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ClassMate
Solving campus navigation with a student-first design approach
MY ROLE
Research
Design
User-testing
PROJECT TYPE
Class project
DURATION
8 weeks
TOOLS
Figma
Upham Hall at Miami University, known for the Upham Arch tradition symbolizing eternal love, houses six departments, labs, and classrooms within a complex U-shaped, four-story layout. However, poor signage and design make navigation difficult.
Over 8 weeks, our five-person team conducted research through stakeholder interviews, secondary sources, and in-person observations, then developed and prototyped solutions to improve wayfinding
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2 Weeks
2 Weeks
1 Week
Problem
Our team took a field trip to Upham Hall and walked around the building. We found:
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Confusing, illiterate and inconsistent signage
Inconsistent room numbering system
Lack of accessible entrances and routes
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Inconvenient bathrooms and elevators locations
Research
INTERVIEWS
To explore the problem sources, we interviewed the staff and faculty working in Upham Hall.
Upham Hall originally was 3 separate buildings merged into one, creating a U-shaped architecture
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Wall height changes when walking between the North, Center, and Southeast Wings.
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Stairs and ramps connect different wings, causing elevation inconsistencies.
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Room numbering lacks a logical pattern (e.g., room 167 exists, but no room 267).
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The inconsistent layout makes it difficult for users to navigate and locate rooms.
With the lack of patterns, users find it challenging to find their destination in Upham
If the numbering system is confusing, then why don't we change the signs?
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Miami University no longer has its own sign shop.
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Outsourcing sign services is costly, so departments often use their own budgets.
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Some, like Steven Sullivan of the Hefner Museum, even create signs themselves to guide visitors.
FLY-ON-THE-WALL OBSERVATION
We also observed the building the flow during class transitions, and found key information:
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The Arch is the busiest area. Most students enter the building through the arch.
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Students prefer stairs to elevators.
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Depending on the students' classrooms, they enter the building through the destined entrances.
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When exiting Upham, students go through whichever door is the closest to them.
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Students with different majors have different navigating patterns.
Contextualize
PERSONAS
We identified 3 main user groups and created their personas:
Jacob – The Dedicated Professor
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A seasoned Anthropology professor who has worked in Upham Hall for over 15 years. Despite his experience, he still finds the building’s layout confusing, especially when moving between classrooms or transporting equipment. His biggest frustration is the inefficient navigation, which often eats into his tightly packed schedule. His goal is to get to his classes and office quickly and on time to ensure a smooth, focused teaching experience.
Brian – The Curious but Confused Newcomer
A business student who attends class in Upham Hall just twice a week. As someone unfamiliar with the building, he finds the layout disorienting and signage unhelpful. He prefers using the stairs but struggles when he can’t find elevators or navigate from unfamiliar entrances. Brian’s goal is to simplify his experience by finding a consistent and efficient path to class without unnecessary confusion.
Emily – The Social and Spirited Learner
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An outgoing first-year student passionate about world cultures. Although she enjoys her classes in Upham, she frequently gets lost due to inconsistent signage and varying entry points. Her habit of entering through different doors adds to the confusion. Emily’s goal is to find more reliable, faster routes to her classes and professors’ offices to reduce lateness and stress.
ETHNOGRAPHIC VIDEO
To gauge a better understanding of Brian's user journey when navigating Upham Hall. we created an ethnographic video.
Narrowing it down...
POINT OF VIEWS
find a faster way to move around Upham to save valuable time through the use of shortcuts.
Anthropology Professors
need to locate classes reasonably by needing to only look at point A and the exit of the building.
All Students
find pathways to classes through shortcuts to get in and out quickly to minimize time.
Anthropology Students
A SOLUTION THAT FITS ALL
How Might We...
find wayfinding shortcuts for all users of Upham to help them get to their destination more efficiently and in a timely manner?
Design
BRAINSTORM & WIREFRAMING
We brainstormed and proposed different ideas for the prototype
PROTOTYPE
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User testing
​We interviewed 6 students and asked them to experience the prototype 2 tasks: Get to room 389 by themselves and using the prototype
We observed their behavior and time to perform the tasks. During the process, we followed along but did not interfere. We recorded their feelings, thoughts, and actions.
What they liked:
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Easy to understand and follow along
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Aesthetic user interface
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Would actually use the app
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3 minutes shorter when using the app
What they disliked:
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The map is confusing and hard to navigate
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Lack of accessible options
Key takeaways
Collaboration is key
This project has taught me how to collaborate successfully with a team. It is very important to work interdependently towards a common goal, which is the users of Upham. Working as a team has its difficulties, such as miscommunication, and different levels of skills, but that also means we have to understand each other's strengths and delegate the tasks from there.
Small details matter
As an individual, this project has helped me better my prototyping skills in Figma. One thing I learned is it is very important to pay attention to small details and maintain consistency throughout the screens to ensure the user's experience inside and outside of the app. Additionally, A suitable solution is rooted in user research and interviews, and as designers, we immerse ourselves into the user's point of view through the Ethnographic video, and the POV and HMW exercise.
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