Path Unbound

Course Syllabus

School of 

UI/UX Design
Course Syllabus

School of 

UI/UX Design
Overview
16 36 11 8 3 5 24
Technical
 Advisor
 Instructor

Units Exercises Projects Quizzes
Programs Meetings Sessions

Unit 1 
 Unit 9 

Introduction to Design
Design Systems

Unit 2 
 Unit 10 

Figma
Adobe Photoshop

Unit 3 
 Unit 11 

Color Theory
Design Accessibility

Unit 4 
 Unit 12 

Adobe Illustrator
Product Design Thinking

Unit 5 
 Unit 13 

Typography
User Experience Design

Unit 6 
 Unit 14 

Layout & Grids
Designing with AI

Unit 7
 Unit 15


Typesetting
Working with Clients

Unit 8 
 Unit 16


User Interface Design
Developing a Design Portfolio
Page 01
Course Syllabus

Unit 1

Intro to Design

From websites to packaging to printed

advertisements and more—design is all around


us and we interact with it everyday.

In Unit 1, you’ll dive into design and design thinking,

and begin to observe how it impacts the way we

experience the world around us. You’ll look at

examples of design and identify design principles.

Unit 2

Figma

Figma is the leading tool for digital design such as

responsive websites, mobile and desktop apps,

digital ads, and even decks and presentations.

In Unit 2, you’ll learn the fundamentals of navigating

and using Figma as a designer and then directly

apply your new skills in your first creative brief.

Page 02
Course Syllabus

Unit 3
Color Theory
Color Theory is one of the pillars of design. 

Color injects tone, mood, and evokes emotional
responses from viewers and users.

In Unit 3, you will learn about color models, how to

choose and apply color, and the psychological
impact it has on your designs.

Unit 4
Adobe 

Illustrator
Adobe Illustrator is a vector-based program used
for the creation of illustrations, graphics, icons, and
logos. Illustrator is also a great tool for creating
visually striking customized typography.

In Unit 4, you’ll learn the basics of shape and type

creation and how to manipulate them into
illustrations, graphics, and icons.

Page 03
Course Syllabus

Unit 5
Typography
Typography, another pillar of design, is an extensive
world of characters and glyphs used to convey
tone, mood, and attitude in written language.

In Unit 5, you’ll learn the history of typography as

well as the different classes, the anatomy of type,
and how to choose and pair fonts in your work.

Unit 6
Layouts & Grids
All design has an invisible structure holding its
elements in place, tying together visual details, 

and creating balance and alignment. Grids allow
you to understand space on a page.

In Unit 7, you’ll master the art of using columns,

rows, guides, and margins to create neat and
orderly pieces of design.

Page 04
Course Syllabus

Unit 7
Typesetting
Typesetting is the art of crafting text into clean,
beautiful paragraphs and columns that increase
legibility and please the reader’s eye. When you’re
dealing with large amounts of text, knowing how to
finesse it is everything.

In Unit 8, you’ll learn the technical side of laying 


out large amounts of text, and tips and tricks for
encouraging readership.

Unit 8
UI Design
User Interface Design is the visual form digital
experiences take. Colors, spacing, sizing, and
shapes of elements are all things you will consider
when creating beautiful digital design experiences.

In Unit 9, you’ll build off of all the visual design skills

you’ve learned thus far and apply them to digital
experiences like websites and apps.

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Course Syllabus

Unit 9

Design Systems

Design Systems are collections of reusable visual

components, which are leveraged heavily when

creating visual design on a large scale. The use of

these systems allow companies to retain visual

consistency and cohesion.

In Unit 10, you’ll learn how to approach creating a

design system and applying it in your own designs.

Unit 10

Adobe


Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop is a powerful pixel-based (raster)

editing program. It is used for photo retouching,

creating digital collages, manipulating imagery, 


and digital painting.

In Unit 11, you will dive into the basics of Photoshop

and learn how to best use and edit imagery.

Page 06
Course Syllabus

Unit 11

Design


Accessibility

Designing with accessibility in mind is an important

aspect of design to learn and consider. Many of

your viewers or users may have disabilities that

make readability and discoverability a challenge.

In Unit 12, you’ll learn how to approach design

accessibility and implement some techniques to

increase accessibility in your own designs.

Unit 12

Product Design


Thinking

Product Design Thinking is a specific mindset and

methodology that simplifies how you perceive

potential users’ needs and wants. It helps us

breakdown and understand who we’re designing for

and what their end goals for using our products are.

In Unit 12, you’ll begin using Product Design

Thinking methods to in order to better understand

how to create human-centered products.

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Course Syllabus

Unit 13

UX Design

User Experience Design is the design of various

physical actions a user takes throughout a digital

product. It entails understanding how best a user

can and should navigate and complete tasks in

digital product environments.

In Unit 13, you’ll learn how to research, ideate,

wireframe, and prototype digital products.

Unit 14

Designing


with AI

AI (Artificial Intelligence) is a burgeoning tool in the

designers’ arsenal. AI can aid in the creation of

verbiage and written content, photo and illustration

content, and even graphic elements.

In Unit 14, you will gain insights in how best to begin

experimenting and using AI in your design work.

Page 08
Course Syllabus

Unit 15
Working 

with Clients
One of the most important facets of being a good
designer is understanding how to work with clients
—whether it be in a freelance capacity or working
with managers and stakeholders.

In Unit 15, you’ll learn about presenting concepts,

receiving client feedback, and handing over final
design assets.

Unit 16
Developing a

Design Portfolio
A portfolio of work is the most important piece in
your self-promotional toolkit. Your portfolio serves
as an introduction and a showcase of your skillset.
Portfolios are requested with every design-related
job application, so having an exceptional one is the
key to standing out.

In Unit 16, you’ll spend several weeks working 1:1

with your instructor to refine your work and curate a
portfolio that best represents you.

Page 09
Course Syllabus

Sample Calendar Key Quiz

New Project
Exercises
Instructor Session
Advisory Session

Week 1 Unit 1: Intro to Design, Unit 2: Intro to Figma

Week 2 Unit 2: Intro to Figma (continued)

Week 3 Unit 3: Color Theory

Week 4 Unit 4: Intro to Adobe Illustrator

Week 5 Unit 4: Intro to Adobe Illustrator (continued)

Week 6 Unit 5: Typography

Week 7 Unit 6: Layout & Grids

Week 8 Unit 7: Typesetting

Week 9 Unit 8: User Interface Design

Week 10 Unit 8: User Interface Design (continued)

Week 11 Unit 9: Design Systems

Week 12 Unit 9: Design Systems (continued)

Week 13 Unit 10: Intro to Adobe Photoshop

Week 14 Unit 11: Design Accessibility

Page 10
Course Syllabus

Sample Calendar Quiz

Key

New Project

Exercises

Instructor Session

Advisory Session

Week 15 Unit 12: Product Design Thinking

Week 16 Unit 12: Product Design Thinking (continued)

Week 17 Unit 13: User Experience Design

Week 18 Unit 13: User Experience Design (continued)

Week 19 Unit 14: Designing with AI

Week 20 Unit 15: Working with Clients

Week 21 Unit 15: Working with Clients (continued)

Week 22 Unit 15: Working with Clients (continued), Unit 16: Portfolio Development

Week 23 Unit 16: Portfolio Development

Week 24 Unit 16: Portfolio Development + Personal Branding

Week 25 Unit 16: Portfolio Development + Case Studies

Week 26 Unit 16: Portfolio Development + Website Build

Week 27 Unit 16: Portfolio Development + Website Build

Week 28 Unit 16: Portfolio Website Build + Career Coaching

Page 11