Sugandha's Fellowship Experience

‍TL;DR‍

After earning a BMS degree, Sugandha shifted to product design to pursue her true interests. While working as a full-time product designer, she recognised knowledge gaps and joined ownpath’s Product Design Fellowship, benefiting from industry mentors and structured learning.

The Fellowship refined her skills in research and storytelling. Active in the design community, she used networking and mentor guidance to secure a role as a Senior Product Designer at Itu Chaudhuri Design. She emphasises the importance of adapting to business realities and learning proactively.

This is her story: 

I was always a creative kid, but it felt safer to follow a mainstream career path, so I pursued a BMS degree. Eventually, I felt the need to switch to something more aligned with my core interests. During COVID, I started working full-time as an artist, attending classes, and taking commissioned work.

I used this time to reflect on what I really wanted to do and discovered product design. The idea of making a measurable impact on both the business and customers drew me to it. It also seemed like a very collaborative field, which I liked because I wanted to come out of my shell.

I started learning on my own through YouTube and online courses, and I networked since I didn't know anyone in the field. I posted my work on social media, iterated based on feedback, refined my portfolio, and eventually got a job at Cosmofeed as a product designer.

However, at an early-stage startup, you don’t have much time to learn from your work or peers. You’re expected to deliver results immediately, and I felt there was a foundational gap in my understanding of the design process. One of my mentors suggested I join ownpath’s Product Design Fellowship.

What stood out about the program was that the mentors were full-time reputed industry professionals. They understood the realities and constraints of working in the industry. The Fellowship also had good reviews from previous participants, which made me sign up.

I had never done any kind of research before, so I was especially excited about Swathy’s class on Design Research. It helped me understand how to apply research processes in my work at a small-scale startup. Akshay’s classes on Interaction Design filled in the gaps in my approach to design problems. Shivani’s class on the Psychology of Design helped me understand user behaviour, moving beyond just UI/UX. One of the best sessions was the storytelling class with Manali, which clarified how to incorporate storytelling into my case studies. These sessions also helped me connect and work with other Fellows.

Before the Fellowship, I learned everything on my own from the internet, where there's a lot of noise. It’s difficult to distinguish between reliable and unreliable information. The classes and interactions with good mentors filled gaps in my understanding. I utilised these interactions to ask as many questions as possible. The Fellowship helped me build my research foundation and structure my approach to problem-solving.

It helped to be active in the design community too, posting about my work and participating in events. I frequently attended networking events in the city, where I could get advice from senior folks. Referrals are one of the best ways to get your foot in the industry.

During this time, I also reached a saturation point in my learning at my job. I decided to look for new opportunities and got help from mentors to perfect my case studies for applications. One struggle was quantifying and communicating the impact of my work during interviews. I sought help from ownpath mentors like Kenneth, Apoorva, and Vikalp. Eventually, I learned about an opportunity with Itu Chaudhuri Design through ownpath. After an introductory round and an in-person design assignment, I secured the role of Senior Product Designer with the studio.

My experience so far has taught me that there's no perfect design process. If a feature needs to be shipped in two days, it has to be done. As a designer, it’s important to understand business realities because being profitable is necessary for survival. You need to work with constraints and deliver good design on time.

My advice to current Fellows is to attend all classes and make the most of the Fellowship. Getting two hours each week with such amazing mentors is invaluable. Use this time to discuss your work, portfolio, or interviews. Don’t solely depend on mentors or ownpath for everything too. Be proactive, practice, work on your own projects, and seek help when needed.

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If you're looking to make a career transition, or level up in product design, learn more about ownpath's Product Design Fellowship.

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