M.A. User Experience and Interaction Design PARTICIPANTS GUIDELINES JDDA 2025

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M.A. User Experience and Interaction Design
PARTICIPANTS GUIDELINES

The JD Design Awards celebrates emerging talent in Graphic and Experience design, fashion, jewellery, and photography across India. It provides a platform for new designers to showcase their work, promoting diversity and the impact of design on global trends.

List of Contents

Initial Setup & Topic Selection
Selection of Design Mentors
Research & Ideation
Design Development
Research, Testing & Refinement
Finalization of Deliverables
Final Refinements & Pitch Deck
Final Submission & Jury Evaluation
JDDA Conclave

Stage 1: Initial Setup & Topic Selection

(Jan 25 – Feb 5, 2025)

Topic Selection: Students select 3 potential topics of interest for their projects. These should be aligned with their interests and the JDDA competition theme.
Registration: Students must submit the registration forms, confirming their participation.
Meeting with Mentor: Students meet with their class mentor to explain their ideas for feedback and confirmation of the topics selected on or before 03-02-2025.
Rejection Point: If a student fails to participate in the Theme Unveiling (Feb 5), they will be disqualified from further stages.

Stage 2: Research & Ideation

(Feb 6 – Feb 20)
Feb 6 – Feb 12, 2025:

Final Topic Selection: Based on the JDDA theme, students reassess their selected topics and finalize the one they will pursue.
- Deliverables: Final concept presentation (PDF, PPTX)
Mentor Approval: The mentor approves the selected final concept. Feedback is gathered and improvements made.
User Research & Personas: Students conduct in-depth research on user behaviours, needs, and pain points, compiling detailed user personas.
- Deliverables: Research reports (PDF/DOCX), User personas (JPEG/PNG, DOCX)
Competitive Analysis: Students analyze competitors and similar case studies/ products or designs in the market, identifying gaps and opportunities.
- Deliverables: Competitive analysis report (PDF/DOCX)

Feb 13 – Feb 16, 2025:

Concept Development: Generate 3 initial design concepts, supported by mood boards and wireframes.
- Deliverables: Concept boards (JPEG/PNG, PDF), Mood boards (JPEG/PNG, PDF), Wireframes (Sketch, Figma files)
- Deliverables: Final concept presentation (PDF, PPTX)
Mentor Approval: The mentor approves the selected final concept. Feedback is gathered and improvements made.
Rejection Point: Students must submit research reports and analysis by the end of each sub-stage by following the timeline provided. Failure to do so results in rejection.

Stage 3: Design Development

(Feb 21 – Mar 7)
Feb 21 – Feb 26, 2025:

UI Design: Students begin developing high-fidelity UI designs for their selected concept.
- Deliverables: High-fidelity UI designs (PNG/JPEG, Figma/Sketch/XD files)
Prototyping: Students build an interactive, clickable prototype demonstrating the key user flows.
- Deliverables: Clickable prototype (Figma/Framer/Webflow files)

Feb 27 – Mar 3, 2025:

User Testing: Conduct usability testing on the prototype (using tools like Framer or Webflow), collecting feedback on usability.
- Deliverables: User testing report (PDF/DOCX)
- Rejection Point: If the “Draft of High fidelity prototype” and user testing analysis are not submitted, students will be rejected.

Mar 4 – Mar 7, 2025:

Review Meeting with Mentor: Feedback session with mentors to refine design elements.

Stage 3: Design Development

(Feb 21 – Mar 7)
Feb 21 – Feb 26, 2025:

UI Design: Students begin developing high-fidelity UI designs for their selected concept.
- Deliverables: High-fidelity UI designs (PNG/JPEG, Figma/Sketch/XD files)
Prototyping: Students build an interactive, clickable prototype demonstrating the key user flows.
- Deliverables: Clickable prototype (Figma/Framer/Webflow files)

Feb 27 – Mar 3, 2025:
User Testing: Conduct usability testing on the prototype (using tools like Framer or Webflow), collecting feedback on usability.

Deliverables: User testing report (PDF/DOCX)
Rejection Point: If the “Draft of High fidelity prototype” and user testing analysis are not submitted, students will be rejected.

Mar 4 – Mar 7, 2025:

Review Meeting with Mentor: Feedback session with mentors to refine design elements.

Stage 4: Research, Testing & Refinement

(Mar 8 – Mar 20)
Mar 8 – Mar 12, 2025:

Usability Testing: Students perform usability tests with at least 5 users, identifying pain points and gathering insights for refinement.
- Deliverables: Usability testing results (PDF/DOCX, user feedback)
Feedback Implementation: Students implement changes to the UI design based on usability feedback, refining interactions and user flows.

Mar 13 – Mar 16, 2025:

Deliverables: Refined UI design (updated PNG/JPEG, Figma files)

Micro Animations & User Flows: Students create micro-animations and detailed user flows to improve the design experience.
- Deliverables: Micro animations (GIF/MP4), User flows (PNG/JPEG, Figma/Sketch files)
Industry Collaboration: Confirm any collaboration outcomes with industry partners (if applicable), integrating feedback into the design.
Mentor Approval: Mentor approves the Micro Animation and User flows. Feedback is gathered and improvements made.
Rejection Point: Students must submit Micro Animation and User flows and analysis by the end of this stage. Failure to do so results in rejection.

Mar 17 – Mar 20, 2025:

Review meeting: Present the refined design and prototype for mentor review.

Stage 5: Finalization of Deliverables

(Mar 21 – Apr 10)
Mar 21 – Mar 25, 2025:

Finalize Prototype: Polish the interactive prototype, ensuring that user flows are smooth and all functionality is integrated.
- Deliverables: Final prototype (Figma/Framer/Webflow link, or hosted online)

Mar 26 – Mar 30, 2025:

Process Book: Begin compiling a comprehensive Process Book/Journal that documents the entire design process.
- Deliverables: Process Book (PDF)

Mar 31 – Apr 3, 2025:

Brand Imagery: Develop an imagery board showcasing the visual elements, including brand colours, typography, and graphics.
- Deliverables: Brand Imagery board (PNG/JPEG, PDF)

Apr 4 – Apr 10, 2025:

Final Review: Submit all deliverables for mentor approval (including UI designs, prototypes, mood boards, and user testing reports).
- Deliverables: UI designs, Prototypes, Mood boards, Testing reports
- Rejection Point: Failure to submit the “UI designs, Prototypes, Mood boards” will result in rejection.

Stage 6: Final Refinements & Pitch Deck

(Apr 11 – Apr 20)
Apr 11 – Apr 15, 2025:

Pitch Deck Preparation: Students prepare a comprehensive pitch deck that includes:
- Research insights
- User personas
- Final design solution
- Material board
- Industry collaboration outcomes
- Deliverables: Pitch Deck (PPTX/Google Slides, PDF)

Apr 16 – Apr 20, 2025:

Prototype Finalization: Ensure the prototype is polished for presentation, with any final changes implemented.
Pitch Deck Refinement: Final revisions based on mentor feedback.
Rejection Point: Failure to submit the Pitch Deck within the timeline will result in rejection.

Stage 7: Final Submission & Jury Evaluation

(Apr 21 – May 2, 2025)

Apr 21 – Apr 25, 2025:

Final Submission: Submit all final deliverables for jury evaluation:
- A2 concept boards (SunBoard)
- Final prototype and interactive workflow (XD / Figma)
- Moodboard and imagery
- Design journal (Hard Copy)
- Industry collaboration outcomes
- Final pitch deck (PPT / DOCX / PDF)
- Deliverables: Complete submission package (ZIP file with all required files)

Apr 26 – May 1, 2025:

Jury Evaluation: The jury members evaluate the projects, with potential follow-up questions and discussions to clarify design decisions.

Stage 8: JDDA Conclave & Awards

JDDA Conclave: Showcase the final projects at the JDDA Conclave.
- Deliverables: Exhibition-ready materials (poster presentations, prototype demo)
Final Presentations: Finalists present their work live to the jury members.
- Deliverables: Presentation slides, prototype walkthrough

Key Deliverables Summary

Project Brief (format): PDF/DOCX
Research Reports: PDF, DOCX
Concept Boards: JPEG/PNG, PDF
Journals/Process Book: PDF
Web Application/Platform: Figma, Webflow, or hosted platform
Interactive Display Screens (HCI): Interactive prototypes (Figma, Webflow)
Concept Prototypes: Figma, Webflow, Framer
Mobile Applications: App mockups (iOS/Android), Figma, XD, or Sketch files.