Want to know which UX course to study, or how to get a UX job without any experience? Struggling with how to create a UX portfolio? We've got the answers to these and many more curly questions in our authoritative guide to beginning your career in UX.

More than ever, executives and managers are realising that a user's experience of their company's products and services is crucial to the bottom line, and that experience can be designed. User Experience (UX) has emerged as the poster child to capture this alignment of design and business strategy.

However, the term is also used in other ways. Ask ten different people what User Experience means and you'll get ten different answers. For example:

• UX is an umbrella term.

• UX is a movement.

• UX is a process.

• UX is a role.

• UX is a discipline.

• UX is an industry.

• UX is a philosophy.

• UX is a collection of techniques.

All of these statements are true to some degree, so it’s no wonder the UX community has such a hard time defining what we do to the outside world!

However, there's one I'd like to add to that list:

• UX is a career.

You may have decided that UX is the career for you, but perhaps you’re overwhelmed by where to start. Maybe you took a course, read a book, or have a small amount of experience through your current role, but are unsure what to do next.

We hope this book helps you find the answers to these questions and more, and that you use the information on these pages to launch and shape a successful and prosperous career.

Welcome to the world of User Experience.

Matthew Magain