UX/UI | StudyBuddy
An academic project focused on a fictional startup company, StudyBuddy.
StudyBuddy ✧
StudyBuddy ✧
Purpose
A mobile application connecting Cal Poly students with peers and tutors for collaborative study, academic support, and a stronger learning community.
Timeline: March 2024-June 2024
Team: Angela Shum, Dominic Usino, Daniel Valentine, Ashley Moreno
My Role: Team leader, UX/UI Designer & Researcher
Software: Figma/FigJam, Adobe Illustrator, Canva, Trello, Miro, Google Forms, Procreate.
Problem
Students often struggle to find and connect with tutors and classmates for collaborative study sessions and academic support, leading to missed opportunities for effective learning and academic success.
Solution
StudyBuddy is designed to provide Cal Poly students with easy, convenient access to academic support. Students can connect with classmates for study sessions, find tutors for additional help, or even offer their own tutoring services. This fosters a supportive academic community, ensuring students have the resources they need to succeed.
Research
Conducting Interviews + Pivoting
Originally, StudyBuddy was designed to facilitate efficient connections between students and peer tutors, addressing a gap in Cal Poly's general tutoring program which primarily supports GE STEM classes. This limitation left students in other majors without sufficient resources for project-based and major-specific courses. However, after conducting 10 interviews with students from various majors and analyzing responses from Google Form surveys, new insights emerged:
Over 80% of Cal Poly students rate studying with peers/classmates beneficial to their grades and overall knowledge. Any difficulty in finding study partners would result in missed opportunities for effective learning.
"I've struggled to find study partners or tutors throughout my time in college. It often feels like I'm on my own, making it harder to grasp difficult concepts and prepare for exams." -3rd year Biomedical Engineering student at Cal Poly
“I often feel intimidated asking my professors questions, fearing my ideas will sound 'dumb.' Finding classmates for study sessions provides a level of comfort and relatability, but it's often difficult to do so.” -2nd year Liberal Studies student at Cal Poly
Comparing Competition with StudyBuddy’s Unique Selling Proposition
When comparing StudyBuddy to its main competitors, it becomes clear that there are distinct advantages to users transitioning to this platform due to its student-focused features. This helped to outline the key features of the app and promote it’s value through its unique selling proposition.
Target Market + Revenue Model
Beginning with a focused market at Cal Poly, StudyBuddy bases its target market data on the student demographics from the 2023-24 academic year. The potential user base is estimated by calculating a percentage of the student population.
StudyBuddy can monetize its platform by allowing partners to advertise their products and services on the app. Given initial success, there would eventually be premium features to capture more revenue.
Design Process
Low-Fidelity Wireframes
Created to outline the application’s basic layout and structure before developing branding and refining design details through Figma.
Logo Design
The creation of StudyBuddy incorporates a blue color scheme that clearly distinguishes between tutor/tutee and buddy roles, providing students with better clarity when making their choices. The logo features a combination of turquoise and a darker blue, ensuring consistency and visual appeal.
Final Product
Product
These wireframes, created in Figma, show the numerous features within StudyBuddy. They help users choose a tutor, tutee, or buddy by using instant messaging and detailed filters, making it easier and faster to find people nearby.
Let’s Reflect!
Favorite Part: Pivoting from creating an app only based around tutoring services and coming up with the idea to also include buddy study sessions.
Least Favorite: Figuring out the more financial aspects of the project and how it will generate revenue to keep running while also being affordable to college students.
