PLEASE HELP - a pro-forma for an exceptional talent in UX/UI design under digital technology

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Hi everyone,

I’ve been on this forum for a while, and it’s very helpful for me, thank you. But this is my first time asking for a review of my rejected application.

I was rejected by Tech Nation & Home Office on Monday. So, I’m here seeking clarification on the pro-forma, as I find it confusing.

The following information (LoRs, MC, OC2 and OC3) is for my current application. I also attached the pro-forma for your reference.

3 LoRs

  • Regional Manager in software and infrastructure @ company A, one of big techs in US (25+ years of work experience)
  • CPO @ AI-driven media company in the UK (20+ years of work experience)
  • Chief Researcher in digital healthcare @ company B, big tech in JP (23+ years of work experience)

MC
An application re-design project. When I worked for company A, we worked a program with client C, the app product is the one we designed for client C. I was responsible for creating UX/UI design for the app, as well as branding design.

Evidence:

  • A reference letter from the client C demonstrated my contributions as a design lead
  • User metrics letter from the client C (the metrics demonstrated user growth worldwide after the new app launched)
  • An award screenshot of the shorty impact award (Gold Honour in Business to Business)
  • An award screenshot of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Citizens Award for Best Sustainability Program
  • A screenshot of UN conference with the app (the product was showed at the UN meeting)

OC2
I am an organiser for a UK-based non-profit organisation which aims to support coding and programming learning for minority groups. My responsibilities are hosting 2-3 workshops a month, designing posters and flyers, and managing its social media platform to engage with active users.

Evidence:

  • A reference letter from director of NGO demonstrated my contributions at NGO
  • A screenshot of NGO impact report shows that the workshops helped 80% of participants get a job in the technology industry last year
  • A screenshot from one of the biggest social media platforms in my country which shows over 10,000 reads in addition to 500 likes and collections in the first two months after managing the official account

OC3
I worked as a technical designer to develop UX/UI designs from 0 to 1 in a healthcare platform. The platform supports old people and care home staff in local communities by Al and LLM technologies.

Evidence:

  • A reference letter from CEO, company F who develop the platform demonstrated my contributions as a technical design lead
  • A government media report showed its impact in supporting more than 40,000 people (The company F which designed the platform worked with the local government, that’s why the government reported it)
  • The platform saves work efficiency for care home staff in comparison to manual checkups (CEO mentioned work efficiency in the letter too)

Based on pro-forma, My concerns:

General

Would it be possible to appeal? Or is it better to re-apply next year?

LoRs

  1. All of recommenders are my ex-colleagues, and some of them are not my direct colleagues, though we worked at one company. Some of them know me because of project collaborations. I understand the second one between 2011 and 2015 is old, I need to find a new recommender, apart from it, would it be possible to use the other two? Or I’ll need to look for 3 new people for LoRs?
  2. Does it mean Tech Nation does not accept any ex-colleagues or ex-employers who work together, even just project-driven?
  3. With Docusign, I attached Docusign summary which includes certificate of completion, record tracking and timestamp etc for each letters. I am so confused about their comments below:
    a. The pro-forma shows “All the letters clearly show in their signature trail that they were sent by the applicant to the respective recommender or referee. This leads to severe questions about the authenticity of the letters and the possible role the applicant has in their drafting.” Is summary not audit trails they are looking for?
    b. The pro-forma also says ‘We are unable to attach much weight to any of the letters.’ Does this mean that they haven’t reviewed the letters because I was the one who sent to recommenders or referees?

MC

  1. Does two awards and UN conference count as international recognition?

OC2

  1. Does the NGO impact report with reference letter count?

I also published an article on ScienceDirect this October without many citations, can I use it as one of evidence for MC if I re-apply?

It would be much appreciated if you could give your suggestions on how to improve my application.

Thanks for your time.

Pro-forma
Pro-forma932×1314 197 KB

2

@rl141

Sorry about the outcome of your application

Firstly about your question, if you can appeal or if you should just reapply next year. Yes an appeal is possible and its free. I actually recommend doing it because even if it doesn’t succeed you still get more feedback based on the points you raise, and that can really help if you decide to try again.

Reapplying is also fine, but only if you’ve learnt from this mistakes so you don’t repeat them again.

About their feedback, honestly its quite clear. Your evidence didn’t really fit the criteria you chose and it wasn’t compelling or convincing enough. These are things you’d want to work on before reapplying.

Awards are good for recognition but it’s not just the award itself, it’s also what you present to show you actually got it, how you present it, and how it fits your overall narrative with complementing evidence that shows you really deserve and earned it.

ScienceDirect isn’t a journal, it’s basically a repository for research papers. It’s credible, but it’s better to show the actual journal where the paper was originally published. Also timing matters and the number of citations is important because it can show recognition or impact depending on which criterion you’re using it for.

All the best.

3

@Raphael Thank you so much for the feedback. It’s really helpful.

I have more questions about LoRs.

3 LoRs

  • Regional Manager in software and infrastructure @ company A, one of big techs in US (25+ years of work experience)
  • CPO @ AI-driven media company in the UK (20+ years of work experience)
  • Chief Researcher in digital healthcare @ company B, big tech in JP (23+ years of work experience)
  1. All of recommenders are my ex-colleagues, and some of them are not my direct colleagues, though we worked at one company. Some of them know me because of project collaborations. The pro-forma says All three mandatory recommendation letters are from colleagues/employers and such letters are not suitable as recommendations. Does Tech Nation not accept any ex-colleagues or ex-employers who work together, even just project-driven?
  2. With Docusign, I attached Docusign summary which includes certificate of completion, record tracking and timestamp etc for each letters. I am so confused about their comments below:
    a. The pro-forma shows “All the letters clearly show in their signature trail that they were sent by the applicant to the respective recommender or referee. This leads to severe questions about the authenticity of the letters and the possible role the applicant has in their drafting.” Is summary not audit trails they are looking for?
    b. The pro-forma also says ‘We are unable to attach much weight to any of the letters.’ Does this mean that they haven’t reviewed the letters because I was the one who sent to recommenders or referees?
4

It would be much appreciated if you could leave your feedback too. @alexnk @Akash_Joshi @pahuja @Francisca_Chiedu Thanks for your time.

5

Hi @rl141 sorry about the outcome!

Firstly, I agree with @Raphael that you must appeal irrespective of the outcome. You might get success in one of the parts or more feedback that will be useful if you were to reapply.

Secondly, as per the feedback, it’s quite self-explanatory. The feedback through is heavily dependent on the depth and quality of the content of your application and not just outline. Hence it’s almost unfair to you, the applicant, to get feedback without someone reviewing your actual application. Similarly for an expert, it’s very high-level view of your application to go through the outline without seeing the content of your application to be able to tally the feedback with your application and provide a more wholesome feedback.

There are few experts here, including me, who provide professional services for cases that require more detailed analysis of application material. I would recommend you opt for that if you are looking for an in-depth guidance.

Good luck!

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6

Hi @rl141 sorry to hear you got rejection. We both come from similar background and it seems you need to strengthen your case with industry wide recognition. I spoke at few UI/UX conferences and also was on the jury panel for IXDA annual awards and used those as evidences for endorsement. Feel free to DM me and happy to talk in depth.

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