SoundCloud
SoundCloud is a global music company whose mission is to empower artists and fans to connect and share through music. For the summer of 2025, I was a UX Research and Design Intern.
Overview
Disclaimer
Due to NDA reasons, I can't show the bulk of my work that I did at SoundCloud, but I can describe the high-level contributions I made and what I learned along the way.
Contributions
Research
I utilized research methods such as competitive analyses, audits, usability testing, and interviews to gather user insights and inform strategic business and design decisions.
Design
I co-designed UI updates on desktop and mobile for assets such as banners and track cells in Figma. I also assisted with reorganizing the company's UX design style guide, working with styles and components.
Intern Capstone
I presented a capstone project with research and design explorations to reimagine the product experience surrounding private tracks/links. Research methods included competitive analyses, audits, interviews, and existing internal research. I created medium fidelity designs for the product experience to communicate my idea of creating a dedicated private track space. I also included some high fidelity explorations of the main screens.
Learnings
Keep things organized
As I was introduced to so many new workflows, it helped to keep a Google Doc of meeting notes and to use Notion/Google Sheets to track projects and tasks. My notes served as a constant diary of what was going on. I used AI to consolidate them after so I wouldn't have to worry about organization while the information was being given.
Establish a methodology
After rinsing and repeating many research briefs, audits, competitive analyses, and takeaways, I developed a muscle memory for how to approach research projects. It begins with the problem that needs solving and questions about it. Once the right questions are asked, I can start answering them with research. I learned to avoid assumptions and listen to users. Qualitative methods like interviews can offer raw honesty that a survey might not.
Be creative within constraints
The type of creativity that arises in product design at a more established company does not typically involve much novelty, but rather involves thinking outside the box while working within a design system and constraints.