MyUSCIS
Before joining MyUSCIS in June 2023, I was working as a designer on internal USCIS software. This helped me understand some of the inner workings of what I was designing for, and proved to be valuable knowledge throughout my journey of working on a consumer-facing product that would touch millions of lives around the world.
2023-24 STATISTICs
9.1 million receipts were issued in 2023.
50%
386,340
25%
My Process
Here's a look at my human-centered approach during MyUSCIS.
Understand the problem
One vast improvement I've made over the years as a designer is making sure I fully grasp the context and problem I'm given before diving into design. This means making sure I'm solving real pain points, for the right audience by talking to various stakeholders on my team and in the field.
Prototype, validate, and test
Whether it be lo-fi or hi-fi prototyping, getting ideas onto paper and collecting feedback early and often has been key to my success. For a truly great user experience, validating and invalidating designs and assumptions are equally important.
Build and measure impact
Success doesn't end at design handoff. For the last 2 years at USCIS, I've prioritized the value of measuring success by understanding what the business needs are and identifying key metrics that align with those business goals.
Fully updated component library
One of my tasks at MyUSCIS was fully migrating our component library into Figma. Using the principles of an atomic design system, I built a responsive design library with a collection of reusable components and templates that are used on MyUSCIS.com today.
Feature overview
One feature I worked on at USCIS was improving the digital experience on myUSCIS.com, which included filing a form, tracking case progress, and accessing help resources. Up until this point, I had worked on designing experiences for what we called "org account," which included company users and law firm users. This shifted my focus towards a different user group, who would actually receive the benefit most of the time.
Research
One of my biggest endeavors while working with USCIS was to improve our human-centered design practices, which included incorporating research efforts early and often in the design process. This allowed me and our design team to be able to not only understand the features we were working on better, but also be granted the privilege of influencing our product roadmap. Deeply understanding problem spaces allowed our UX team to shift our focus from business value to product value.
Persona
Personas are one research artifact I pushed to build after joining my team and noticing we didn't have a well-defined archetype to reference during design. Through several rounds of user interviews, I was able to generate several personas that served as a baseline for many of our product decisions throughout my time at USCIS. Below is an example of one of those personas.
Designs
It was no surprise during the user research I conducted that our users were not technically inclined or English proficient. With many of our applicants being first-generation immigrants, it was clear that we needed to do a better job of breaking down those barriers to apply for benefits online. This homepage redesign was aimed to create a sense of safety for our users - providing helpful resources just one click away as well as a large file a form CTA in the hero section that explains some of the updates we made.
During user research, it became clear that many users struggled to understand the form questions and how to provide accurate responses. This led to confusion and delays in completing the forms. To address this, I broke down the form experience into simpler, more digestible parts, using clearer language and adding real-time guidance. This ensured users could easily understand each step and submit accurate information without frustration.
One thing that I found interesting was all the help resources that USCIS offered online on their own site, but not in the form filing process itself. The bridge this gap, I proposed implementing an AI-powered chatbot, that provided real-time guidance and support and would offer relevant answers based on the hundreds of online resources on myUSCIS that were used to educate the chatbot.
