User Centred Designer (UCD)

Learning Programme Content

The Learning Programme provision for User Centred Designer (UCD) shall comprise of three mandatory elements:

• Qualifications,
• Essential Skills
• On/off the job training

The total minimum credit value required for the Level 2 UCD apprenticeship is 42 credits.

The total minimum credit value required for the Level 3 UCD apprenticeship is 84 credits.

The total minimum credit value required for the Level 4 UCD apprenticeship is 120 credits.

Entry requirements

There are no specific entry requirements for this framework.

It is, however, recommended that to enter onto the Level 2 UCD Apprenticeship the candidate has English and Maths GCSE’s grade G or above (or equivalent qualifications). For the Level 3 UCD Apprenticeship it is recommended that the candidate has English and Maths GCSE’s grade C or above (or equivalent qualifications). And for the Level 4 UCD Apprenticeship, most employers will require good (A*-C) GCSE passes in English and Maths and relevant A levels as a minimum for entry into a UCD job role. However, these recommendations are not essential.

Applicants may have prior experience or qualifications in digital technologies, but this is not mandatory as training providers and employers will deliver programmes of training based on the approved up to date UCD qualifications tailored to meet individual needs, recognising prior qualifications and experience.

Apprenticeship pathway learning programme(s)

Level 2: User Centred Designer

Level 2: User Centred Designer Qualifications

Participants must achieve the following combined qualification.

Essential Skills Wales (ESW)

Essential Skills Wales qualifications assessment languages are English-Welsh

On/Off the Job training

On/Off the Job Qualification details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

Combined qualification - 42 credits, 213 hours GLH

On/Off the Job Essential Skills details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

• 6 credits / 60 GLH Level 1 Essential Skills Wales Communication
• 6 credits / 60 GLH Level 1 Essential Skills Wales Application of Number

Level 3: User Centred Designer

Level 3: User Centred Designer Qualifications

Participants must achieve the following combined qualification.

Essential Skills Wales (ESW)

Essential Skills Wales qualifications assessment languages are English-Welsh

On/Off the Job training

On/Off the Job Qualification details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

Combined qualification - 84 credits, 360 hours GLH

On/Off the Job Essential Skills details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

• 6 credits / 60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Communication
• 6 credits / 60 GLH Level 2 Essential Skills Wales Application of Number

Level 4: User Centred Designer

Level 4: User Centred Designer Qualifications

Essential Skills Wales (ESW)

Essential Skills Wales qualifications assessment languages are English-Welsh

On/Off the Job training

On/Off the Job Qualification details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

Combined qualification - 120 credits, 392 hours GLH

On/Off the Job Essential Skills details (Minimum Credit & Hours)

• 6 credits / 60 GLH Level 3 Essential Skills Wales Communication
• 6 credits / 60 GLH Level 3 Essential Skills Wales Application of Number

Job roles

As organisations in Wales undertake digital transformation and deploy more services, the user centred design skills required to support these are of growing importance across many sectors. There is an increasing need to address the digital skills gap for user centred designers in Wales and attract new entrants into these roles. These UCD apprenticeships provide a route to develop UCD skills through on-the-job vocational learning to measurably improve individual and organisational UCD capabilities.

These apprenticeships support Mission 3 of the 2021 Digital Strategy for Wales to ‘Deliver and modernise services so that they are designed around user needs and are simple, secure and convenient’. They align with the specific outcomes:

• people and businesses will be digitally confident and able to take full advantage of the opportunities that digital technologies can offer
• employers recognise the value that digital skills and technologies can bring and are investing in the needs of their workforce

According to Careers Wales Approximately 1500 people are employed as User Centred Designers and related jobs in Wales (2022). The expected future demand for UCD and related jobs is medium compared to other jobs in Wales.

The four main UCD related roles include:

• User Researcher
• Content Designer
• Service Designer
• Interaction Designer

Level 2: User Centred Designer

The Level 3 UCD Apprenticeship has been designed with employers in Wales to equip employees with foundational UCD skills that they need to be able to perform their role. This Apprenticeship programme is designed to provide a robust vocational route to fulfilling associate level trainee UCD skills needs that are integral for employees to take full advantage of opportunities in the workplace.

Associate UCD roles covered by this framework could be within:

• Specialist user centred design agencies delivering user-driven services to clients.
• Service delivery functions of private and public sector organisations requiring user centred design principles to be embedded into their operations.

Associate Content Designer

As a trainee in an entry-level position, an associate content designer contributes to the development of content strategies and journeys. They assist with creating inclusive and accessible content and review deployed content to plan improvements. They  perform basic standard checks and copy edits.

Associate Service Designer

As a trainee in an entry-level position, an associate service designer contributes to the design of accessible services that work well for all kinds of users, across all the channels. They help develop service design outputs informed through narratives of user experiences.

Associate Interaction Designer

As a trainee in an entry-level position, an associate interaction designer contributes to the design of the ways that people interact with services. They develop interaction ideas from using pen and paper or design tools to prototypes and gain user feedback.

Associate User Researcher

As a trainee in an entry-level position, an associate user researcher supports the planning of research activities, contributes to preparing materials and developing outputs.

Level 3: User Centred Designer

The Level 3 UCD Apprenticeship has been designed with employers in Wales to equip employees with the UCD skills that they need to be able to perform their role. This Apprenticeship programme is designed to provide a robust vocational route to fulfilling junior UCD skills needs that are integral for employees to take full advantage of opportunities in the workplace.

Junior UCD roles covered by this framework could be within:

• Specialist user centred design agencies delivering user-driven services to clients.
• Service delivery functions of private and public sector organisations requiring user centred design principles to be embedded into their operations.

Junior Content Designer

A junior content designer produces high-quality, engaging content across various platforms to create, iterate and manage user-centred content to support service delivery.

Junior Service Designer

A junior user researcher, applies practical skills to communicate insights from user research in engaging and impactful ways to delivery teams to improve digital services.

Junior Interaction Designer

A junior user researcher, applies practical skills to communicate insights from user research in engaging and impactful ways to delivery teams to improve digital services.

Junior User Researcher

A junior user researcher applies practical skills to develop appropriate user research activities to better understand user’s needs. They communicate insights from user research in engaging and impactful ways to delivery teams to improve digital services.

Level 4: User Centred Designer

The Level 4 UCD Apprenticeship has been designed with employers in Wales to equip employees with the UCD skills that they need to be able to perform their role. This Apprenticeship programme is designed to provide a robust vocational route to fulfilling UCD practitioner skills needs that are integral for employees to take full advantage of opportunities in the workplace.

UCD practitioner roles covered by this framework could be within:

• Specialist user centred design agencies delivering user-driven services to clients.
• Service delivery functions of private and public sector organisations requiring user centred design principles to be embedded into their operations.

Content Designer

A content designer works as part of a multidisciplinary team, and develops designs based on evidence of user needs and organisational outcomes. They create update and review content at all stages of the end-to-end user journey, making complex language and processes easy to understand.

Service Designer

A service designer works as part of a multidisciplinary team and develops service design concepts based on evidence of user needs and organisational outcomes.  They analyse and interpret user needs and business objectives in complex service areas to develop service design concepts and identify potential areas of improvement.

Interaction Designer

An interaction designer works as part of a multidisciplinary team and develops user interactions to allow users to efficiently navigate services to achieve their goals. They create and rapidly iterate low and high-fidelity prototypes to test and communicate ideas with users.

User Researcher

As user researcher works as part of a multidisciplinary team, to plan and carry out user research activities. They recruit and moderate sessions with users, write, script, and run quantitative surveys, and analyse user data to deliver user research insights.

Progression

Progression routes into the Level 2 User Centred Designer Apprenticeship:

This can be from a variety of routes including directly from school or college with the suggested level of academic qualifications including:

• GCSE Grades G, Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification Intermediate
• General or vocational qualifications related to the digital or creative industries

Or as career development in an appropriate role with suitable qualifications or recognition of prior learning and experience.

Progression from the Level 2 User Centred Designer Apprenticeship:

The Level 2 UCD Apprenticeship programme offers successful apprentices the opportunity to progress to the Level 3 UCD apprenticeship. They can progress academic studies to advanced diplomas and HNC in a related digital technology programme. They can also progress within their job role and pursue their learning by undertaking additional technical professional qualifications in UCD.

Apprentices who complete this Level 2 apprenticeship programme can progress within their career to take on additional responsibilities and more senior support positions, utilising their expanding technical expertise within the organisation.

Progression routes into the Level 3 User Centred Designer Apprenticeship:

This can be from a variety of routes including directly from school or college with the suggested level of academic qualifications including:

• GCSE, Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification Intermediate
• GCE AS and A Level, Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification Advanced
• General or vocational qualifications related to the digital or creative industries

Or as career development in an appropriate role with suitable qualifications or recognition of prior learning and experience.

Progression from the Level 3 User Centred Designer Apprenticeship:

The Level 3 UCD apprenticeship offers successful apprentices the opportunity to further progress in their studies to the level 4 and the UCD degree or related degree level programmes. They can also progress within their job role and pursue their learning by undertaking additional vendor qualifications in content design and deployment tools and techniques.

Progression routes into the Level 4 User Centred Designer Apprenticeship:

This can be from a variety of routes including directly from school or college with the suggested level of academic qualifications including:

• GCSE, Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification Intermediate
• GCE AS and A Level, Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification Advanced
• General or vocational qualifications related to the digital or creative industries

Or as career development in an appropriate role with suitable qualifications or recognition of prior learning and experience.

Progression from the Level 4 User Centred Designer Apprenticeship:

The Level 4 UCD apprenticeship offers successful apprentices the opportunity to further progress in their studies and specialise. They can progress to the UCD degree apprenticeship or related degree level programmes. They can also progress within their job role and pursue their learning by undertaking additional vendor qualifications in content design and deployment tools and techniques.

Equality and diversity

It is important that apprenticeship Pathways are inclusive and can demonstrate an active approach to identifying and removing barriers to entry and progression. Pathways should advance equality of opportunity between persons who share protected characteristics and those persons who do not as identified in the Equality Act 2010.

The protected characteristics identified in the Equality Act are age, disability, gender re-assignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity. Marriage and civil partnership is also included although only in respect of the requirement to eliminate discrimination in employment.

Training providers and employers MUST also comply with the other duty under the Equality Act 2010 to ensure that applicants are not discriminated against in terms of entry to the industry based upon those nine protected characteristics.

Employment responsibilities and rights

Employment Responsibilities and Rights (ERR) is no longer compulsory.  But it is recommended that all apprentices (especially the 16 years -18-year group) receive a company induction programme.

Responsibilities

It is the responsibility of the Training Provider and Employer to ensure that the requirements of this pathway are delivered in accordance with the Welsh Government Apprenticeships Guidance.

Further information may be obtained from:

Welsh Government

DfES-ApprenticeshipUnit@gov.wales

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