University Website UX Essentials

Understand students’ and parents’ top questions, the biggest issues they face on university sites, and see examples of sites that supported visitors well- and those that could improve. This seminar will present key findings from usability research conducted on university websites.

Colleges and universities face unique web design challenges: large websites with hundreds of sub-sites and thousands of pages, distributed content strategy and governance systems, and the need to serve multiple distinct audiences. Despite those constraints, you’ll be able to implement many of the guidelines with limited resources and make a huge impact. Armed with these essentials, designers can create a more satisfying and productive experience for visitors.

What You’ll Learn:

• Top questions students and parents ask and how to present the content on your site
• What well-designed university websites look like, what they’re doing right
• How to avoid usability pitfalls that commonly occur on university websites
• Navigation structures suitable for large websites, with hundreds of sub-sites
• How to create a cohesive brand without constraining creativity or identity among departments

Topics Covered:

• Homepage content to inform and support multiple audiences
• About the university: Demonstrate uniqueness while providing expected information
• Determining fit: How people use university websites to answer their top questions
• How to make academic and research programs discoverable
• How and where to present employment outcomes to demonstrate value and return on investment
• How to present admissions information that is transparent and easy to understand
• Student-centered information in the university life section
• Navigation decisions: Topic-based and audience based navigation
• Key navigation fixes to improve usability across university sub-sites
• The role of third-party sites as sources of information about universities

We conducted user research with high school students considering college, prospective graduate students, parents of students, and higher education professionals from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Taiwan.

Note: This online seminar focuses on the highlights of findings from NN/g's University Websites report. This content was also featured in a daylong talk at the UX Conference.