Review Request: Exceptional Promise (UX researcher)

Stage 1
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Hi everyone,

First of all, thank you for taking the time to read this. I really appreciate any feedback, especially from UX/UI applicants or those from non-traditional tech environments.

I’ve reworked my evidence plan after reviewing the guide again, but I still have several uncertainties and also very confused about how and what to tell a good story - particularly around how to position a non-profit organisation within OC3, and how to handle awards that are team-based.

My Profile

Role: Web Content & Engagement Specialist (sole UX & Accessibility Lead)
Company: Large international non-profit membership body, London (21,000+ members across 96 countries). The organisation runs a digital learning platform, digital journal, online webinars and certificates - primary revenue is membership subscription fees
Route: Exceptional Promise, Digital Technology (Technical pathway)
UX Experience: ~3 years at current role including MSc UX placement year
Prior background: 8 years digital marketing in Taiwan (social media, SEO, content) before pivoting to UX
Current visa: PSW → planning to switch to Skilled Worker first, then apply GTV

Education

  • MSc User Experience Design - UK university, Distinction (2022–2024)

Route: Exceptional Promise (UX/UI pathway)

Evidence Plan

Mandatory Criteria (MC)

Document 1: Significant Technical & Commercial Contribution (Employer Evidence)

  • Letter from Head of Web (or senior leadership) confirming:
    • Organisation operates a subscription-based digital platform
    • My role as sole UX & Accessibility Lead
    • I led redesign of 500+ pages
    • Direct impact:
      • +25% satisfaction
      • +9.6% organic traffic
      • +18% new users
      • -2.8% bounce rate

Document 2: Product Impact + Artefacts

  • GA4 before/after data
  • Member satisfaction survey
  • Annotated wireframes / prototypes
  • Clear mapping between UX decisions and outcomes

Questions (MC)

Q1: Is it acceptable to use what is essentially OC3-style evidence (impact + employer validation) under MC for Promise?

Q2: Is employer attribution + data sufficient, or do I need external validation for MC?

Optional Criteria 3 (OC3)

Recognition through product-led impact (Awards & external validation)

Document 1: Industry Awards (Team-based, with personal attribution)

  • :trophy: Memcom Excellence Awards 2025 (Magazine Relaunch)
    it has mentioned all the digital and accessible contribution in this award webpage and that’s mainly contributed by me and my team
  • :trophy: Association Excellence Awards 2025 (Publication, 14k+ circulation)

Positioning:

  • These are team awards, not individual awards
  • However:
    • Official citations explicitly reference:
      • “fully digital format”
      • “accessibility”
      • “text-to-speech”
    • These areas were primarily led by me as the sole UX & Accessibility Lead

Supporting evidence:

  • Employer letter confirming my primary contribution to the digital transformation
  • Photo evidence of attending the awards with the team
  • Third-party award pages (URLs)

Questions (OC3)

Q1:
Do team-based awards count for OC3 if:

  • My name is not explicitly mentioned
  • But I can provide employer confirmation of my contribution?

Q2:
Is it acceptable to rely on:

  • Award citations mentioning digital features
    • employer letter
      as evidence of my personal contribution?

Optional Criteria 2 (OC2)

Document 1: Pro Bono UX Project

  • Charity confirmation letter
  • Figma prototype
  • Supervisor corroboration
  • Note: project did not launch

Document 2: Accessibility Thought Leadership + Community

  • A11y Village interview (published by organisation on Medium)
  • Community involvement (3 years, organiser confirmation)

Questions (OC2)

Q1: Does an interview published on Medium (not self-published) count?

Q2: Does a non-launched project still count as valid UX contribution?

Q3: Does community participation (not organiser) qualify?

Referees

  1. Head of Web (direct manager, UX/digital)
  2. UXPA mentor (UK fintech)
  3. MSc supervisor
  4. I am not sure if I should ask CEO from my previous company as I brought in lots of traffic and revenue as an individual contributor, but it was before I studied UX

What I’m Deliberately NOT Including (and why)

  • Microsoft Taiwan copywriting competition (2021) - pre-UX, likely not relevant to digital tech pathway
  • Westminster Council research participation - I was the participant, not the researcher
  • Informal one-to-one student career sessions - non-structured, doesn’t meet mentoring definition

Summary of All My Questions

  1. Is my MC combination strong enough without press coverage or large-scale speaking?
  2. Should Taiwan Government Scholarship go under MC or as supplementary evidence?
  3. Does being the subject of an interview on a publication’s Medium account count differently from self-publishing on Medium?
  4. Does a pro bono UX project that didn’t launch still count for OC2?
  5. Can a non-profit membership body with subscription-based digital services qualify as “product-led digital technology company” for OC3? How do I prove it? I can ask a letter from CEO but he’s not an expert from digital tech industry but an expert in public sector.
  6. Do I need a 4th letter specifically for OC3 evidence, separate from my 3 recommendation letters?
  7. Is my referee panel strong enough for Promise?
  8. For OC2 community involvement - does participation without a leadership role count?
  9. Is an incomplete/failed pro bono project still valid evidence?

Thank you again for reading this far. Any feedback at all is incredibly helpful at this stage.