Macquarie University
A research-led initiative to reimagine the student experience and foster a deeper sense of belonging.
Macquarie University partnered with us to better understand the student journey and uncover opportunities to improve engagement and support across the full lifecycle.
Problem
Nearly 30% of Australian university students don’t graduate. To address this and rising student expectations, Macquarie University set out to reimagine the student experience.
Outcome
We delivered a set of experience principles, opportunity areas, and journey maps that now inform university wide initiatives.
Role
Stakeholder workshop, visual synthesis, journey mapping
Team
2 UX Designers
Team
2 UX Designers
Role
Stakeholder workshop, visual synthesis, journey mapping
Process
Our research process was split into 3 phases: Stakeholder workshops, qualitative research, and quantitative validation.
01
Stakeholder Workshops
Facilitated stakeholder workshops to align internal teams around shared priorities and definitions of student success.
02
Qualitative Research
Conducted in-depth interviews and diary studies to understand day-to-day student interactions and pain points.
03
Quantitative Validation
Surveyed wider student body to validate qualitative insights and identify broader patterns.
User Research & Findings
Over the course of four sessions, we engaged 20+ participants and gathered more than 200 pieces of individual feedback resulting in 9 key qualitative test areas that shaped our research direction.
💡
Information overload but poor clarity
Students received frequent communications, but often found them inconsistent or hard to act on. Important messages like census dates or fee breakdowns were easily missed in the volume of emails and channels.
💡
Limited guidance for course planning
Many students lacked clear support when selecting units or planning their degree path. This led to confusion about enrolment order and missed academic requirements.
Journey Mapping
We synthesised research into a full student journey map from application to alumni highlighting key emotional, academic, and service touchpoints.
01
Mapping the Student Lifecycle
We mapped 9 student journey stages using surveys, interviews, workshops, and diary studies to define goals and needs across the full university experience.
02
Diagnosing Friction Across Touchpoints
We used qualitative inputs to uncover where students felt confused, unsupported, or disengaged then validated these with quantitative data to prioritise pain points based on frequency and urgency.
03
Identifying High Impact Interventions
By aligning insights to journey stages, we pinpointed clear opportunities to improve continuity, belonging, and support.
Learnings
This project reinforced the importance of designing for both function and feeling. While operational improvements were critical, the research surfaced deeper needs around identity, connection, and belonging.
User Research & Findings
Over the course of four sessions, we engaged 20+ participants and gathered more than 200 pieces of individual feedback resulting in 9 key qualitative test areas that shaped our research direction.
💡
Information overload but poor clarity
Students received frequent communications, but often found them inconsistent or hard to act on. Important messages like census dates or fee breakdowns were easily missed in the volume of emails and channels.
💡
Limited guidance for course planning
Many students lacked clear support when selecting units or planning their degree path. This led to confusion about enrolment order and missed academic requirements.
Process
Our research process was split into 3 phases: Stakeholder workshops, qualitative research, and quantitative validation.
01
Stakeholder Workshops
Facilitated stakeholder workshops to align internal teams around shared priorities and definitions of student success.
02
Qualitative Research
Conducted in-depth interviews and diary studies to understand day-to-day student interactions and pain points.
03
Quantitative Validation
Surveyed wider student body to validate qualitative insights and identify broader patterns.
Journey Mapping
We synthesised research into a full student journey map from application to alumni highlighting key emotional, academic, and service touchpoints.
01
Mapping the Student Lifecycle
We mapped 9 student journey stages using surveys, interviews, workshops, and diary studies to define goals and needs across the full university experience.
02
Diagnosing Friction Across Touchpoints
We used qualitative inputs to uncover where students felt confused, unsupported, or disengaged then validated these with quantitative data to prioritise pain points based on frequency and urgency.
03
Identifying High Impact Interventions
By aligning insights to journey stages, we pinpointed clear opportunities to improve continuity, belonging, and support.
Learnings
This project reinforced the importance of designing for both function and feeling. While operational improvements were critical, the research surfaced deeper needs around identity, connection, and belonging.
Macquarie University
A research-led initiative to reimagine the student experience and foster a deeper sense of belonging.
Macquarie University partnered with us to better understand the student journey and uncover opportunities to improve engagement and support across the full lifecycle.
Problem
Nearly 30% of Australian university students don’t graduate. To address this and rising student expectations, Macquarie University set out to reimagine the student experience.
Outcome
We delivered a set of experience principles, opportunity areas, and journey maps that now inform university wide initiatives.
Team
2 UX Designers
Role
Stakeholder workshop, visual synthesis, journey mapping