Preparation of Case Studies

Considerations for selecting projects

Submit your highest-level professional work, not your most varied. Certification Evaluators are not looking for a range of project types. They are looking for depth of professional practice. In-house designers, in particular, should feel confident submitting work produced under a single brand; strong, career-defining work within one context is more valuable than supplementing it with weaker freelance pieces.

• Designers (both visual and experience) should demonstrate an ability to develop and implement solutions to complex problems encountered in all phases of the design process.

• Managers may submit Implementation of Best Practices & Processes, Articles & Speaking Engagements and Managed Design Work. These should demonstrate an ability to develop and implement effective design management strategies.

• Educators may submit: Academic & Research Papers, Course Design, Curriculum Planning or Publishing/Conference Documentation. These should focus on teaching and research, demonstrating an ability to develop and implement effective teaching strategies. 

Candidates are asked to provide the following information for each project:

Visual Designers (within the context of Evaluation Criteria):  

1. Your role on the project
2. Context (Describe the client needs / project brief, including project goals and objectives.)
3. Design Process (Outline the process from concept exploration to presentation and acceptance by the client; include research, analysis and other investigations that contributed to the solution.)
4. Solution (Describe your solution/deliverables and how project goals and objectives were achieved.)
5. Supporting material (PDF, DOC, DOCX, PNG, JPG, JPEG or GIF files)

Experience Designers (within the context of Evaluation Criteria):

1. Your role on the project
2. Context (Describe the user problem, project goals and objectives. Identify key stakeholders involved, their roles and how their insights influenced the project’s direction.)
3. Process (Outline your design process, including user research, development of personas or archetypes, journey mapping, usability testing and collaboration with stakeholders. Detail how business objectives were integrated into the design strategy.)
4. Solution (Detail the deliverables (e.g., wireframes, prototypes or final designs) and explain how they align with project goals, stakeholder expectations and business objectives. Include metrics or qualitative evidence of the impact (e.g., task completion rates, accessibility improvements) and discuss feedback from stakeholders. Highlight how the outcomes supported the overarching business goals.)
5. Supporting material (PDF, DOC, DOCX, PNG, JPG, JPEG or GIF files)

Design Educators (within the context of Evaluation Criteria):

1. Your role on the project
2. Context (Describe the project goals and objectives, audience and any restrictions or special considerations directly related to the project goals.)
3. Process (Describe the process for the development of this project. Outline any research, analysis or other information gathering and investigation that contributed to the final results.)
4. Solution (Describe your deliverables and how they achieved project goals and objectives, engaged or served their audiences as intended and addressed and foreseen or unexpected challenges.)
5. Supporting material (PDF, DOC, DOCX, PNG, JPG, JPEG or GIF files)

Design Managers (within the context of Evaluation Criteria):

1. Your role on the project
2. Context (Describe the project goals and objectives, audience and any restrictions or special considerations directly related to the project goals.)
3. Process (Describe the process for the development of this project. Outline any research, analysis or other information gathering and investigation that contributed to the final results.)
4. Solution (Describe your deliverables and how they achieved project goals and objectives, engaged or served their audiences as intended and addressed and foreseen or unexpected challenges.)
5. Supporting material (PDF, DOC, DOCX, PNG, JPG, JPEG or GIF files)

Tips for writing your case studies

What Evaluators are looking for

Your case studies are your opportunity to present the finest work of your career thus far. More than just evaluating the visual quality of your work, Certification Evaluators are equally focused on evaluating how you think, make decisions and navigate the full complexity of a real project.

Strong case studies go beyond describing deliverables. They explain the decisions made along the way — what was explored, what was discarded, how feedback was incorporated and how your contributions shaped the outcome. Include process artefacts (sketches, iterations, annotations) to lead Evaluators through the development of the work. This is not optional — process work is a key part of what Evaluators are assessing.

Where possible, include evidence of impact: client feedback, analytics or qualitative or quantitative outcomes that demonstrate the work achieved its goals.

Focus on professional practice

A case study that demonstrates complex problem-solving and thoughtful decision-making will always be more compelling than one with a polished result but little process depth. Choose projects that give you the most to say—not necessarily the most varied work, and not necessarily the most polished outcome.

Evaluators want to hear how you operate as a professional. In your write-ups, address:

• The decisions you made — and why
• How you navigated feedback, constraints or unexpected challenges
• The business or strategic rationale behind the work
• Your specific contributions, especially on collaborative projects