I’m planning to apply for the Global Talent Visa in September/October.
I have been a Visual & UX/UI Designer for six years with a fintech company based in the UK, working under a skilled worker visa. Two of those years were spent working remotely. Additionally, I have collaborated with several other companies on a project basis.
Recently, I launched a marketplace for artisan home decor, where I handled the entire setup and UI design. We have onboarded over 30 partners and were part of an accelerator program by the University of Westminster, from which we received a grant. Additionally, I was also invited by the university for a talk about my entrepreneur journey and marketing.
I’m unsure how much to highlight about my startup since we are still fairly new and don’t have much traction yet.
As I prepare my GTV application, could you advise me on how to best position myself, given the two roles as a UX/UI Designer and an Entrepreneur? Also, if anyone have any tips to make my application stronger?
You should mention about your startup for sure! Esp when you have already started onboarding partners. Please highlight the impact, even if limited as of now, your forecasted revenue, plans, etc. I had a similar story and I used one full document to detail my business plan along with a letter from my cofounder (our product wasn’t even launched but had registered the company and started looking for partners)
For designers, they are looking for “value of your design” and not for “value of tech you built”. Hence please use impact metrics like increase in daily visits, time spent by user, CTR, etc before and after design implementation, perhaps even play store feedback mentioning design features.
Important to highlight impact of your design in every evidence you furnish: before and after, A/B tests, metrics, user feedback, support letter from company, external links showcasing your design, moodboards, diagrams etc are key
Attaching below feedback/ideas I had shared for another UI/UX profile few days ago:
Another third-party source could be if these companies made any social comment or published the launch of a new UI/UX through their social media channels or Blog or Linkedin or perhaps even on Playstore (sometimes there are customer reviews & feedback on playstore that have feedback about new enhancements).
Since you are a UI/UX developer, they are not looking for innovation in tech but innovation in system/product design, how you created that, how it worked before and after and why was it unique.
You can strengthen this by giving some user metrics (mentioned above) along with snapshots of A/B testing done before final launch. Here again, before and after metrics because of change in design are important. Essentially you need to prove “the design” value here.
Any other outside projects & contributions to the designer community that influenced a design innovation?
Thank you @pahuja for all these valuable points!
I’ll consider them all while preparing for my application and will start working on it accordingly. Truly appreciate it!
You could include your startup if you consider it an innovative work, and you may provide proof of the product development, and the UI design contribution you made (evidence can include feedbacks from users about the design), the partners onboarded, the accelerator program and state how you won the grant.
If you have gotten positive feedback from the onboarded partners, include the screenshot as well.
OC3 - Recommendation letter from the Head of Product at Company A
OC3 - Open-sourced UX templates (up to 10) published on sites such as Figma Community
OC2 - UI case study of my own company - a marketplace platform - Number of onboarded sellers + Increase in Daily visits and feedback on design features from customers and sellers
OC2 - Letter of Collaboration with the faculty of a University in the UK for MA Strategic Marketing student project + Campus Talk Invitation + Feedback LinkedIn post
have you worked with the person who has written 3rd LOR?
MC:
Was the mentoring part of a structured program that has a selection criteria?
Assuming the articles mention your name? Are these online? Any metrics like views, likes engagement etc?
Selection/being part of accelerator and grants are not really valid evidence for MC.
OC3
can you also add a self documentation evidence to demonstrate impact of your work across projects? (You have mentioned this in OC2 where it won’t be relevant - this is more suited to OC3 - if you have more such examples you should write).
OC2
your OC2 first evidence is suited to OC3. And second evidence is not very strong as speaking at a single university is not considered.
For LOR, the 3rd person has mentored me and is familiar with my work OR
can include LOR by the Marketing Head of Company A, who was my manager.
MC:
For mentorship, it is with an online platform with a screening process to get approved and then other mentees book a slot with me if they can benefit from my experience, I’ll be including their reviews as well.
Yes, the articles mention my name, views, likes and engagement.
I’m hoping to get a feature about my own company (marketplace platform) and the impact we are making in a well-known publication - can I include that?
OC3:
Yes, I can add a case study of a project I worked on with Company A, along with stats and the letter of the Head of Product supporting my work.
Will also include the UI case study of my own company - a marketplace platform - Number of onboarded sellers + Increase in Daily visits and feedback on design features from customers and sellers
OC2:
Open-sourced UX/UI templates (up to 10) published on sites such as Figma Community
Can I include this in OC2? Evidence of being a part of an accelerator program and winning additional grant by University A, additionally, collaborating on Marketing Project where we onboarded students to intern with me for their Marketing module with University B and working on two Strategic Marketing projects with University A.
I initially included all the association points with the University Grant and collaborations, but I believe they might be better suited under OC3 instead, to highlight my contribution as a Founder. Do you advise including the grant or not?
Please see the revised list:
MC -
Reference letter from the Product Head of Company A
UI case study for Company A + the clients we have onboarded since the launch + press release of the product.
Copies of my articles published in reputable UX publications
OC2 - How do I demonstrate that I have been recognised for my work outside of my immediate occupation that contributed to the sector’s advancement?
Evidence of mentorship (40+ sessions + Mentee Reviews)
Open-sourced UX templates (up to 10) published on sites such as Figma Community
OC3 - How do I demonstrate that I have made significant technical, commercial or entrepreneurial contributions to the field as a founder, senior executive, board member or employee of a product-led digital technology company?
UI case study of my own company - a marketplace platform - Number of onboarded sellers + Increase in Daily visits and feedback on design features from customers and sellers
Evidence of collaborating with 2 Universities on 3 collaboration projects as a Founder for Business & Marketing