Mentor-Led Online UX, UI and Product Design Courses
Designlab teaches UX, UI and product design entirely online, built around one-to-one mentorship with a working designer rather than video lectures alone. The range runs from four-week short courses in a single tool or skill through to UX Academy, a full career-change bootcamp ending in a portfolio of case-study projects. In recent years the catalogue has shifted markedly toward AI, with courses covering AI-assisted research, prototyping and product design alongside the traditional craft subjects.
UX Academy — the career-change bootcamp
The flagship programme, aimed at people moving into design from another field. It covers the full process — research, interaction design, visual design, prototyping and testing — alongside the AI-assisted workflows design teams now use. Students work one-to-one with an experienced mentor throughout and finish with a portfolio of case-study projects rather than just a certificate, followed by career coaching. Entry is by application and includes a design challenge, so it is not an open-enrolment course. Full-time, part-time and self-paced pacing are all available.
UX Academy Foundations — the beginner route in
Built for complete beginners as the lead-in to UX Academy, covering visual and UI design fundamentals and design software. Anyone without a design background is normally expected to take it first. Completing Foundations earns a credit toward UX Academy tuition, so for candidates who go on to the bootcamp it largely pays for itself — worth checking the current credit value before enrolling.
AI courses for designers
The fastest-growing part of the catalogue. AI for UX Design and AI for Visual Design apply AI to existing workflows to speed up research, wireframing and idea generation. Designing AI Products covers the patterns, content craft and oversight behind products that use AI. AI Prototyping Camp and Vibe Coding Camp are live intensives run over four weeks, and AI for the Lean Marketer extends the same thinking outside the design team. The AI Product Design Certification pulls three of these courses together with a self-directed capstone into a single credential.
Figma and prototyping
Advanced Figma is a four-week course covering components, auto-layout and design tokens — the techniques that separate a tidy file from a maintainable one. Prototyping in Figma goes further into high-fidelity, interactive prototypes that demonstrate real interactions rather than static screens. Both suit designers already working in the tool who want to stop fighting it.
Craft, data and commercial skills
Design 101 is the general introduction to visual design, aimed at marketers, founders and creators rather than designers. Advanced Design Craft is an eight-week studio-style certification for sharpening UI judgement. Advanced Usability & Accessibility covers inclusive design, which matters increasingly as accessibility duties tighten. Data-Driven Design runs six weeks on collecting and interpreting data to justify design decisions, and Strategic Business Acumen for Designers gives the commercial frameworks needed to argue a case to stakeholders.
How the mentorship model works
What separates Designlab from self-paced video platforms is the feedback loop. Courses pair the curriculum with a working designer who reviews your project work, and the expectation is that you iterate on each piece two or three times rather than submitting once and moving on. Most courses also run weekly peer group sessions. That structure is why the courses suit people who need accountability, and why they cost more than a subscription library.
Cohorts, bundles and tuition
Courses run to a published cohort calendar with new start dates most weeks rather than rolling enrolment, so the start date is worth checking before you commit. Bundling multiple Advanced courses carries a discount. Tuition is set and charged in US dollars by the provider; UX Academy adds an enrolment deposit and offers monthly payment plans and third-party financing, generally restricted to US residents or applicants with a US co-signer. Prices shown here are correct at the time of listing — take current pricing from the Designlab website.
Training a design team
Separate formats exist for organisations rather than individuals, covering AI training for UX and product teams, AI training for visual design teams, data visualisation, and design systems. Multi-seat enrolment and private training are arranged directly with the provider rather than through open course booking.
