Cownect
Product Design
Timeline
June - September 2025
Role
Product Designer
Design Tools
Figma/Canva
Problem
At UC Davis and beyond, students, especially in tech, struggle to find supportive communities that go beyond surface-level networking. Existing platforms and clubs are often too broad, fragmented, or exclusive, leaving students unsure how to connect with peers who share their passions and goals. There is no dedicated platform that helps UC Davis students and aspiring tech talent build authentic connections, collaborate on projects, and access mentorship to support both personal growth and professional opportunities.
Goal
The goal of Cownect is to provide UC Davis students, especially those in tech, with an accessible platform that simplifies the overwhelming process of navigating campus opportunities. By introducing clubs, events, mentorship, and career exploration into one hub, Cownect helps students move beyond scattered information and surface-level networking. The platform was designed with student needs at the center, aiming to make it easier for every student, whether new to campus or exploring career paths, to connect with the right communities, discover meaningful opportunities, and grow both personally and professionally.
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Research
For research, I combined competitive analysis with student feedback to understand where current solutions fall short. I looked at websites like Clubly and Expresso to see what they did well, such as having clean event listings and club directories, and where they struggled, like lacking personalization or mentorship features. I also talked with UC Davis tech students who shared how overwhelming it felt to sort through scattered information across social media, flyers, and club fairs.
Visual Theme & Layout
Cownect combines a clean and approachable theme, primarily using bright blue and light blue tones, paired with white and black text for clarity. This color palette supports a modern and student-friendly feel, aligning with the platform’s fous on helping UC Davis students connect, collaborate, and grow in tech.
The landing page opens with a bold headline and supporting text, inviting students to join Cownect and start exploring opportunities in the UC Davis tech community. Beneath this, clear calls-to-action guide users to discover clubs, view events, or take the career path quiz.
Clicking on “Tech Clubs” takes students to a searchable club directory, where they can filter by categories such as software, hardware, or data science. Each club card displays the group’s name, description, tags, and logo, with the option to bookmark for later. Similarly, the “Events” page highlights featured events at the top, followed by a calendar view where students can add events directly to their own schedule.
To make the experience more personal, Cownect also offers a “Find Your Tech Path” quiz that provides career-aligned recommendations. On the “Mentor Matching” page, students can browse mentor profiles that include interests, career paths, and hobbies, and schedule one-on-one coffee chats. These features work together to create a centralized, engaging hub that helps UC Davis students navigate the tech community with clarity and confidence.
Final Design
The prototyping phase was a critical part of the Cownect project, shaping how students would interact with the platform. This stage involved testing different layouts, navigation flows, and visual elements to make sure the experience was clear, approachable, and student-friendly. A lot of attention went into refining the color palette, typography, and iconography to create a consistent look that aligned with the theme of community and connection.
From the arrangement of club cards to the structure of the events calendar and mentor profiles, every detail was iterated on multiple times. Balancing clarity with engagement was essential, as the goal was to give students quick access to the information they needed without overwhelming them. Over time, the design took shape into a cohesive system with bright blues, clean layouts, and intuitive interactions that made discovering clubs, exploring events, and connecting with mentors feel seamless and easy to navigate.
Conclusion & Takeaway
The final design delivers a platform where students can quickly find clubs that align with their tech passions. by combining visual clarity, motivational cues, and a strong sense of identity, cownect turns what used to be an overwhelming process into a streamlined and inspiring one.
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