MoI   Mock Interview Artificial intelligence App

Timeline

April – June 2023

Role

UX/UI Designer

Project Type

Individual

Overview

Moi is an AI-powered iOS mock interview mobile app aimed at helping young adults practice and boost their confidence for job interviews. Moi utilize AI to create a stress-free interview practice platform, where users interact with an avatar, receive performance scores across formats, and benefit from personalized questions generated directly from job posting URLs for targeted and efficient skill enhancement.

This project tackles the common challenges of inadequate practice with relevant interview questions and a lack of feedback. Additionally, it addresses the heightened stress that introverted individuals may experience during mock interview practice.

DISCOVER

Problem

Job searching is challenging for young adults who are navigating the transition from academia to the real world.

Navigating the transition from academia to the professional world poses a considerable challenge for young adults, particularly recent graduates who have immersed themselves in years of study and are now confronted with the uncertainties of the 'real world.' While educational institutions primarily emphasize hard skills, the job market demands a broader skill set that includes soft skills and practical experience.

Secondary Research

In North America, young adults have been facing overwhelming challenges in finding jobs. Approximately 60% don't hear back after an interview and 70% of new graduates feel frustrated during in job interviews.

Based on user research, the Gen Z demographic, now recent graduates, constitutes a significant portion of individuals facing challenges in landing a job. Gen Z encounters various difficulties during the job-seeking process, and it appears that a significant challenge lies in effectively participating in job interviews.

According to a 2023 student survey by Symplicity, 55% of students feel they need more preparation for interviews, and one of the top concerns for students entering the workforce is their level of preparation for the interview.

Despite the existence of various resources, such as mentorship, online research, and mock interviews, young adults entering the workforce after graduation often find themselves at a crossroads, grappling with uncertainty and seeking guidance on how to effectively navigate and bolster their preparations for the job-seeking phase.

User Interviews

Finding out how they feel about job interviews.

To further explore user pain points and needs, I conducted 10 user interviews with new graduates who have also experienced frustration during their job search phase in North America.

Through these interviews, I discovered that new graduates...

🧑‍🎓 Feel frustrated due to the uncertainty of whether they have practiced enough or correctly and are unsure of whom to practice with.

🧑‍🎓 Feel nervous during interviews due to being unprepared, which ultimately diminishes their confidence in job interviews.

🧑‍🎓 Desire feedback on past job interviews to improve in future ones, but hiring managers are often too busy to provide it.

DEFINE

User Persona

Refining our target user to better empathize.

Gathering insights from the user interviews, I refined the pain points, motivations, and behaviors into an imagined persona named Angelica. She wants to feel more confident and prepared for her upcoming interviews but doesn't know where and how to improve. Additionally, she finds it challenging to manage her nervousness during interviews.

Introverted individuals feel anxious during interview practice.

Additionally, I created an experience map to visualize the emotions involved in Angelica's job interview preparation. Due to the reason that most of my interviewees were introvert, so they felt very anxious during the interview practice to practice oral speaking with online coaches or peers and they feel nervous for the actual interview as well.

Design Challenge

How might we provide a supportive interview preparation experience for new graduates in order to empower them to feel confident and well-prepared during job interviews?

User Stories & Epics

Defining application functionality

To create an effective user-centric solution, I developed 30 user stories and below are the chosen user stories for the main epic that could potentially be part of the mock interview application:

✍️ I want to practice relevant interview answers for the desired job role so that I can improve my interview skills and feel more confident during actual interviews

✍️ I want to receive specific feedback and guidance on my interview performance and content so that I can enhance my chances of success in future interviews

✍️ I want to have the flexibility to review and practice them at any time so that I can build confidence

✍️ I want to practice interview questions by speaking aloud so that I can enhance my verbal communication skills

Among these epics, I chose to focus on the mock interview epic due to the further research which indicates that mock interviews have a high success rate of 96% in securing jobs for candidates.

DEVELOP

Task Flow

Idealting possible screens and actions for product

The main task flow focuses on three steps:

inputting interview preferences for the mock interview, practicing mock interview, and receiving feedback and guidance on the interview performance.

The secondary flow involves sharing interview questions with the community, saving interview questions, and reviewing interview history to practice and review later.

Sketching

Sketching out possible design solutions

To envision our task flow, I created a UI inspiration board and sketched screens and components on paper to explore layouts and UI elements.

Wireframes

From sketches to digital wireframes

Considering my persona's needs and challenges, I chose specific solution sketches. These were then digitized into low-fidelity wireframes, prepared for initial user testing.

User Testing

Refining the product

The design process is meant to be iterative and it's important to identify any issues that could hinder usability. To do this, I conducted 2 rounds of user testing with my initial mid-fidelity prototype. The results from the testings showed that all 5 participants were able to perform assigned tasks successfully but the feedback prompted me to make some iterations for better design solutions.

Change #1: Enhanced Flexibility for Varied User Preferences

Most of my user testing feedback indicated that users were having difficulty finding their desired job role in the selection chips layout. In response, I researched media trends and UI inspiration, choosing to leverage the latest AI technology. Initially, I revamped the job preference process by replacing it with a text field feature. This enables users to paste the job post URL, generating relevant interview questions based on the job description. I also included options to choose the type of question: behavioral, technical, and situational, allowing users to narrow down their preferences. This not only resolves the issue of limited options but also addresses the concerns of my personas, specifically their pain point of wanting to practice the most relevant interview questions effectively.

Change #2: Support Comfortable Growth with Behavior Nudging

Secondly, as I iterated through the interview preference screen, I revisited my persona and the information gathered from user interviews. I noticed that my targeted audience faces the challenge of not knowing who to practice with due to their introverted and unconfident personalities. To address this issue and accommodate introverted personas, I implemented the Behavior Nudging methodology. This psychological approach gently guides and encourages positive behavior changes in users. It allows them to select their preferred interview format. Empowering users to gradually adapt and step out of their comfort zone while practicing, this approach promotes a more personalized and manageable experience.

Change #3: Enhancing Performance Comprehension and Preparation

Four out of five users encountered difficulty in understanding the performance breakdown. To address this, I implemented an information icon with popup modals so that when users tap on each bar graph, they can access explanations for each category. This feature assists users in identifying their strengths and better prepares them for their next mock interview.

Brand Identity

I want my users to feel supportive and relaxing as they practice for their upcoming interviews.

To set the desired tone for my app, I looked for photo inspirations that reflected the intended tone and injected colours from them. After conducting a colour injection test and receiving feedback, I finalized to a colour palette with primary and secondary colours.

Accessibility

Ensuring accessibility and legibility.

In ensuring accessibility and legibility, I maintained a strong contrast ratio (+60/-60) between text and background colors to make sure that all users can comfortably read the content.

UI Library

Structured design approach for consistency.

To ensure consistency in future iterations, I structured the design system into clear components: atoms (basic elements such as buttons), molecules (combinations of atoms like cards), organisms (complex components like navigation bars), templates (predefined page structures), and pages (fully functional layouts).

DELIVERY

High-Fidelity Prototype

Finally, putting everything together! This is my final design solution.

"To validate the design's satisfaction, I collected feedback from an additional 10 users, ensuring design intuitiveness and accessibility."

Value Proposition

Stress-Free

Moi offers a stress-free solution for practicing job interviews. By interacting with an avatar and receiving performance scores, users can enjoy an entertaining experience while preparing! The interview format options, including text, audio, and video, gradually encourage users to step out of their comfort zone during practice. To alleviate the stress of practicing for job interviews, users can simulate real-life interviews and enjoy an entertaining and stress-free learning experience by answering interview questions with a specially designed avatar.

Build Confidence and Practice Right

With Moi, users can practice without limits using the most relevant interview questions generated from the provided URL. This ensures that users feel confident and well-prepared for their interviews. To ensure users devote their time to practicing the appropriate interview questions, they have the option to copy and paste a job posting URL, and the system will then generate relevant questions based on the job requirements specified in the posting. Users can further refine the relevance of questions by choosing the specific area of focus, such as behavior, situational, or technical questions. To avoid overwhelming experience, users have control over the number of questions and can select from text, audio, or video interview formats. This allows them to gradually expand their comfort zone and enjoy stress-free mock interviews. 

Improve Verbal and Non-Verbal Skills

Moi goes beyond just providing feedback and guidance. Its advanced AI technology analyzes answer structures, enabling users to make significant improvements. Moreover, Moi utilizes computer vision and machine learning techniques to evaluate users' body language. By assessing factors such as posture and eye contact, Moi can identify indicators of disinterest or lack of engagement, offering targeted feedback for improvement. To address the challenge of job seekers not knowing how and where to improve their interview skills and structure better answers, our personalized feedback feature offers instant AI-powered guidance. This feature analyzes users' overall performance in mock interviews by providing a score breakdown. It also provides answer analysis, evaluating the structure and relevance of the answers, as well as assessing body language indicators such as eye contact with the camera, which contributes to the confidence score. Furthermore, the feature identifies specific areas for improvement and strengths, offering users clarity on the exact areas they should focus on to enhance their performance.

What would product looks like on desktop?

To make it more convenient and expand target users, I experimented with a desktop platform for Moi. This is because my target users are likely to search for job postings, apply for jobs, and have their job interviews using a desktop or laptop. The desktop website app will provide my users with a significantly more convenient way to practice interviews.

Marketing Website

To promote the value of Moi, this is the responsive marketing website.

Next Steps

In future improvement, there are some key questions that I want to address...

✍️ How can users understand the scoring rubric and calculation of each category before mock interviews, to be more prepared and make the most out of the practice session?

✍️ How can users learn from each other and gain insights from other users' answers?

✍️ What is the significance of the score if users are unable to share it? Would the environment become more competitive if users can share their scores?

The next steps will involve continuing research on the target demographic, conducting further iterations, usability testing, and A/B testing. By taking these steps, we can create a more effective, positive, and user-centric product that effectively addresses the needs of our target users.

Key Takeaways

Throughout the design challenge, there are two most significant lessons

In managing multiple design tasks, I recognized the significance of prioritization and breaking down the MVP into its essential parts. This adaptive approach was crucial for maintaining progress, allowing me to focus on key elements within the given time frame and successfully launch a fully functional product.

Engaging in user interviews also taught me to craft questions that avoid leading responses, aiming for an unbiased understanding. Moreover, I embraced a methodology centered on minimizing personal biases by relying on robust user research and data, ensuring design decisions are rooted in evidence rather than personal inclinations.

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