My work experience at Nexer, by Dulcie

"I wanted to do work experience at Nexer to gain insight into the tech industry, particularly UX design and front-end development. Over the course of two days, I was introduced to both areas in depth and gained a strong understanding of what it is like to work in these roles.

On the first day, I explored some past projects, such as AstraZeneca, and the changes that were implemented to improve the way data was communicated across different departments. This was especially interesting because it highlighted how varied Nexer’s projects can be, and how each one presents completely different challenges.

I then had the opportunity to look at a current project and learn about the process of developing ideas into high-fidelity wireframes. This involved thinking from the perspective of potential users and mapping the journey they might take through a website. One aspect that stood out to me was the iterative design process, where the client is consulted at each stage to ensure the final outcome meets their requirements.

I also learned about the importance of accessibility in UX design. For example, designers need to consider everything from colour contrast to the way a screen reader navigates through a page. This opened my eyes to how inclusive design should be built into every stage of development, rather than added at the end.

One of my favourite activities was investigating the usability of a college website by working through different user scenarios and identifying potential issues. I enjoyed approaching this from an analytical perspective, and it helped me understand how important UX is in making a user’s experience as intuitive and seamless as possible.

On the second day, I focused mainly on writing up my findings in Miro and learning how to communicate ideas clearly to clients. I also attended a meeting with other team members, which was a fun way to get to know everyone and hear about their interests and hobbies outside work.

Later, I spoke to two apprentices in UX and development, who explained what their roles involve and what it is like to work at Nexer. This was extremely helpful, as it is a something I'm interested in pursuing myself. Finally, I explored the front-end side of a recent project, learning how HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are used to turn designs into functioning websites. This has encouraged me to continue developing my front-end skills and work on my own projects.

Overall, my experience at Nexer was incredibly valuable. Everyone was so friendly, supportive, and highly knowledgeable, and I gained insight into many different areas of the business in such a short amount of time. Thank you, Nexer!"

We asked the team how Dulcie had got on. Tracy Marshall, UX and Content Practice Lead, gave her reflections:

"Dulcie was extremely personable, interacting with everyone from the minute she arrived. She threw herself into every task, activity and conversation, in just two days she felt part of the team.

Dulcie worked on a UX evaluation and did an excellent job on. She was very good at articulating her findings and documented them well, we will be using her work to influence conversations with that client."

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At Nexer Digital, we regularly support placements and workplace experience for a wide range of students and young learners. Work experience is hugely rewarding; not just for the student joining the team, but for the team themselves. It's a great opportunity to share knowledge and discover what the next generation of talented designers and developers are learning, and what they care about.