Digital User Experience (UX) Professional Degree Apprenticeship at AJ Bell

Summary

Our Digital User Experience (UX) Degree Apprenticeship is a great opportunity to gain practical experience whilst you work towards a Bachelor of Science degree with Manchester Metropolitan University. As a UX apprentice you will help in the design of systems and processes that will help our customers achieve their investing goals.

Annual wage

£22,000 a year

Minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)

25 days holiday increasing to 30 days with length of service, plus bank holidays; hybrid working policy; casual dress code; discretionary annual bonus; free social events; volunteering opportunities; free gym and classes + much more

Training course

Digital user experience (UX) professional (integrated degree) (level 6)

Hours

Monday to Friday, shifts to be confirmed. The degree programme is taught on a block learning basis at Manchester Metropolitan University.

37 hours a week

Possible start date

Monday 15 September

Duration

4 years

Positions available

1

Work

As an apprentice, you’ll work at a company and get hands-on experience. You’ll gain new skills and work alongside experienced staff.

What you’ll do at work

During this four-year programme you will work in our UX design team within the Technology Services department to gain a deep understanding of design best practices in a fast-paced regulated Financial Services business. At AJ Bell we help people to invest and our UX team are key to the journeys that our customers go on. Our UX team use their insight and design skills to develop systems and processes that make every customer’s experience easier, more efficient and more enjoyable.

Typical tasks include:

Taking part in workshops to assess customer needs and requirements
Creating models to showcase designs you have developed
Working with different departments in AJ Bell to understand and implement design requirements

Where you’ll work

4 Exchange Quay

Salford Quays

Manchester

M5 3EE

Training

An apprenticeship includes regular training with a college or other training organisation. At least 20% of your working hours will be spent training or studying.

College or training organisation

MANCHESTER METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

Your training course

Digital user experience (UX) professional (integrated degree) (level 6)

Equal to degree

Course contents

Apply creative, analytical and critical thinking skills to the design, development and improvement of UX solutions and systematically analyse and apply structured problem-solving techniques to complex UX challenges.
Use design thinking and/or service design methods to determine the design and implementation of new value propositions, products and services, and improve existing ones.
Select, formulate and apply from a range of user research methods including those from the fields of Human Computer Interaction (HCI), sociology, psychology and ethnography, including qualitative and quantitative approaches.
Compose, construct and use multiple user research approaches to form an understanding of user populations, including surveys, field based research, contextual inquiry, user interviews, focus groups, stakeholder interviews/workshops, formative lab-based and direct user testing sessions (e.g. acceptance and usability testing).
Critically analyse and evaluate assumptions and findings to understand user and stakeholder needs (including behaviours, emotions, beliefs and preferences), and define the solutions’ functional, non-functional, structural and content requirements.
Critically evaluate arguments, assumptions, abstract concepts and data (that may be incomplete), to make judgements, and to frame appropriate questions to achieve a solution - or identify a range of solutions - to a problem.
Analyse, interpret, synthesise and apply insights, to inform the development of personas, user journeys and system workflows, to ensure user and organisational needs are met.
Design, facilitate and evaluate experimental tests using tools such as A/B and multivariate testing to enable a data-led approach to the development and continual improvement of UX solutions.
Design, facilitate and evaluate requirements gathering, ideation and co-design activities, involving stakeholders and/or users.
Creatively explore and devise a range of design solutions, including the production of system and user flows, static wireframes and prototypes of varying degree of fidelity, from paper prototypes to interactive prototypes.
Adapt and evaluate design solutions according to the context of intended use, including responsive, mobile, online, offline, personal, public and enterprise, working with multidisciplinary product teams to assess the impact of implementing specific design recommendations.
Design and refine clear, logical information architectures for content and data.
Independently analyse test data, interpret results and evaluate the suitability of proposed solutions, considering current and future contexts of use, including in consultation with team members from other disciplines to ascertain a holistic view on the applicability of design recommendations.
Articulate and communicate complex information, concepts and ideas effectively and concisely, through written, visual and verbal means.
Communicate concepts in a manner appropriate to the audience, adapting communication techniques accordingly between user research participants, stakeholders or varying degrees of seniority and team members from a broad spectrum of specialist fields.
Manage expectations and present user research insight, proposed solutions and/or test findings to clients and stakeholders.
Use advanced cognitive skills to deal with competing interests within and outside the organisation, through well-reasoned arguments and excellent negotiation skills.
Work autonomously and interact effectively within wide, multidisciplinary teams, including designers, developers, engineers, analysts, project managers etc.
Identify the preferences, motivations, strengths and limitations of other people and apply these insights in order to work more effectively with and to motivate others.
Demonstrate competence in customer service, in active listening and in leading, influencing and persuading others.
Balance and trade-off competing quality, time and budget criteria, demonstrating understanding of business need, managing time effectively and being able to plan and complete UX activities to schedule.
Apply creative, analytical and critical thinking skills to the design, development and improvement of UX solutions and systematically analyse and apply structured problem-solving techniques to complex UX challenges.
Use design thinking and/or service design methods to determine the design and implementation of new value propositions, products and services, and improve existing ones.
Select, formulate and apply from a range of user research methods including those from the fields of Human Computer Interaction (HCI), sociology, psychology and ethnography, including qualitative and quantitative approaches.
Compose, construct and use multiple user research approaches to form an understanding of user populations, including surveys, field based research, contextual inquiry, user interviews, focus groups, stakeholder interviews/workshops, formative lab-based and direct user testing sessions (e.g. acceptance and usability testing).
Critically analyse and evaluate assumptions and findings to understand user and stakeholder needs (including behaviours, emotions, beliefs and preferences), and define the solutions’ functional, non-functional, structural and content requirements.
Critically evaluate arguments, assumptions, abstract concepts and data (that may be incomplete), to make judgements, and to frame appropriate questions to achieve a solution - or identify a range of solutions - to a problem.
Analyse, interpret, synthesise and apply insights, to inform the development of personas, user journeys and system workflows, to ensure user and organisational needs are met.
Design, facilitate and evaluate experimental tests using tools such as A/B and multivariate testing to enable a data-led approach to the development and continual improvement of UX solutions.
Design, facilitate and evaluate requirements gathering, ideation and co-design activities, involving stakeholders and/or users.
Creatively explore and devise a range of design solutions, including the production of system and user flows, static wireframes and prototypes of varying degree of fidelity, from paper prototypes to interactive prototypes.
Adapt and evaluate design solutions according to the context of intended use, including responsive, mobile, online, offline, personal, public and enterprise, working with multidisciplinary product teams to assess the impact of implementing specific design recommendations.
Design and refine clear, logical information architectures for content and data.
Independently analyse test data, interpret results and evaluate the suitability of proposed solutions, considering current and future contexts of use, including in consultation with team members from other disciplines to ascertain a holistic view on the applicability of design recommendations.
Articulate and communicate complex information, concepts and ideas effectively and concisely, through written, visual and verbal means.
Communicate concepts in a manner appropriate to the audience, adapting communication techniques accordingly between user research participants, stakeholders or varying degrees of seniority and team members from a broad spectrum of specialist fields.
Manage expectations and present user research insight, proposed solutions and/or test findings to clients and stakeholders.
Use advanced cognitive skills to deal with competing interests within and outside the organisation, through well-reasoned arguments and excellent negotiation skills.
Work autonomously and interact effectively within wide, multidisciplinary teams, including designers, developers, engineers, analysts, project managers etc.
Identify the preferences, motivations, strengths and limitations of other people and apply these insights in order to work more effectively with and to motivate others.
Demonstrate competence in customer service, in active listening and in leading, influencing and persuading others.
Balance and trade-off competing quality, time and budget criteria, demonstrating understanding of business need, managing time effectively and being able to plan and complete UX activities to schedule.

Your training plan

At the start of the apprenticeship you will enjoy a tailored induction programme with us & Manchester Metropolitan University. This will give you the chance to get to know our business and develop your skills on the job, while at the same time continuing on a development programme designed to help you invest in your personal growth and your future with AJ Bell.

We also provide:

Mentoring & ongoing training
In-house technical and professional development training
Volunteering opportunities

At the same time as learning on-the-job, you will study for a BSc in Digital User Experience with our academic provider, Manchester Metropolitan University.

Requirements

Essential qualifications

GCSE or equivalent in:

English (grade C / 4)
Maths (grade C / 4)
UCAS points (grade 112 (actual or predicted))

Let the company know about other relevant qualifications and industry experience you have. They can adjust the apprenticeship to reflect what you already know.

Skills

Communication skills
Team working
Initiative
Creative flair

About this company

AJ Bell is one of the largest and best-regarded providers of online investment platforms and stockbroker services in the UK, with assets under administration exceeding £83.7billion and more than 528,000 customers. AJ Bell was named Large Apprenticeship Employer of the year in the North West Apprenticeship Awards 2022.

http://www.ajbell.co.uk (opens in new tab)

After this apprenticeship

If you are successful in your apprenticeship, you may have the opportunity to continue your career at AJ Bell focusing on either a managerial or technical career path.

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

MANCHESTER METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

apprenticeships@ajbell.co.uk

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000279774.

Apply now

Closes in 20 days (Friday 13 December)

When you apply, you’ll be asked to sign in with a GOV.UK One Login. You can create one at the same time as applying for this apprenticeship.

After signing in, you’ll apply for this apprenticeship on the company's website.

Company’s application instructions

Submit CV and covering letter explaining why you want a career in technology and user experience design and why you would like to join the AJ Bell apprenticeship programme. Successful candidates will then be invited to have a telephone interview. Final stage will be an assessment day in February 2025

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