer has with a product or service of a business. This is not just limited to their digital experience alone.
Some experts claim that all the different elements involved in the experience of a customer interacting with a business—physical or online—are covered by UX.
Today, UX is used to help companies do the following:
- Improve customer acquisition, satisfaction, and retention
- Reduce time and costs involved in the development process
- Increase employee productivity
- Reduce support costs
User Interface (UI)
User interface or UI is the visual aspect of a digital product or service. While UX is what you feel, UI, on the other hand, is what you see. Unlike UX, the user interface is strictly digital and does not involve the “outside world.”
UI is concerned with understanding and predicting users’ needs and interests, and making every visual and interactive element of the product as intuitive as possible.
From typography to color choice to layouts and navigations, UI designers’ goal is to make the digital product or service of a business more appealing and responsive to the needs of its users.
Today, companies invest in good UI to gain the following benefits:
- Increased customer acquisition and retention
- Reduced cart abandonment
- Improved conversion rates and higher sales
- Reduced support costs
Many companies find UI and UX as interdependent aspects of the business. This means that investing in one also requires investing in the other to gain the desired results.
According to research, every dollar invested in UI/UX brings in $100 in return. This high ROI is why many businesses opt for better UI/UX design.
Explore UX/UI with CIIT’s Computer Science Program
While it’s not necessary to study computer science to pursue UI/UX, it may be the one of the closest programs available that can provide you with a strong basic foundation. Earning a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science can give you the technical backbone in multiple industries related to UI/UX.
Aside from a computer science degree, you will also be expected to earn certification for UI/UX specialization. Certificate programs can help you fill in knowledge gaps and be an expert at UI/UX subfields of your choice.
At CIIT Philippines, our Bachelor of Science in Computer Science program entails the specialization on Web and Mobile Application Development, which should equip you with the necessary skill to master the emerging technologies under UI/UX.
As an academic institution that promotes high-quality, industry-based teaching, we offer an internationally competitive Computer Science program designed to train future programmers and software designers.
Want to know more about studying computer science in the Philippines? Explore your options here.
