NN/g’s Virtual training and UX certification

In short:
NN/g’s (Nielsen Normal Group) training and UX certification is a format of UX education that provides relevant topics, which can be individually picked to best serve participants’ professional development. NN/g is a well-respected institution involved in and responsible for the development of the field of UX since 1998. The following article explains a bit more about NN/g and presents their training, my experience, and my path to becoming the 8th NN/g UX-certified individual in Slovenia.

My reasons

An ever-expanding and evolving domain of expert knowledge combined with real-world experience is a must-have in every profession. It may even be crucially important in the field of user experience, which is growing exponentially and is projected to expand by 1250% by the year 2043 (based on the projected number of new practitioners entering the field — stats by NN/g).

As the number of practitioners grows, so does the complexity and breadth of their domain. The knowledge base expands, more studies get done, new processes get invented, and consequently, the quality of services and products we as users depend on gets higher with every single iteration.

To stay on top of things as a UX practitioner, it is wise to step away from project work from time to time and focus purely on evolving skills and knowledge. That can be hard to do while juggling multiple projects at once (and also having a family and a young son), so to justify it, certain conditions need to be met.

Time set aside must:

• be condensed and focused on relevant topics,

• produce proof of training that carries weight,

• be directly applicable to projects.

Simply put, time set aside needs to be well spent.

Several possibilities for UX training exist, but many of them are “newly baked” and not yet proven. The most prominent of them — NN/g (Nielsen Normal Group) — a go-to source for everything UX, has been offering training for quite some time, and their certification has been on my wish list for a while.

Nielsen Norman Group (NN/g) & UX certification

NN/g is an independent user experience research and consulting firm with a long and enviable track record. It was established in 1998 when the internet was beginning to come into its own, and when user experience (as a term) was not talked about, or even known outside closed circles. The term user experience (UX) was coined by one of NN/g’s founders — Don Norman. Throughout their 25 years of existence, they have grown to be the go-to source for research-based UX domain insights. Since 2014, they have been offering a UX certification program which is a side benefit of participating in their UX conference.

To achieve an NN/g UX certification, an individual needs to attend 5 courses and pass 5 corresponding exams. Courses can be individually picked from a selection of 50 that fall in the realms of Interaction design, UX management, and UX research. This means that the conference program is very open and adaptable, so participants can pick and choose what fits them best.

I went for it …

The time was right, and I needed a bit of a “break” and mindset shift. So I decided to go for it … The great thing was that I didn’t need to worry about how to pay for it (it was not cheap). We arranged with my employer (while having a yearly sit-down) that the company would pay for most of it (and in part — I would). And here is where I must say: Thank you CNJ, that was a kind move ❤️!

All I had to do was register, pick the courses, and take a week off.

And a couple of weeks later: Kickoff!

The conference started with an opening presentation by Jakob Nielsen (the other NN/g’s founder, most known for his 10 Usability Heuristics), titled Discount Usability Revisited. A talk about the importance of usability testing with real users and how to do it as inexpensively as possible, so budget limitations are not a limiting factor. This topic is still more than relevant today — 25 years after Jakob first wrote an article about it. The use of UX in organisations and companies is mostly still in the starting or shall we say “onboarding” phases (when looking at a wide, interdisciplinary sample), so non-expensive approaches to presenting the benefits of UX to stakeholders are crucial.

UX Maturity Self-Assessment quiz responses. NN/g states that due to a selection bias as well as the ceiling and floor effect the data might be skewed in a way that presents an improved picture of reality. Image credit and source: Nielsen Norman Group, The State of UX Maturity: Data from Our Self-Assessment Quiz

This talk was on a Friday evening. The courses I picked started on Monday and went on till Friday.

Topics I picked supported my work as much as possible:

• Writing Compelling Digital Copy

• Usability Testing

• Facilitating UX Workshops

• Discoveries: Building the Right Thing

• The Human Mind and Usability

Five topics in one week? Seems right — like a full-time work schedule. Later, when discussing it with other participants, I found out that most of them were joining the conference for just one or two days tops. So compared to the average I had quite a tight schedule. Seven hours of lectures and practical exercises per day. And a test for every course. I was determined to pass a test a day!

At this point, I could jump into individual course details but I don’t think that’s needed, or could even be done in one short article. The amount of information an individual course gives would deserve a separate discussion. But if you want to find out more about individual courses, jump on over to NN/g’s course list.

What needs to be discussed a bit is the overall format and facilitators.

Courses are heavily dependent on practical group exercises, where you put what you’ve learned to use. As the practical part is group-focused you also get to meet many UX practitioners from all over the world, with all different skill levels — from total newcomers to seniors with decades of experience.

The facilitators are well-versed, knowledgeable, and always ready to discuss connected topics or give answers and advice to participants’ questions and/or problems. As an example, I’d like to point out Kate Moran, who facilitated my first course: Writing Compelling Digital Copy. Cheerful, funny, and there to help and discuss. Thank you, Kate!

Five days later, with all courses completed and tests passed, I was tired, but NN/g UX certified (ID:1065425) 🎉.

Was it worth it?

When defining the criteria for taking time away from work and family, I stated: “Time set aside needs to be well spent”. It most definitely was. And if I go over the list I wrote down at the beginning:

Time set aside must:

• be condensed and focused on relevant topics,
  ✅ 5 days, self-selected courses connected to my work.

• produce proof of training that carries weight,
  ✅ UX certified by a well established institution, one of 8 in Slovenia (when I finished).

• be directly applicable to projects.
  ✅ Was able to use it right away.

Goal achieved! 🎉

So yes, the time and money are worth it — not only for the knowledge gained but also for the shift of mindset. I’d love to do it again one day, and I also do suggest to anyone to join the training.

Until then I’ll be a subscriber of NN/g’s mailing list, a reader of their studies and articles and an active (as much as possible) member of UX certified Slack and LinkedIn community.