YorkU Connect

Case Study

The Project

YorkU Connect is a platform that helps York University students connect with peers, access campus resources, join clubs, and find job opportunities—all in one app. It simplifies access to university services, enhancing social and academic life, especially for those transitioning back to in-person learning post-COVID. The app also supports commuter and international students by fostering social engagement and centralizing key resources.

Role: UX/UI designer
Team: Maryam Ahmed, Derek Anthony Hau Kau Fong, Syed Asif, Samir Patel
Duration: 12 weeks

Course: ITEC3230: Designing User Interfaces
Tools: Figma

Context:

Returning to in-person learning after COVID-19 posed unique challenges for York University students, especially international and commuter students. Many struggled with time management, social isolation, and accessing university resources scattered across various platforms.

YorkU Connect was developed to address these issues by creating a central hub where students could connect with peers, join clubs, explore job opportunities, and access essential campus services—all in one app. The project aimed to ease the transition back to campus life, foster social engagement, and provide students with a streamlined, user-friendly platform to enhance both their academic and social experiences.

Problem Statement:

How might we help York University students—namely international and commuter students—easily connect with peers, access campus resources, and stay informed about clubs and job opportunities, so they can thrive socially and academically in a post-pandemic environment?

Returning to in-person learning after COVID-19 has been challenging, with students struggling to balance social engagement, academics, and access to resources due to the fragmented nature of YorkU’s services. YorkU Connect seeks to centralize these services into one easy-to-use platform, enhancing the student experience by fostering community, improving accessibility, and supporting students' academic and personal growth.

Goal:

The goal of YorkU Connect is to provide York University students—especially international and commuter students—with a centralized platform to connect socially, access campus resources, join clubs, and explore job opportunities.

The app aims to streamline the student experience by consolidating essential services, fostering community engagement, and supporting academic success in a user-friendly, all-in-one solution.

THE PROCESS:

EMPATHIZE

DEFINE

IDEATE

PROTOTYPE

TEST

REFINE

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Empathize:
Primary Research

We conducted online questionnaires and structured interviews with York University students, focusing on international and commuter students, to understand their challenges in transitioning back to in-person learning and connecting with peers post-COVID.

The goal was to explore their needs, motivations, and frustrations related to accessing campus resources, finding social opportunities, and balancing academic and personal responsibilities. Participants answered questions about their struggles with time management, social engagement, and the process of navigating multiple university websites for essential services.

Interviewee, York University Domestic Student

"It’s hard to meet people on campus, especially as a commuter. Everything feels scattered, and it’s overwhelming joining clubs on and off campus."

Interview Findings:

Our findings revealed significant trends in student struggles:

66% of participants were unemployed, which added financial stress.
100% of students interviewed indicated that their time management skills had deteriorated due to the pandemic's impact and the abrupt return to in-person learning.
28.6% of participants were working part-time hours, highlighting the challenge of balancing work and school.

Students emphasized that York University’s commuter culture makes socializing difficult. Many expressed a desire for a centralized platform to access clubs, job boards, and academic resources in one place, which would improve both social connections and academic engagement.

Define:
Personas

The personas for YorkU Connect highlight the diverse needs of York University students, including international and commuter students, showcasing their challenges in navigating campus life, accessing resources, and building social connections. These personas guided the design process to ensure the platform addresses real user pain points and enhances the student experience.

Sketches:

With York University students' diverse needs in mind, I focused on designing YorkU Connect to be intuitive and user-friendly. It was essential to create a seamless experience where students could easily access campus resources, join clubs, and connect with peers, ensuring they felt supported both socially and academically in their transition back to in-person learning.

Prototyping:
Mid-Fidelity Mockups

With the students' need for connection and easy access to resources in mind, I focused on designing YorkU Connect to be intuitive and efficient. It was essential to ensure users could seamlessly navigate the platform to join clubs, explore campus events, and connect with peers, providing a centralized solution that fosters community, simplifies campus engagement, and enhances the overall student experience.

High Fidelity Mockups:

With the students' desire for connection and access to resources in mind, I refined the design of YorkU Connect to ensure a visually appealing, user-friendly experience. Every element was crafted to make it easy for users to explore campus events, join clubs, and connect with peers, providing a polished, all-in-one platform that enhances social interaction and academic engagement.

Summary:

Problem: York University has multiple scattered resources (clubs, services, job opportunities) with no central hub for students, making it difficult to access everything easily.

Goal: Create a unified app that connects students socially, provides access to academic and extracurricular resources, and helps with job searches and event participation.

Research Methods:
- Online Questionnaires & Forms: Allowed users to prepare and respond to structured and unstructured questions.
- Interviews (In-Person & Follow-Ups): Explored challenges in transitioning from online to in-person learning.

Key Insights: Many students struggled with time management, financial independence, and the abrupt shift back to campus life from online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. 66% were unemployed, with only 28.6% working part-time. Despite challenges, all participants expressed a strong desire to socialize and engage on campus.

Core Insight: Since York is a commuter school, students found it challenging to meet peers outside of class. The app aims to address this need by fostering social connections and offering a centralized platform for university resources.

To View Full Prototype:

Email: maryamahmed3778@gmail.com for a link!