4 months internship
Short version
During my four-month internship at Squirel, the IT department of Ouigo and a subsidiary of SNCF, I had the opportunity to test my UI/UX design skills in a professional context. This opportunity allowed me to develop certain skills and learn new ones related to my field. I was able to learn how to write and follow up on a test plan, carry out the tests myself, and even do ticketing.
This experience allowed me to work in multidisciplinary teams and consider other future career paths.
Longer version
To give some context
July 2024 - October 2024
During my second-year internship, I joined Squirel, a SNCF subsidiary and IT service of Ouigo focused on Information Technology such as cyber security, websites or infrastructures. I worked with product owner, developers, or even the finance service as a UI/UX design intern, contributing to redesign websites or prototyping new ones, organise user tests and audit services.
The company does not have an in-house design department; this service is outsourced to an agency.
What was the problem ?
I worked as a UI/UX intern, but I also asked if I could observe and work on other services such as project management, developers, and even testers.
My tasks included designing new websites, sometimes based on existing ones, and preparing user tests. The aim was to meet the client's requirements in line with a graphic charter, on time and within budget.
What did I do ?
Audit
One of the first tasks I was able to carry out was to audit existing websites, particularly internal tools. At that point, I had never done this before, so it was an opportunity for me to discover the different principles (Nielsen and Bastien & Scapin) that I would later revisit in my studies. I therefore began with a phase of research and learning about the methodology. Then, a regular user of the service introduced me to the tool, and I took notes and asked questions. After this interview, I rediscovered the tool for myself by trying out different paths to see what I understood naturally. Finally, I used Nielsen's principles one after the other to go into more detail, taking notes so that I could report back afterwards.
Sometimes I also had the opportunity to conduct user tests. I particularly enjoyed interviewing people who were not yet familiar with the tool so that they could still have a fresh perspective on it. Once the analysis phase was complete, I created a presentation of my conclusions and a file containing all my observations and suggestions for improvement to send to the various stakeholders.
