Apprenticeship

Our mission is to help designers grow.

Most companies don't have the time to invest in new designers. DIA Design Guild prides itself in providing a safe environment for early career and transitioning professionals to flex their skills and develop their portfolio by pairing them with senior coaches.

Since the beginning, DIA Design promotes apprenticeship and pair design through teaming up a less experienced designer/researcher with a more experienced team advisor. Anyone can apply to be an apprentice at DIA Design. In fact, everyone on the team is assumed to be an apprentice because we believe that everyone is constantly learning and developing their skills.

Compensation

At the moment, DIA Design does not offer paid apprenticeships, unless it is with a paying client or project. We are saving up so that we will be able to offer this in the future.

However, what you will get from an apprenticeship is

  • one-on-one weekly or biweekly coaching with a mentor
  • experience working on a real project with a nonprofit, open-source, or volunteer organization from project definition to execution.
  • letter of recommendation or reference

Selection Criteria

Anyone who has some understanding of UX foundational skills and have some transferable skills in research, design, and or development.

Pulling back the curtain on the apprentice selection process
We’ve been getting a lot of applications for the DIA Design Guild’s Apprentice Program and we want to be transparent about how we’re reviewing the applications.

Applications

Sorry, the application process for 2024 has passed. We won't be accepting any apprenticeships until January 2025.

Subscribe to our newsletter to keep posted on when we're open for applications.


Mentors

We're always looking for mentors to join our program. Whether you're a visiting mentor who's available for office hours or a quick question or dedicated mentor to be paired with an apprentice for the long haul, we welcome you!

Be a mentor with DIA
How we mentor has a lot to do with our UX philosophy: User experience is a mindset, a process, and an approach to everyday life.

Past application periods