Curation
UX redesign based on Korean user learning behavior
Udemy Curation brought a global catalog to Korean learners, and localization stopped at what they could find.
Choosing was still left to them, comparing near identical courses across tabs and guessing where Curation ends and Udemy.com begins.
This redesign moves the work from discovery to decision, so a learner can compare, stay oriented, and enroll without backtracking.
ROLE
UX/UI Designer, Team of six
Client
Udemy × Sniper Factory
Timeline
January 2024
Contribution
Research, UT, IA, UX/UI direction
01 | overview
Key highlights
Fragmented navigation, unclear differentiation between curated and global content, and heavy reliance on manual comparison create cognitive overload while learners search for, compare, and select courses.
This friction is more pronounced in contexts where learners expect clearer guidance, structured pathways, and faster comparison when selecting learning content.
Localized Information Architecture
Content Structure Based on Local Context
The Korean site inherited a global layout, and with it a reading order nobody here uses.
The hierarchy is rebuilt around local browsing, so the right course is recognized on sight instead of hunted for.
Personalized Curation
Tailored Learning Roadmap
A career change takes a sequence. A catalog only has a list.
AI curation reads the goal set at onboarding and the roadmap turns it into order, so where to start stops being the question.
Navigation Efficiency
Short-Path Architecture
Search was buried, so learners who already knew what they wanted had to browse anyway.
Search and categories now open the screen, collapsing the steps between arriving and enrolling.
Decision Support
Intuitive Decision Support
Comparison happened in the learner's head, across tabs, on criteria that moved with every course.
Now the screen holds it, relevance, price and rating side by side, and the choice gets made once.
02 | research
problem space
As catalogs grow, finding a course stops being the hard part and separating two similar ones takes its place.
Curation was built to ease that through localization, yet learners still could not tell curated content from the global catalog and cycled through comparison before committing.
So the gap is structural. Discovery was designed. Evaluation was not.
That gap runs across service strategy, interaction and interface at once, which is what the goals below have to hold together.
Problem
goal
Users could discover courses and still not commit, because nothing in the interface carried the weight of the comparison for them.
The problem was not missing features but strategy, interaction and interface each solving discovery alone.
💭 How might Udemy Curation be designed as a cohesive experience that helps users quickly understand its value, evaluate courses with confidence, and commit without excessive comparison?
research methodology
Three passes ask the same question from different sides, what the current flow costs, what learners say stops them, and what other platforms already solved.
Existing Service Analysis
Mapped the journey from entry to purchase and found search hidden and navigation split across two platforms.
User Survey
Asked 43 users where enrollment stalls, and comparison difficulty came back ahead of everything else.
Competitive Analysis
Benchmarked 4 platforms, where roadmaps and community were doing the guiding that Curation leaves to the user.
research highlights
existing service analysis highlights
I walked the full path from entry to purchase to find where attention leaks, not where features are missing.
Three stages failed the same way, each one handing the learner work the interface should have carried.
Coming in
Hidden navigation and unfamiliar terminology make the first screen cost more than it should.
Exploration & Evaluation
Weak categorization turns evaluation into manual searching.
Action & Departure
Navigation fatigue caused by unexpected redirects and broken flows.
user survey highlights
To validate early usability findings, I conducted a survey with 43 users to understand where friction occurred during course search and evaluation. The survey focused on barriers that prevented users from confidently selecting and enrolling in courses.
Competitive Analysis Highlights
To understand how leading platforms support course discovery and decision-making, I analyzed several market competitors. This analysis highlighted gaps in guidance, social interaction, and search visibility within Udemy Curation, while revealing patterns in how competitors structure learning paths, community engagement, and search access.
I turned user frustrations into clear design goals. By listening to their struggles with searching and choosing courses, I defined exactly what needed to be fixed to make their experience smoother.
Pain point
The process of finding a course is cumbersome.
Udemy Curation uses non-intuitive language.
Difficulty comparing similar courses.
Needs
Streamline the course discovery path.
Need to use intuitive language.
Simple, at-a-glance course comparison.
03 | development
Project Direction
To address the key sources of user friction identified through research, I defined the project’s design direction around enabling faster, clearer, and more confident decision-making.
The overall direction focused on simplifying information hierarchy, supporting personalized learning paths, and reducing unnecessary navigation steps—forming the foundation for all subsequent design decisions.
“ Efficient, short-path personalized curation ”
Clear information hierarchy for quick understanding and next steps.
Intuitiveness
Personalized learning paths aligned to goals and experience levels.
User Optimization
Short Path
Fewer navigation steps to reach relevant courses with minimal effort.
persona
To ground design decisions in real user behavior, I defined two personas representing first-time and returning users. These personas surfaced different forms of friction during course discovery and evaluation.
Persona A
Yoon Si-woo
(22, College student)
Confusion Between Curation and the Global Platform
A new user who is visiting for the first time and is exploring
"I visited Udemy Curation for the first time, filtered classes by category, then clicked 'See all reviews'—a Udemy.com link opened right away,
and I was confused."
Visit frequency
Loyalty
Search behavior
High
Low
Course recommendation
Direct exploring
Low
High
Persona A’s Needs
Users need intuitive navigation with clear terminology, quick course discovery and comparison during exploration, and a seamless end-to-end flow to action without redirects.
Yoon Su-min
(27, Office worker)
I use Udemy Curation a lot!
A user who often visits class platforms
"User often comes for global classes with Korean support and Udemy Curation events, but if there’s no new job-related class and no event they leave, and sometimes visits just to check a saved class name."
Persona B
Visit frequency
Loyalty
Search behavior
High
Low
Course recommendation
Direct exploring
Low
High
Persona B’s Needs
Users need direct access to saved classes and events when coming in, quick discovery of new job-related updates during exploration and evaluation, and a seamless flow for managing saved items through action and departure.
journey map
Applying the personas to the end-to-end journey revealed two major breakdowns: friction during course discovery and confusion caused by abrupt transitions to Udemy.com. These moments consistently triggered frustration and drop-off.
Understand what Udemy Curation is before engaging with content
Search directly from the home screen
Receive clear context before transitioning to Udemy.com
Move between platforms with minimal disruption
Compare saved courses using consistent criteria
Want to understand the service right away.
Want to get a notice before moving from Udemy Curation to Udemy.com.
Want to move between the two sites in fewer steps.
Initial Entry & Context
Course Discovery
Course Evaluation
Platform Transition
No visible search entry point → forces category-based browsing
(For new users) Sometimes the first-time sign-up event did not show.
Comparison requires manual tab switching → increases cognitive load
Ambiguous terminology
→ slows decision-making
Abrupt redirection to Udemy.com → breaks mental model
Not sure if there is a setting for interest categories.
Do not know the difference between Udemy Curation and Udemy.com.
Have trouble getting back to the Udemy Curation site.
Key Friction Points Across the User Journey
04 | building framework
MVP Risk-Reward Framework
I mapped each proposed solution by user reward and implementation risk to decide which ideas should move forward, be prototyped, or be reframed before building the service flow.
Hover over each quadrant to see the recommended action.
High Reward
Low Reward
Low Risk
High Risk
Build & test directly
Omnipresent search eliminates forced category-browsing
Clear platform alert prevents Udemy.com redirect confusion
Prototype before building
AI-aligned onboarding surfaces relevant courses from first session
Criteria-weighted comparison replaces manual tab-switching
No MVP test needed
Peer board sustains engagement beyond core curation
Interest settings in My Page improve long-term feed relevance
Reframe the hypothesis
Career-path roadmap acts as virtual mentor for multi-step learning
Cross-platform purchase reduces Udemy.com checkout friction
flow chart
Based on the initial framework developed for the project, I structured the flow chart to reflect its overall direction. Rather than focusing on individual features, the flow follows how different users enter the service, explore content, and move toward a course decision.
Go to Udemy.com
Course Detail
Home
Search/
Category
Course List
Search
History
Filter
Search Result
Roadmap
Select
Category
Roadmap
Detail
Community
Board List
Post View/
Write
My Page
Setting
My Wish
Course
Comparison
Splash & Login
(Kakao/Email)
Personalization
Onboarding
information architecture
To support the intended user flow, I reorganized the information hierarchy to clarify what should be prioritized for learners. Course Roadmap and Community were elevated to the top level to surface guidance and validation early, while secondary and non-learner features were intentionally placed deeper.
sketches
Before moving into wireframes, I explored the redesigned structure through low-fidelity sketches. This allowed me to quickly test how the new hierarchy could translate into screens, compare layout directions, and identify where key decision-making elements should appear within the user flow.
wireframe
Building on the sketches, I translated the user flow and information architecture into wireframes to validate the clarity and logic of key paths before visual design.
usability test
After establishing the structural skeleton of the solution, I conducted usability testing on the wireframes to identify remaining points of confusion before visual design.
The feedback revealed issues related to visibility, affordance, and system feedback, which directly informed the refinements shown below.
Simplified design enabling instant course display.
Persistent FAB & confirmation popup for clear interaction.
“The button was placed next to the instructor's name, confusing users (e.g., "Am I liking the instructor or the course?").”
“Users received no clear feedback or confirmation after liking a course.”
“Category buttons within the roadmap were not easily noticeable.”
“The course list didn't load immediately after selecting a category, causing friction.”
Users’ Feedback
Solution
"Like" Button
(Course Page)
Course Roadmap
“The complete list of category filters was hidden and not visible at a glance.”
Category Filter
'All' tab & 'Expand' feature for full visibility at a glance.
05 | solution
Screen Specification highlights
The final screens translate the structural decisions into concrete UI solutions across four focus areas: intuitive discovery, personalization, decision efficiency, and retention.
Each screen was designed to reduce friction at key moments—helping users find relevant content quickly, compare options with confidence, and move through the experience without unnecessary interruptions.
Home
Seamless Start with AI Personalization
Udemy Curation’s overall experience is designed to simplify course discovery by connecting exploration, evaluation, and commitment into a single flow. A clear information hierarchy surfaces relevant options at a glance while supporting deeper comparison, helping learners choose courses with confidence.
Multidimensional Search & Navigation
Positioning key navigation elements at the top minimizes search paths, ensuring immediate access to diverse content from the moment of entry.
Sign up CTA
I encouraged fast sign-in by adding a “Continue with KakaoTalk” CTA, leveraging the most widely used social platform in Korea.
Omnipresent Smart Search Accessible from any page, it optimizes discovery using voice input, history, and trends to deliver instant, personalized results.
Hamburger Menu Search Bar
Sticky Nav Search Icon
Roadmap
Making Career Paths Legible
Beyond content, I tried to build a sustainable learning ecosystem where the Roadmap acts as a virtual mentor to clarify career paths.
Community
Reducing Isolation Through Peer Support
The Community sustains engagement through peer discussions and study groups, so no learner has to walk the journey alone.
My Wish
Choosing with Confidence Through Comparison
In response to strong user demand, the course comparison feature reduces decision paralysis by visualizing trade-offs across customizable criteria. Side-by-side comparison of saved courses helps users quickly identify the option that best matches their priorities and move forward with confidence.
Compare
In My Wish, tap Compare Courses to begin.
Select Two
Pick two saved courses, then tap Compare These Two.
Apply Criteria
Set your criteria, then tap Apply Criteria for a recommendation.
Design
UXUI Design
[KR] Spring Boot3 & Spring Framework6 Master
Compare Saved Courses
Visualizing Trade-offs, Ending Hesitation
Course comparison reduces decision paralysis by visualizing trade-offs across saved courses, helping users choose with confidence.
Course Detail
Clear Outcomes, Confident Commitment
Course details consolidate key information and outcomes, helping users validate their choice and commit without second-guessing.
Mood Board
Within Udemy’s established brand palette, I explored a softened range of purple tones to balance focus with emotional comfort. The mood board emphasizes warmth, approachability, and visual calm, supporting sustained learning without feeling overly rigid or distracting.
design system
To support consistency and scalability, I defined a design system that aligned color, layout, and component patterns with Udemy’s brand constraints. This system reduced visual inconsistency and supported a cohesive, predictable learning experience across the product.
Design System
Text Style
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더 빠르고 딱 맞는 유데미 큐레이션
Body1
Regular ∙ 16
Body2
Medium ∙ 14
Body3
Regular ∙ 12
H1
Regular ∙ 32
H2
Regular ∙ 28
H3
Medium ∙ 20
T1
Bold ∙ 20
T2
Bold ∙ 16
T3
Medium ∙ 14
Label1
Medium ∙ 14
Label2
Medium ∙ 12
Label3
Medium ∙ 11
Design System
UI Kit
Icon
Chips
Button/Tab
Text Button L
Text Button M
Home tab
Category tab
Text Button S
Active
disabled
Label
Label
Active
Disabled
Design System
UI Kit
Component
Input
Class card
Review card
insight card
Roadmap card
Tag
Label1
Label2
Label3
All of the label
Categoty
답변 완료
답변 대기중
Community card
Popmessage
Serch bar
06 | Validation
what i learned
"Designing Within Real-World Constraints"
Balancing User Needs, Brand Integrity, and Feasibility
Working within an established enterprise ecosystem reinforced the importance of making shippable design decisions under real-world constraints. By building a tightly structured design system, I reduced ambiguity in course selection while staying aligned with Udemy’s brand standards, platform limitations, and stakeholder feedback. Designing for real users in a production environment sharpened my ability to ground design intent in continuous development and validation—turning ideas into decisions that hold up in practice.
