NU Mobile
Mobile Application
NU Mobile is a prototype for a redesign of Northeastern University's student app, NUGO.
The Northeastern University student app, known as NUGO, frustrated both myself and fellow students due to its unintuitive interface and lack of key capabilities. My team and I redesigned the interface and added capabilities to further improve the app's utility and user experience. This project resulted in a fully functioning prototype.
Context
In my Design Process, Context & Systems course, I was tasked to improve something (anything!) about the Northeastern University student experience. Immediately, I knew I wanted to redesign the NUGO app; I used it everyday and was frustrated with it, but saw its potential. To determine how to improve the app, aside from personal experience, I interviewed my peers to gather feedback. I also researched other university apps when planning my design.
Overall Design
It was important that the design adhered to Northeastern University’s brand guidelines. I pulled inspiration for the design from the brand style guide as well as various Northeastern platforms, such as MyNortheastern. It was important to ensure consistency in branding between NU Mobile and existing university platforms.
Profile
A “Profile” page was created to provide students with identifying information that is easily forgotten, especially as a new student: their NU ID number, mailbox combination, etc. Now, students no longer have to sign into other university portals to retrieve this information; it would be available at their fingertips.
Schedule
The “Schedule” page was redesigned to operate more smoothly and effectively. Here, students can easily swipe through the days of the week to view their schedule. Bolded class names and bright red start and end times ensure that students see only the important information.
To reduce the challenges caused by having multiple email accounts, I created an in-app, full-functioning email widget. Here, students would have the full capabilities that the Gmail app has. Students can more easily view, compose, and reply to emails.
Buildings
The existing “Buildings” page in the NUGO app lacked aesthetics, but I loved the convenience of this resource. I upgraded the design to ensure the elements were consistent with the rest of the app.
Safety
A “Safety” page was added, as there is no existing resource for students to find this information all in one place. Here, students can simply tap a button to call for the appropriate help.
Homepage
When designing the app, I prioritized the homepage. I wanted to ensure that it only included content that users needed access to on a daily basis, such as the weather or their schedule. I wanted to created a “one-stop shop” for students’ day-to-day needs.
Menu
The menu bar was redesigned to be simple and easy to navigate. It includes pages I thought were useful from the existing app, eliminated those that I deemed useless, and features new pages I thought were essential to add.
