Hey Reader,

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If you’ve been applying for UXR roles and keep hearing silence after the interview, I want to share something with you that I tell a lot of my coaching clients:

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It’s not always about how much experience you have. It’s about how clearly you show your readiness.

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When I talk to hiring managers, especially those hiring for entry-level or junior researcher roles, they tell me the same things again and again. The people who stand out aren’t always the ones with perfect portfolios. They’re the ones who can explain their thinking, make connections, and show curiosity about the bigger picture.

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Here’s what that looks like in practice:

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💡 You understand the “why.”

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If I asked you to walk me through a study, could you explain why that research mattered? What decision did it help the team make? For example, if you ran usability tests for a mobile app, don’t just say “I tested five participants.”

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Try this instead:

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“We wanted to understand where users were getting stuck during checkout so the design team could simplify the flow.”

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That kind of framing tells hiring managers you think beyond methods, you think about outcomes.

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🗣️ You can communicate your thinking.

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One of the biggest mistakes early researchers make is describing what they did instead of what they learned.

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Here’s a quick tip: structure your interview stories like this:

1. “Here’s what we were trying to understand”
2. “Here’s what I found”
3. “Here’s how it influenced the next step”

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This helps the interviewer imagine you as part of their team (someone who can synthesize, influence, and make insights actionable).

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🧩 You connect the dots.

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Let’s say your manager gives you a task to “write an interview guide.” Do you stop there, or do you ask questions like:

• Who’s the audience for this?

• What decisions will this research inform?

• How will the findings be used?

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That mindset and connecting each piece of work to the bigger process is what tells hiring managers you can grow quickly.

🌱 You can translate your background.

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If you’ve pivoted into UX from another career, don’t downplay that. Translate it.

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I’ve coached people from all kinds of backgrounds who felt “behind” or like they didn't belong but their people skills, storytelling, and pattern-recognition abilities made them incredible researchers.

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Hiring managers notice when you can clearly connect those dots:

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“My background in education helps me design studies that account for how people learn new tools.”

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OR

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“My time in customer support taught me how to listen for the real problem behind what someone says.”

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That’s gold. The truth is, early-career hiring is competitive right now. But every time a candidate can show how they think, it shifts the entire conversation.

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So next time you prepare for an interview, don’t just rehearse your methods. Rehearse your reasoning. Practice explaining why it mattered and what changed because of it. That’s what turns you from “a junior researcher” into “someone we want to invest in.”

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You’ve got this. And if you want more help crafting your story or sharpening your interview prep, I’ve got some new coaching spots open now.

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All the best,

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Eniola Abioye 💛

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​UXR Career Coach and Founder, UX Outloud

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PS: Forward to a friend who's in the UXR space, sharing is caring!

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