Undergraduate/Graduate Design Fellow

The New Jersey State Office of Innovation

The New Jersey State Office of Innovation is looking for diverse and experienced team members to deploy world-class innovative and digital services that solve pressing public interest challenges for the people of New Jersey. Our work spans numerous issue and policy areas, and is focused on making an impact in the lives of the New Jerseyans that we serve. Our work has decreased the amount of time it takes to apply for Unemployment Insurance, made it easier to start, operate, and grow a business in the Garden State, and connected millions of New Jerseyans to government programs, services, and benefits.

Our team members wear many hats, contributing to both the execution of core projects and the evolution of the Office of Innovation (OOI). We use data and modern research, design, and development methods to inform our decision making, and we collaborate with stakeholders within and outside of government to understand and solve challenges. To learn more about the New Jersey Office of Innovation, visit our About Us page.

We are seeking undergraduate or graduate design students who are interested in the intersection of design and public service. Fellows will be assigned a design mentor, be embedded in a cross-functional product development team, and actively contribute to the projects that team works on. We’re looking for design students who are passionate about either visual design or design research, and are looking for an opportunity to apply those skills towards the delivery of benefits and services to New Jerseyans. 

Candidates will specify their interest in either a research track or visual design track in the application.

• Solve complex problems through the use of human-centered design, agile development, and data-driven decision making.
• Participate in collaborative workshops to communicate users needs and collaborate with internal teams and external stakeholders.
• Take part in office-wide initiatives and stand-ups to enable collaboration and support across projects.

• Pair with another designer to create design concepts, prototypes and mockups for mobile and web interfaces; developing designs for our products with NJ resident needs in mind.
• Assist in creating visual frameworks - like design sketches, wireframes, journey maps, and other guides that inform the development of products and can be shared with team members and stakeholders.
• Partner closely with designers, engineers, product managers, and other team members to translate UX/UI design into iteratively developed products.

• Shadow and assist in end-to-end user research, using modern practices and tools to arrive at key insights and solutions.
• Contribute to crafting user research plans to be used for discovery, concept validation, content refinement and user testing.
• Collaborate with another designer on user research recruitment strategy and execution.
• Synthesize user research into themes, insights, and suggested next steps.

• Passion for your craft: You have a passion for user-centered design principles, visual design, interaction design best practices, and research methodologies.
• User advocate: You approach problems with curiosity, asking questions and working to understand New Jerseyans’ needs to design optimal solutions.
• Clear, effective communicator: You excel in storytelling and providing rationale, promoting understanding and fostering alignment through your words and designs.
• Effective Collaborator: You’re a team player with a positive outlook and an entrepreneurial spirit.
• Committed to DEI and accessibility: You’re always asking: “Whose voice is not at the table?” You have experience working with diverse stakeholders and you deeply value creating a society that is supportive of difference.
• Mission-oriented: You believe in the mission of the Office of Innovation and are passionate about solving pressing public interest challenges for the people of New Jersey.

• Actively enrolled in either an undergraduate or graduate design program related to product design, service design, design research, or design in public service.
• Available to work 20-30 hours a week within 9am-5pm EST.
• Experience defining user needs and experience goals using such frameworks as personas, storyboards, scenarios, and flowcharts.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to interact with a diverse range of individuals.
• Portfolio demonstrating design research or visual design; please be sure to include process and outputs.

• Familiarity with Figma and/or Adobe Creative Suite.
• Experience prototyping designs at varying levels of fidelity using wireframes, click-through prototypes, and high fidelity designs.
• Experience with mobile first design preferred.

• Experience conducting user research in the form of user interviews, usability testing, surveys, and the like.
• Experience designing research tools such as conversation guides, screener questions, etc.
• Familiarity determining and measuring behavioral metrics.

We welcome applications that don’t meet 100% of our requirements. If you believe that you could excel in this role, we encourage you to apply. If you have any questions, please contact heather@innovation.nj.gov.

Compensation:  Paid, hourly wage of $20-35 per hour dependent upon experience.

The New Jersey Office of Innovation is proud to be an equal opportunity employer

We are deeply committed to the principles of equity, diversity, and inclusiveness and seek to create a pluralistic community for all. We strongly encourage people of color, members of racial and ethnic minority groups, women, LGBTQI+ people, those with disabilities, and Veterans to apply. We are committed to building a team that is reflective of New Jersey’s incredible diversity.

We do not discriminate against any candidate because of color, race, age, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, membership in an employee organization, pregnancy, marital status, status as a parent, ancestry, national origin, disability (physical or mental), family medical history or genetic information, political affiliation, military service, retaliation, or other non-merit based factors.

Eligibility

You must be authorized to work in the United States. Candidates may be required to pass a background check and complete additional steps as part of the application and onboarding process. You will be considered an “at-will” employee, meaning both employer and employee have the right to terminate employment with or without cause or notice.