Last Day of Class

DR. WILL KURLINKUS

What Has This Class Been?

• Almost entirely production based. Why? (it could have studied

the field of tech writing, teaching tech writing, each of the
genres we teach?!)
1. You’ve taken the FYC training course (so know how to
teach)—but didn’t have genre experience
2. The UX process & design thinking should inform how you
teach the course—they are the heart of the course (they are
also the hot topic-–and hire—in the field of tech writing)
3. I want you to leave with portfolio examples but also a a
process—UX/design thinking that could be applied to
ostensibly anything else.
What is the design thinking process: What
did you create?
1. Empathize & Define • Goal Statement for Primary user
• A design brief in canvas • User Flow diagram Download User Flow diagramfor primary task of
app
• Stakeholder map
• Big Picture and Close Up Storyboard
• Initial User Reserach Questions
3. Design
• Three starter user personas : 1. should be for a typical user, 2.
should be a slightly differently motivated user, and 3. should be an • Wireframe of the app from class
edge user. Your persona should parallel and you may use the
attached powerpoint slide:PersonaTemplate.pptx • 3 Versions of Your Homepage Wireframe
• A journey map for each of your user personas • Wireframe 2-3 other screens
UX stories
• 4 final Interview Questions
• Competitive Analysis Download Competitive Analysis: charting
three competitors (include ~5 categories of comparison including 2 • Link to finished Google Forms Survey
that are specific to your app type--you can use some of the • Figma Prototype Link/Screenshots
categories on the excel sheet but don't need to use them all)
4. Test
2. Ideate
• Usability Test Proposal
• Crazy Eights for solving problem
• Usability Report
• List of Ten Features organized into affinity groups
 How would you approach the research for designing a
connected home device for a young family’s first apartment?
 Our English major is
constantly losing students
how would you
approach a redesign?
What is due to me and when? May 10

1. A portfolio with your UX stuff framed up

2. Your Tech Writing Productions: Resume & Cover Letter,
Grant, This I Believe Reflection on What Makes Good
Grading, Pop Trans Assignment, Part 1&2 Of Group
Usability Test
How should I frame a professional portfolio?
(And the UX Portfolio For This Class)
1. Cover Page with executive summary on it
2. Table of Contents
3. Resume
4. Very Brief—1 Paragraph Project Intro
5. All the deliverables I listed a few slides ago
6. A uniform visual presentation: either all in the same Canva design format or each major section in
that format.
7. Chapter cover sheets for each major phase: empathize, ideate, design, test, conclusions
8. 1-3 sentences for each required piece that needs an explanation: the what and why of major design
decisions explained to a client who doesn't know things like what a user persona is. Some are self
explanatory while some: user personas, prototypes, etc. need explanation of the choices you’ve
made.
9. Conclusion: where do we go next?
In general a
What Should A Portfolio Do More
Generally?
• The big goal of your writing portfolio is to highlight the variety of writing you can create as well as the best writing you have.
Eventually, as you work and do projects you’ll want to collect those real world projects and put them in your portfolio. But,
for now, try to highlight the variety of classes you’ve been in. (That’s why this class is so cool, right?!). Eventually, if you
create a digital portfolio, you can organize these as a traditional design portfolio or grouped under key genre terms like
visual, video, social media, essay.
• Start with a branding statement instead of a story. Imagine it as the start of a resume. If you want to expand to a more
personal summary (that uses the I form) after this paragraph that includes things like your hobbies, etc., that’s fine. But I
would always start with a branding statement.
• Organizer, Educator, and Researcher with 10 years experience working in a
university setting to highlight diversity and inclusion, whether through teaching
courses on Cultures of Medicine and Latino/a Studies, leading workshops on
Black Lives Matter, organizing and marketing conferences on Queer and
Feminist narrative theory, or mentoring underserved students in a summer
bridge program. Non-university skills include political campaigning, GED
tutoring, and public affairs.
• You should also think about what kind of image/s you want as your profile photo. Something professional, something
fun, there’s no wrong answer (and you don’t necessarily need a photo!). I always like a process photo. Something that
is showing you writing/designing in a cool environment.
Framing Projects
I recommend writing two or three sentences (short single- spaced bulleted list, roughly 100 words) describing the assignment you created
the document for. However, try your hardest not to use the terms teacher, student, or class. That is, avoid painting yourself as a student. Paint
yourself as a professional. To do so, I’d try to frame your writing as a project: What were the goals of the project? What was your solution
(Why focus on the topic you did? What was your solution?) Why did you write it in the way you did? Implications for your client? What did
you help them do? See a professional sample of this below (you won’t have all this info now, but try framing your writing as professional—in
the future you’ll want to get client and boss testimonials!)

• Project Goals
• To help an academic researcher win grant funds to support the development of an app that helps disadvantaged babies and children
with early language acquisition.
• Our Solution
We helped this client with major revisions to four different grant applications.
We edited for content, structure, clarity, and style. Implications for Our Client
This client has won a highly competitive national grant and is moving forward through a
multi-tiered grant competition, beating out over a hundred other competitors.
With these funds, the client has built a functioning beta version of a new language-learning
mobile app.
Also using these funds, the client is moving forward with a large research project that
determines the impact of the app; this research will inform further developments of the app.

• Testimonial
• “This was the most amazing learning experience for me. You helped me truly polish my words/ideas to say exactly what I needed it to
say, in an effective way that impacts. I think this grant application is the app I’m the most proud of, ever. Mostly, I’m just grateful for the
opportunity to get feedback to learn and be a more effective grant writer. THANK YOU SO MUCH!”
How do I get an industry job?
writing, editing, communications, English teacher, technical writing, publishing,
curriculum design, creative writing, UX writing, advertising writing, business
writing, proposal writing, writing consulting, marketing.

• Think about what kind of jobs you want.

• Make sure you have a portfolio of something: whether writing samples or UX or whatever.
• Get some training: take coursera courses that result in a portfolio or certificate, learn a
programming language (HTML/CSS/R) for technical writing, learn a software (photoshop,
Figma, InDesign).
• Do some work: if you’re still in grad school get an internship over the summer, if you’re not
still in grad school get an internship.
• Network: reach out to people you know who have industry jobs, set up “informational
interviews,” talk to your professor, friends, and family to get an informational interview with
someone who has the job you want.
• Highlight your unique skills and experiences and apply for jobs that allow you to do so—are
you studying native American literature? Apply for a tribal job (grant writing, archivist, etc.)
• Apply locally, apply within universities, apply for consulting agencies
(https://careers.icf.com/us/en/search-results?keywords=writing)
What should I do in grad school if I want
an academic job?
• Go to large national conferences (and if you don’t get into
them smaller regional ones).
• Network at those conferences (signup for networking events,
volunteer to do things, try to talk to people—that’s who is
going to hire you—ask your professors for help in doing this!)
• Publish at least 1 article by the time you’re applying for jobs
• Do stuff beyond teaching: volunteer to be a journal editor, a
TA, write a grant, join a campus interdisciplinary group
• Have two dissertation chapters polished when you’re applying
for a job
How much money does an English
Professor Make?
• 60,000: When I started in 2014 (2-2 + running tech writing +
independent studies)
• 68.880(62,000 + 6,889) admin for tech writing (2016 I asked for a
raise)
• 72,889 (66,000 +6,889): we got a cost of living raise in 2019
• 78,119: I got a 5,280 tenure raise in 2020
• ~80,000 now with another cost of living raise
• 94,000 new job at University of Wisconsin, non–tenure track, 3-3
+Many entry level jobs
are making ~55,000 for 3-
3 or 4-4
+The best jobs are at
union schools
+The best jobs are in
places you want to live
What Should I Teach?

• Teach whatever is easiest and gives you the most time to

do your own work and things you enjoy
• Teach in a way that you can use your work as an example
for a job application.