UX Research Intern (REMOTE) — Winter/Spring 2021
A thriving, mission-driven multimedia organization, NPR produces award-winning news, information, and music programming in partnership with hundreds of independent public radio stations across the nation. The NPR audience values information, creativity, curiosity, and social responsibility – and our employees do too. We are innovators and leaders in diverse fields, from journalism and digital media to IT and development. Every day, our employees and member stations touch the lives of millions worldwide and that includes our interns.
From day one, interns at NPR are given real-world, hands-on responsibilities. Working alongside top professionals in the field, interns do meaningful work across a variety of departments at NPR.
Across our organization, we’re building a workplace where collaboration is essential, diverse voices are heard, and inclusion is the key to our success.
NPR’s Winter/Spring 2021 Internship Program will be fully remote.
Program Duration: January 11 - April 16, 2021
The Digital Media Design Group researches, prototypes, and designs user experiences for the public across the places they are and will be—websites, smartphones, tablets, connected cars, connected homes, wearables, smart speakers and places we haven't yet imagined.
As our UX Research intern, you will help design, moderate, and analyze research studies in order to support digital product decisions. Partnering closely with members of the design and product groups, you will identify research questions and answer them with research methods. You will actively participate in planning of research studies for our team and make recommendations for the future of products at NPR.
Our ideal candidate seeks to understand our audiences’ experiences in order to shape how we interact with our audience. Choosing the appropriate research method and moderating studies are skills that requires practice and patience, and you’re excited for the opportunity to gain more of each. You’ll actively engage your curiosity and imagination to explore possibilities and make decisions.
INTERN RESPONSIBILITIES
- Work with designers and product owners across project teams to ground product decisions in observed user needs and behaviors.
- Facilitate research studies with hand-selected participants for cross-functional teams.
- Document and present findings in a way that conveys clear takeaways and design direction.
- Contribute to the innovation and refinement of methods and processes that help designers lead studies more efficiently and effectively.
- Practice the persuasion and communication necessary to bring lessons learned in academia to an industry setting.
Possible projects
Evaluate the usability of a digital feature —
- Design and conduct a study that evaluates how well the average NPR audience member can use a digital feature.
- Guide and collaborate with the product team to prepare the materials required for the study to run smoothly.
- Work with the product team to decide which findings indicate a change needs to be made, and which findings may be unnecessary to address.
Explore how we might reach new audiences —
- Observe the assumptions made and understanding held by our teams at NPR, and how an exploratory study might fill in gaps.
- Design and conduct a study that gathers information to further our understanding of our audience and their behaviors, with the intention of filling a specific gap in perspective.
- Decide and implement a way to integrate the findings with the product and design processes at NPR.
WHO CAN APPLY?
- LOCATION: Must be planning to work from the United States and authorized to work in the United States throughout the Winter/Spring 2021 internship dates.
- EDUCATION: Must be a current student in an accredited degree program or a recent graduate of no more than 12 months from the month of the start of the internship.
REQUIRED SKILLS
- You are interested in or have had studies/experiences in fields related to design, design justice, user experience, research, human computer interaction, human factors, English, psychology, anthropology or culture studies.
- You value diversity, equity and inclusion — both in the workplace and in research practices.
- You see things from the audiences’ point of view and advocate for audience needs.
- You have good written and verbal communication skills.
- You are excited around collaborating and working with teams
Applications close on Monday, November 2, 2020 at 5pm ET. '
Does this sound like you? If so, we want to hear from you. All applications must include the following to be considered:
- A résumé and cover letter
- Examples of work related to research and design
- A story about a time when you investigated a hunch. The hunch could originate with you or with someone else. Describe how you found out its relation to the real world, and what you did with what you found. Use whatever medium feels most effective for you to convey the story, and include it in the cover letter or a separate file.
NPR is an Equal Opportunity Employer. NPR is committed to being an inclusive workplace that welcomes diverse and unique perspectives, all working toward the same goal – to create a more informed public. Qualified applicants receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, national origin, ancestry, age, religion, religious belief, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, lactation, and reproductive health decisions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, transgender status, gender non-conforming status, intersex status, sexual stereotypes, nationality, citizenship status, personal appearance, marital status, family status, family responsibilities, military status, veteran status, mental and physical disability, medical condition, genetic information, genetic characteristics of yourself or a family member, political views and affiliation, unemployment status, protective order status, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, or any other basis prohibited under applicable law.
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