The Practical Guide to Usability

Suited For: All Levels
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In This Course, You'll

  • Get excited to turn complexity and frustration into intuitive, functional products people love to use. In this course, you'll build practical skills in usability and simplicity, user interface design, and the cognitive psychology that shapes how people use and abandon products. Usability isn't a nice-to-have, it's your competitive advantage. Baymard UX research institute found better checkout design alone can lift conversion rates by roughly 35%. You'll see why a single confusing checkout step is enough to make a shopper give up, and why the iPhone keeps just four icons in its dock. You already practice usability intuitively when you arrange apps for easy access or label folders clearly to remember later. In this course, you'll build on your foundation with proven evaluation methods and research-grounded reasoning, whether you're new to design or already in a senior role.

  • Make yourself invaluable when you can design products that turn users into loyal customers, increase profits, and cut support costs. You'll start with Ben Shneiderman's Eight Golden Rules of Interface Design and Jakob Nielsen and Rolf Molich's ten usability heuristics, and see how these usability essentials are reflected in the interfaces of Apple, Google, and Adobe. You'll learn to narrow Don Norman's "gulf of execution," design around the limits of human memory, and use Norman's three levels of emotional design and Marc Hassenzahl's principle of putting the experience before the product. Throughout the full user-centered design process, from requirements through to evaluation, you'll learn to keep the focus on real users and apply research-based personas to make those users concrete. AI can generate interfaces faster than any human, but it can't tell you which ones actually work well for the people who'll use them. This course gives you the timeless human-centered skills you need to judge: the heuristics, evaluation methods, and understanding of user behavior to make the choices only a human can.

  • Gain confidence and credibility with the ability to look at any interface and explain what's working, what isn't, and how to fix it. You'll learn to run a heuristic evaluation, conduct a cognitive walkthrough, and anchor your judgment in recognized standards like ISO 9241-11 and Whitney Quesenbery's five dimensions of usability. Optional hands-on activities let you put each method to work, from evaluating a real website to running your own usability test. And with ready-to-use, downloadable templates like the external-cognition worksheet, you'll be ready to apply your new skills from day one.

Learn From Industry Leaders

Master complex skills with proven best practices and toolkits directly from industry leaders. Meet your experts for this course:

  • Marc Hassenzahl: Professor of Ubiquitous Design/Experience & Interaction in the Department of Business Computing at the University of Siegen.

  • William Hudson: User Experience Strategist and Founder of Syntagm.

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Earn Industry-Recognized Certificates

Industry giants trust our courses to train their teams, and prestigious universities integrate our content into their curricula. Add your certificates to your LinkedIn profile, résumé, and job applications.

Our clients: IBM, Harvard University, University of Cambridge, NASA, Adobe, Stanford, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, LinkedIn
Course Certificate Example

Is This Course Right for You?

  • You want an evidence-based curriculum taught by industry leaders.
  • You want real-world design skills that translate directly into professional practice.
  • You want to earn industry-recognized credentials.
  • Your time is too valuable for scattered free content with no structure.
  • You want learning that leads to better roles and stronger earning potential over time.
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Loved by People Around the World

View full testimonial from Ana Jaramillo
Ana Jaramillo
Ana Jaramillo
UX/UI designer - UX content

The course material was well-structured, comprehensive, and relevant to current industry practices. The inclusion of real-world examples and...

IxDF Course Certificate awarded to Ana Jaramillo for completing the "The Practical Guide to Usability" course
View full testimonial from Troy DeRego
Troy DeRego
Troy DeRego
Drupal Developer

The course was thought-provoking at times, providing an opportunity to imagine hypothetical testing situations and how to overcome some gene...

IxDF Course Certificate awarded to Troy DeRego for completing the "The Practical Guide to Usability" course

How It Works

  1. Build High-Impact AI and Design Skills

    Industry leaders from companies like Adobe, Google, and NASA teach you real-world skills grounded in industry practice and research.

  2. Combine AI and Timeless Design Skills

    Learn both AI and the human-centered design skills that AI can't replace.

  3. Earn Industry-Recognized Certificates

    Add IxDF Course Certificates to your LinkedIn profile and résumé to show you've completed an evidence-based curriculum taught by industry leaders.

  4. Turn Your Skills Into Career Opportunities

    Use your new skills to take on higher-value work, qualify for promotions or find a role that fits you better.

  5. Build a Network That Supports Your Career

    Connect with designers in 496 cities across 107 countries. Learn together, get mentored, and build relationships that open doors.

Course Overview

  • Each week, one lesson becomes available.
  • Study flexibly. Take as much time as you want.

Lesson 0: Welcome and Introduction

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 1 hour, 32 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 0.1 Welcome to Courses from IxDF (33 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 0.2 Get Help, Career Advice, and Job Opportunities (6 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 0.3 How to Earn Your IxDF Course Certificate (20 mins)
  • Community-based learning and networking. 0.4 Grow Your Global Design Network (12 mins)

Lesson 1: User Interface Design Guidelines

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 6 hours, 15 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 1.1 Welcome to The Practical Guide to Usability (15 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 1.2 Shneiderman’s Eight Golden Rules Will Help You Design Better Interfaces (25 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 1.3 User Interface Design Guidelines: 10 Rules of Thumb (22 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 1.4 Principle of Consistency and Standards in User Interface Design (26 mins)

Lesson 2: Usability Considerations

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 3 hours, 28 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 2.1 Simply Simplify (35 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 2.2 Simplicity in Design: 4 Ways to Achieve Simplicity in Your Designs (26 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 2.3 Simplify Navigation (12 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 2.4 Consistency (14 mins)

Lesson 3: Thinking Like Users

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 3 hours, 52 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 3.1 External Cognition in Product Design: 3 Ways to Make Use of External Cognition in Product Design (48 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 3.2 'Chunking' (8 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 3.3 Banner Blindness (9 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 3.4 Serial Position Effect: How to Create Better User Interfaces (18 mins)

Lesson 4: Usability Testing and Evaluation

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 4 hours, 41 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 4.1 Usability Evaluation (1 hour, 15 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 4.2 Recommended reading (2 mins)
  • Community-based learning and networking. 4.3 Conversations: The Importance of Usability Testing (7 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 4.4 15 methods for ensuring user acceptance and business success (3 hours, 19 mins)

Lesson 5: Inspection Methods: Practice and Application

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 2 hours, 13 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 5.1 Heuristic Evaluation: How to Conduct a Heuristic Evaluation (1 hour, 8 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 5.2 Usability Inspection Methods (13 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 5.3 User Experience - Future directions of User Experience and Experience Design (42 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 5.4 When to Use Which UX Methods (5 mins)

Lesson 6: Personas: A Method of Maintaining User Focus

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 1 hour, 56 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 6.1 Personas and User Research (26 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 6.2 Personas (42 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 6.3 Answering Important Questions (15 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 6.4 The Science Behind Creating Personas (9 mins)

Lesson 7: Practical User Testing Documentation

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 1 hour, 28 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 7.1 User Testing: Practical Guide to Usability (11 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 7.2 Recording Testing Sessions: Practical Guide to Usability (38 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 7.3 User Testing Scripts: Practical Guide to Usability (22 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 7.4 Checklist (14 mins)

Lesson 8: Usability Testing: Practical Application

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 1 hour, 52 mins.

  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 8.1 Practical Issues: User-Centred Design (14 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 8.2 What are the user's needs? (11 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 8.3 What are the alternative designs? (42 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 8.4 How do I choose an alternative design? (13 mins)

Lesson 9: IxDF Course Certificate and Course Wrap-up

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 13 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 9.1 How to Add Your IxDF Certificate to LinkedIn (7 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 9.2 Help Us Help You: Course Evaluation (4 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 9.3 Six Steps That Help Your Career (3 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 9.4 Get Your IxDF Course Certificate (2 mins)

What's Inside IxDF Membership?

  • High-impact design and AI skills

  • Learn from 209 industry leaders

  • 42 evidence-based courses

  • 161 one-hour Master Classes

  • Industry-recognized certificates

  • $2,189 worth of toolkits

  • 11,298 active design jobs

  • 10 structured career programs

  • Global community in 496 cities

  • $6,649 worth of premium tools

  • 276 ready-made templates

  • and much more

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Ana Jaramillo
Ana Jaramillo
UX/UI designer - UX content

The course material was well-structured, comprehensive, and relevant to current industry practices. The inclusion of real-world examples and case studies greatly enhanced my understanding of the concepts.

Daniel McElwee
Daniel McElwee
Senior Digital Designer

There were many informative articles with quality and useful information.

Troy DeRego
Troy DeRego
Drupal Developer

The course was thought-provoking at times, providing an opportunity to imagine hypothetical testing situations and how to overcome some general issues that might arise.

Jeanndré Spies
Jeanndré Spies
UX Designer

Love to hear the practical examples from the experts.

Chris Manning
Chris Manning
Process Manager

The instructor is definitely knowledgeable. Lots of information and an introduction to a broad range of concepts.