My internship at Honest Fox – Josh

Bit about me

Hi, I’m Josh 👋

A few years ago, I made a big move from my small 'country' town of Mount Gambier to chase my dream of studying Graphic Design in the bustling city of Melbourne. Since then, I'm almost done with my studies at Deakin - just a few more months until I graduate with a Bachelor of Visual Communication (Design). My ultimate goal is to become a UX designer after university, which I'm very excited to pursue.

I used to work at Woolworths for what felt like ages – maybe because it was for 5 years, but I finally quit to pursue my passion for design. I'm now very fortunate to have landed a Graphic Design Internship at DUSA (Deakin University Student Association), where I'm getting heaps of hands-on design experience and learning every day. 

When I'm not busy with uni or work, I like to keep active by hitting the gym, playing some tennis or a nice walk to the fridge. If I'm not doing any of that, you can probably find me gaming, hanging out with mates, or catching up with my fam over the phone.

My journey to Honest Fox

While working at DUSA, I would always ask my boss questions about the website and often wondered who created it. When I spoke to my boss a little more about it, she offered to let me sit in on a meeting with Honest Fox, the team behind the website. I was thrilled at the opportunity to gain some valuable insights and hopefully learn a thing or two from attending the meeting.  

I was looking for work experience to support my studies at Uni. I spoke to my boss and mentioned I wanted to learn more about UX design, who offered to help. Not long after, she informed me of a potential opportunity to join the Honest Fox team – I was ecstatic!  

After exchanging emails with Linda I met her in person and we both agreed that an internship with Honest Fox would be the perfect fit. Over the course of 12 weeks, every Wednesday, I had the great opportunity of learning from their team of experts, who had a great deal of knowledge to pass on.

What I've learned at Honest Fox

Having a background in graphic design, I felt my skills in UX design were somewhat limited and I was eager to develop them further. Throughout my internship, I discovered just how different the two types of designs can be, yet there are also many transferable skills that can be applied to UX design. While graphic design relies heavily on visual communication principles, UX design involves an extensive amount of research to understand users and their needs, making the final design reliant on the research.

I was blown away by the vast amount of knowledge and experience I gained during my internship at Honest Fox. My mentor, Linda, was an exceptional leader with an impressive wealth of design expertise and innovative thinking. Over the course of my internship she taught me a range of crucial skills, including:

• Getting an insight into agency life 

• Learning the fundamentals of UX design 

• Conducting research and creating personas 

• Mapping customer journeys and conducting UX audits 

• Mapping site navigation

• Creating wireframes and prototypes 

Looking back, I can confidently say that I have developed a much deeper understanding of what it takes to become a UX designer and I now have a wider range of techniques and methods I can apply throughout my own UX design journey.

What it’s like being an intern at Honest Fox

9:00am – 9:30am

• I would normally arrive at Richmond Station at 8:40am and walk into the office a few minutes before it ticked over to 9:00am.

• Check the confluence page to check the schedule and see what I would be focusing on for the day.

• Have a quick chat with Linda. Have a bit of a catch up about the weekend and set a plan for the day.

9:30am – 11:30am

• After the day is all set, I would begin to watch the UX tutorials set out by Linda. Whilst watching them, I'd take some notes and document my findings.

11:30am – 12:30pm

• Based on the videos or tutorials I watched, I would complete an activity which was all documented using Figma.

12:30pm – 1:30pm

• Then it's lunch time! Which would normally consist of a frozen fitness meal – it may sound boring, but it's good stuff.

1:30pm – 2:30pm

• After lunch, I would have a quick meeting with Linda. It would consist of me talking through what I have learned and presenting some of the work I completed. During the second half of the meeting, Linda would show me related projects to the activity I was completing for that week, and how the team goes about doing certain UX things. 

2:30pm – 5:30pm

• After our meeting, I would continue through with my activity and use Linda’s feedback to improve my activity.

• While completing the activity, I would yell out to Linda with any questions and she was always a great help!

• Some days I would also sit and listen into different meetings.

5:30pm

• Home time! Back to the Richmond station to take the train back home.

Here’s what I enjoyed the most!

Undoubtedly, the best part of my experience with the Honest Fox team has been the incredible people. From day one, everyone was so welcoming, approachable, and seemed to be exceptionally talented in their field. This supportive environment has inspired me to continuously push myself to develop my UX skills. Additionally, the fun work culture is something that has made my time here so enjoyable. I remember the first time I walked in and saw the drinks wall, arcade machine and table tennis table, accompanied by groovy music playing in the background. It was clear to me that this wasn't your typical work environment, or anything like I was used to, I couldn't wait to see what agency life had in store. 

What’s next?

Before my internship at Honest Fox, I found myself wondering whether UX design was the right career path for me, and what type of company I would want to work for once I graduated. However, my time at the agency has provided me with the much needed clarity that UX design is without a doubt a field that genuinely interests me. 

Now having completed my internship, I'm eager to find full-time employment as a Junior UX Designer, ideally at a smaller agency with a similar work culture to Honest Fox. I have realised that working in a smaller team allows for better teamwork and the opportunity to work closer with clients.