Edtech · UX & design
Role
Team
Platform
Result
Overview
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Universal Class is a video-centered education company with over 500 courses. It partners with libraries and schools, so many learners get access through their library card rather than paying themselves. The mobile log-in and sign-up flow had to work for both groups, and it was losing people at every turn.
Goals
Reduce sign-up drop-off
Modernize the UI and improve accessibility
Add log-in options, keep it simple
Capture topic interest
The problem
Signing up as an individual led to a dead end that only support could resolve. Library patrons had accounts their library created with an email but no password, and password reset emails did not arrive. Even people with working accounts needed several tries to log in. Each of these pushed learners to support or out of the app entirely.
What the audit found
I audited sign-up and log-in with a test account from Universal Class, and again as a patron through my own local library, which offers Universal Class. My librarians confirmed they had heard the same complaints: they can only submit a patron’s email, never a password.
Individual sign-up dead-ends, and the support ticket gives no confirmation or timeline
Led to an email sign-up that finishes in the app
Library accounts have no password, and reset emails did not arrive within 72 hours
Led to signing in with a library card and PIN
Logging in took several attempts before it worked
Led to clear errors and other ways in
How I worked
1
Audit
Walked through sign-up and log-in with a test account and with my own library card.
2
Validate
Shared findings with the CEO, developer and course developer, then ran a quick usability test to confirm they were not isolated.
3
Research
Reviewed competitors and current log-in patterns, especially social and library sign-in.
4
Map
Mapped the future flow with the Universal Class team.
5
Explore
Mocked up visual directions so the team could choose a look.
6
Refine
Tightened the chosen direction for accessibility, clearer states and drop-off tracking.
Mapping the flow
Before designing anything, I mapped where each kind of learner got stuck. Three groups came in through the same screens, and each one hit a different wall.
Individual learners
Needed a sign-up path that ends in the app, with a plan and a free trial.
Library patrons
Already have a card number and PIN, so a password is one thing too many.
Returning learners
Need to log in the way they signed up, and to know why a log-in failed.
First design pass
After we agreed on the flow, I made high-fidelity mockups so the team could react to a visual direction. These became the starting point for the final designs below.
Log in, password recovery and welcome
Sign-up, topic picks and home
Key decisions
Decision 1
Put the library card first
Library partners bring in most learners, so their route is the first button, not an afterthought below social sign-in.
Decision 2
No password for library patrons
A card number and PIN are enough to sign in. That removes the reset-email problem for the group it hurt most.
Decision 3
One front door
Log-in and sign-up start from the same welcome screen, which means fewer screens and one place to measure drop-off.
Decision 4
Make topic picks skippable
The business wanted interest data, but not at the cost of sign-ups. The skip rate shows how much to trust it.
User flows
The new flow gives every learner a route that ends in the app. All four sign-up routes meet at topic picks, and returning learners go straight to their feed.
Final designs
Five flows, eleven screens, each annotated with what changed from the first design pass and why. The screens use the Universal Class brand palette, with a dark mode version of every screen.
Compare the light and dark designs with the earlier mockups. Expand each note to read what changed and why.
Flow 1 of 5
Welcome and log in
One front door for everyone. Library patrons, social sign-ins and email users each see their route, and returning users log in the way they signed up.
Flow 2 of 5
Password recovery
Recovery tells people where the email went, how long the link works and what to do if it never arrives.
Flow 3 of 5
Sign up with a library card
Patrons find their library, enter their card number and PIN, and are in. No password to create or lose.
Flow 4 of 5
Sign up with email
Individual learners create an account, pick a plan and land in the app. This was the path that used to end in a support ticket.
Flow 5 of 5
Pick topics and start learning
Learners choose what interests them, which gives Universal Class data for future course investments, then land on a feed built from those picks.
Testing and iteration
What the audit showed
Problems on one test account and one library card
What we did
Met with stakeholders and ran a quick usability test to confirm the issues were widespread before redesigning
The results
0
sign-up routes that end in a support ticket
4
ways in: library card, Google, LinkedIn or email
3
steps from welcome to the feed for library patrons
Reflections
What worked
Auditing as a real library patron as well as with a test account. Talking to my local librarians showed the password problem was not just mine.
What was hard
Libraries create patron accounts, so the fix had to work with data Universal Class does not control: an email, never a password.
What I would change
Set up step-by-step drop-off tracking before launch, so the before and after could be measured from day one, and test directly with patrons and librarians.