Student work

Real clients. Real briefs. Real portfolios.

Other courses give you a fictional coffee-shop app. UX Academy cohorts work on genuine briefs — then present directly to the client. A portfolio piece you can talk through in any interview.

Real client projects

Documented case studies

Max 15

Students per cohort

Documented briefs

Real client case studies.

14 projects with the full documented brief: the problem the client was facing, the constraints the team worked within, and the questions they had to answer.

Wellbeing & confidence coaching

HopStair

for HopStair Limited

A nudge-based mobile app helping people build authentic, lasting confidence through daily prompts, peer support and, in time, a coaching marketplace.

The brief

Design the end-to-end MVP: consolidate ideas spread across multiple Figma files, fill the gaps in the user flow, and test a sticky onboarding-to-dashboard journey built to maximise retention. The team worked directly with the CEO and a human-computer-interaction academic.

Deliverables

End-to-end Figma designOnboarding & assessment flowDashboard + sub-screensUser-tested prototype

Read the HopStair case study →

Recruitment & talent marketplace

Welfound

A referral-driven, AI-powered talent marketplace where professionals refer people in their network to highly relevant UK jobs.

The brief

Redesign the company-user flow for screening shortlisted applicants and managing applicant communication, making it intuitive and simple enough to drive adoption against the grain of traditional recruitment.

Deliverables

User-flow reviewApplicant screening UICommunication management UIPrototype

Student team: Anita Benko, Gloria G Lee, Justina Klevinskaite, Julianna Jagielska

Read the Welfound case study →

PropTech & rental

Avasa

A transparent, end-to-end platform for finding a UK rental home, supported by local rental experts ("Sherpas") and lifestyle-based property search.

The brief

Design a flatmate-matching feature for the existing Avasa web app, so tenants who cannot carry a whole rent and deposit alone can find people to move in with -- including the filters that make matching feel safe.

Deliverables

Hypothesis statementsUser-insight reportUser flowsPrototype

Read the Avasa case study →

Health & beauty clinics

Mayfair Aesthetics

A London chain of four clinics offering laser hair removal and skin treatments, competing on quality and award-winning service.

The brief

Increase the conversion rate of website visitors into free laser-hair-removal patch-test bookings - the first step in acquiring a customer - using daily booking data to measure the impact.

Deliverables

Conversion auditBooking-flow redesignPrototypeTest recommendations

Read the Mayfair Aesthetics case study →

Careers, diversity & inclusion

Loop Not Luck

A diversity careers platform connecting underrepresented entry-level talent across the UK with employers, using a pioneering intersectional approach.

The brief

Refine the candidate UX and build out the early-stage company user flow - posting roles, buying credits and reviewing matched candidates - to improve engagement and retention.

Deliverables

Candidate journey refinementCompany user flowRole-matching feedPrototype

Read the Loop Not Luck case study →

E-commerce & health food

Oh Lily!

A healthy-snack brand bridging tasty food and wellbeing through Ayurveda, selling direct to consumers on Shopify.

The brief

Rethink the website and its calls to action so visitors convert faster - growing newsletter sign-ups and sales while reducing the number of clicks between a landing page and checkout.

Deliverables

Hypothesis statementsUser-insight reportPrototypes

Read the Oh Lily! case study →

EdTech & exam preparation

Academator

An AI-assisted maths learning app that gives every pupil curated exam practice, a study plan with day-to-day milestones, and real-time feedback on progress.

The brief

Test the live app with the people who would actually use it - GCSE-age students and the tutors who teach them - and come back with evidence. The client wanted a specific answer on one idea it was considering: whether a real-time leaderboard showing your peers would motivate students or put them off.

Deliverables

Two rounds of user testing with students and tutorsCustomer journey mapEvidence-based hypothesesLow-fidelity wireframesTested prototype

Read the Academator case study →

Dating & social video

Blindlee

A blind-dating app where the video call comes first. Two people talk over a blurred video call and only unblur once there is something there, so looks are not the first filter.

The brief

Improve the user experience to maximise engagement. The primary goal was getting users onto a live video call - and, when that is not possible because nobody else is around, giving them something worthwhile to do in the app instead.

Deliverables

Stakeholder and user interviewsEmpathy map and customer journeySketched wireframesFirst prototype and usability testingFinal Figma prototype

Student team: Denise Bernard, Felix Ma, Filipa Ferreira, Panit Nice Chantranuluck, Shel Soriano

Read the Blindlee case study →

E-commerce & zero-waste retail

Charrli

A refill marketplace for household essentials: products arrive in reusable packaging that Charrli collects when empty, bought either as one-off orders or on a repeating subscription from local independent refill stores.

The brief

Fix the subscription experience. Customers could not find, understand or change their own subscriptions on the site, and were emailing Charrli to make amendments that they should have been able to make themselves.

Deliverables

Value proposition canvasWebsite review and subscription journey mapStakeholder interview and customer researchPersona and problem statementSketches and wireframesLo-fi and hi-fi prototypesRecommendations

Student team: Ben Dair, Samantha Turcios, Manuela Simón Padrós, Josefien Ten Have, Liam Jones

Read the Charrli case study →

Global trade & supply chain SaaS

EXabler

for EXabler (Parkway Logic Ltd)

A web platform connecting importers, exporters, freight forwarders, customs brokers and financiers, so a physical trade can be arranged and documented with the right people in one place.

The brief

Improve the onboarding experience, from the last steps before sign-up through to a new user completing their first trade on the platform.

Deliverables

Website and onboarding auditUser research: surveys, interviews, analytics review and direct observationThree focus-point findingsDesign recommendations

Read the EXabler case study →

Careers & early talent

Fledglink

A mobile app connecting young people from all backgrounds to impartial career guidance and to employers - digital CV, job search, attitudinal tests and a network, in one place.

The brief

Improve the job-search features and lift three numbers: completed digital CVs, job applications made through the app, and connections between users.

Deliverables

Qualitative research - nine interviewsPersonasJourney mapsProblem statement and MVP scopePaper wireframes and low-fidelity prototypeUsability testing

Student team: Alessandra D'Innella

Read the Fledglink case study →

Identity verification & RegTech

LEM Verify

A web-based identity verification product. A user proves who they are by photographing an identity document and completing a short liveness video check, inside a flow that other businesses white-label as their own.

The brief

Rethink and optimise the UX and flow of the current identity verification web app so that the process is easy to use for all demographics.

Deliverables

Discovery researchPain point and goal definitionAnnotated wireframesInteractive prototypePrototype testing and feedback triageUI style guide

Student team: Ben Dair, Annabel Jones, Ala Tayebi, Rob Chiummo

Read the LEM Verify case study →

EdTech & language teaching

YourLanguageApp

A teaching platform for language schools. This project took on the teacher-facing dashboard - the workspace a language teacher uses to build classes, publish content and see how students are responding to it.

The brief

Redesign the teacher dashboard so it works as one coherent product rather than a set of disjointed tools, is genuinely navigable by teachers who are not especially tech-savvy, and helps them increase how much their students interact with the content.

Deliverables

Interviews with clients and experienced language teachersHypothesesDashboard concepts across four problem areasHigh-fidelity Figma dashboard

Student team: Sonsoles Saiz, Robyn Koloane, Edher Noriega

Read the YourLanguageApp case study →

Sustainable transport & commuting

Zenbike

A cycling incentive app for London. Choose a route by its noise, pollution and reported stress levels, then earn points for every mile you cycle, redeemable against travel, cycling and wellbeing partners.

Deliverables

Generative researchProblem definition and personaStoryboard and initial wireframesConcept testing with usersCycling incentive app prototype

Student team: Sabrina Morello, Rita Cotrim

Read the Zenbike case study →

From the cohort archive

And many more real briefs.

Additional companies UX Academy students have designed for across previous cohorts. Every one was a live brief — not a simulated exercise.

AURA

Real client brief

GONG

Real client brief

Hexis

Real client brief

Known2me

Real client brief

LIKEME

Real client brief

QJAM

Real client brief

StreetPin

Real client brief

A different kind of project

Student course projects.

Everything above is client work. These are not. Alongside the client brief, students run their own self-directed projects — they pick the problem, choose the methods and defend the decisions themselves. No company commissioned these and there is no client brief behind any of them, which is exactly why they are the closest thing on this site to the first case study you would build yourself.

Course project

Co-Plan

A mobile app that aims to improve the lives of people in shared accommodation.

Read the write-up →Course project

Garden Buddy

A personalised gardening app that advises you on the best plants for your own garden.

Read the write-up →Course project

Trading Skills

An app for trading skills with your local community: help someone for an hour, and get an hour of help back.

Read the write-up →Course project

Music Services

A concept for pulling several music streaming services into one place, so discovering music does not mean switching apps.

Read the write-up →

All 4 student course projects →

Curious what you could build?

Get the full curriculum and see what real briefs look like.

Your turn

Work on a real brief. Build your portfolio.

Every cohort gets a real client brief. Speak to an advisor to see how it works, or browse courses to find your fit.

Speak to an advisor Browse all courses

Are you a company? Submit a project brief for students to work on.