UMB School of Graduate Studies
Making complex academic options clear and navigable so students can confidently choose the right graduate program.
Who Is UMB?
Known Issues
Wayfinding difficulties
Before the redesign, students struggled to find essential program information due to a fragmented information architecture and unclear navigation paths. The existing program finder required multiple steps and often led users to incomplete or irrelevant results.
How might we support students in identifying the right program through clearer navigation, guidance, and decision-making tools?
Navigation
Students mentioned the difficulty of finding what they need through the navigation menu.
I reorganized information architecture to be more process, opportunity, and outcome driven allowing for fast access to utilities and programs.
Program Finder
Research showed that students had difficulty using the program finder. Too many steps and to find what they need, if they find it.
I redesigned a new program finder to hold all options on one page with a simple search and multi-faceted filter. Everything on one page, with clear results.
Mini Quiz
Staff mentioned it is difficult for students to sus out the many options in the Physician's Assistant Program.
I created a mini survey that, based on the answers to a few questions, takes students to the page that best fits their interest within the P.A. program.
Impact
This redesign transformed a complex, disjointed graduate education ecosystem into a clear, outcome-driven experience. By restructuring the information architecture around student goals, simplifying program discovery, and delivering personalized guidance for high-complexity offerings like the Physician Assistant program, the new UMB Graduate Studies site empowers prospective students to confidently navigate their academic journey. These improvements reduced friction, increased program engagement, and strengthened the school’s ability to guide and convert highly qualified applicants.
satisfaction score for findability in moderated usability interviews in regard main navigation.
9/10
Increase in engagement with the redesigned one-page program finder.
2.5x
Completion rate for the new PA mini-survey—showing strong adoption.
72%
Shoutouts
Sarah Yalov, Graphic Designer
Kathe Flynn, Creative Director
Andrew White, UX Mentor
Katelyn Brickey, Associate Director of Client Services
Dan Rogers, AVP of Development
Brad Walker, Associate Director of Developers
Andres Zapata, Owner