Wolverine Navigation App

Making navigating the UofM campus easier!

Role: UX Researcher, Team Member

Tools: Figma, Miro, Google forms

Duration: 12 weeks in class

Outcome: Learnt the various techniques of User Research, achieved an A+ Grade

Summary

Our team of four researchers studied the challenges students face navigating the University of Michigan campus. We examined current navigational apps and student preferences to identify issues and needs. Through interviews and surveys, we gathered insights to inform the development of a more effective navigational app.

Purpose

We wanted to study the challenges students face when navigating campus, so we can develop an app that addresses them and facilitates their experience on campus. The purpose of this app is to provide easy wayfinding and shortcuts to campus buildings.

Process

Contextual Inquiries

We conducted a semi- structured interview and compiled a few questions about navigating the campus to begin our research. To find data for our research, we conducted a contextual inquiry with 8 students who frequently navigate the campus. All of us played the role of an interviewer as well as a notetaker while collecting data. Through these, we learnt that apps are most useful when traveling between North and Central campus.

Participant 5: "I like Google maps more than Apple maps, cause the interface is more familiar and usable"

Affnity Diagram

To structure the coded information from our inquiries, we created an Affinity Diagram on Miro. This diagram helped us to highlight important information from the interviews and group them together. We tried to represent all the problems in a simple and concise manner that would help us in later stages of designing the app. To avoid any bias, we made sure to include all data that goes against our research too.

Survey Data

We also created a survey on Google Forms to understand our target audience more. We sent it out to UofM students, and received around 20 responses. Through this survey, we learnt about the factors behind the decision of which form of transportation to use. It also showed which navigational apps students prefer. Using these surveys, we combined two questions to interpret and compare strong findings. This enabled us to gauge a stronger perception on how students navigate the campus.

85% cared for the ease of use

Among other factors, familiarity of app was also important in considering which app to use.

Task Analysis Diagram

A task analysis diagram outlines the steps a student currently takes to complete a task, highlighting pain points like difficulty finding rooms in buildings. By analyzing the frequency, order, and cognitive load of these steps, we identified key areas for our app to address, making this deliverable crucial to our research.

50% preferred Google Maps

On the other hand, 45% people preferred Apple maps, and very few people used the Michigan apps.

Outcome of Research Deliverables

Storyboard

A storyboard illustrates how our wayfinding app will be used by our persona—an international freshman struggling to navigate campus. By depicting future scenarios where the app solves these challenges, the storyboard highlights the app's unique value and relevance.

Persona Map

Using our findings, my team and I found our main persona and created a Persona Map.

Next Steps

This research provides a lot of insight into what challenges student face navigating the campus. However, in the future, the interface and implementation of the app should be studied more as there is not a clear reason as to why people prefer a certain app over the other. Using A/B testing, different versions of the app to navigate inside the building should be experimented with. If we had unlimited time and resources, we would like to create a prototype of the app that students can use and provide feedback. Ideally, we would like to launch the app and collaborate with the university to promote it to students.

My Key Takeaways

  • Insight into Navigation Challenges: The research provided valuable insights into the specific challenges students face when navigating the campus, which will guide the development of targeted solutions.

  • Understanding App Preferences: The research highlighted the need to explore why students prefer certain navigation apps over others, suggesting future efforts should delve into user interface preferences and app usability.

  • Prototypying and Feedback: Given more time and resources, creating a prototype for student feedback would be ideal, with the long-term goal of launching the app in collaboration with the university for wider adoption.