I am part of the UX team at Dienst Uitvoering Onderwijs (DUO), which is part of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. As a user researcher, I explore how the online services of DUO can meet user needs. For example, students who want student loans or migrants who have to learn the Dutch language. I visit many places and meet a lot of new people: almost everyone is a ‘customer’ of DUO.
My approach to user research is based on my background in journalism. Design can help solve user problems, and user research can tell their stories. The best way to do this is by getting to know your users, better yet, to become their friends. I write about my work at DUO on my personal UX blog.