Today we’d like to introduce you to Jesse Erandio.
Hi Jesse, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born in the Philippines, and I was introduced to drawing when I was 3 years old. This was the point in my life where I found my passion for the arts and realized that I could create anything I wanted, as long as I had a blank canvas. In 2011 during my second year in high school, I got the chance to attend a Summer program at the Academy of Art University of San Francisco, under a presidential scholarship, to study charcoal drawing, photography, video game design, and 2-D animation. Despite having artistic influences throughout my early life, I attended the University of California, Davis, joined the UC Davis symphony as a cellist, received a Bachelor’s Degree in Microbiology in 2016, and pursued a career as a Biologist in mosquito and vector-borne disease research. At the peak of my scientific career and after accruing six years of experience in scientific research, I developed lab assays to detect multiple mosquito-borne diseases, established a drone surveillance program, and published my first peer-reviewed research article. The height of my scientific career led me to seek further professional and personal growth. I discovered user experience (UX) Design was a career path that would allow me to harness my passion for creativity and skills in research, and data analysis, in order to optimize user experiences through system design, project management, and presentation.
After 2 years of research and contemplation about UX Design, I decided to leave my Biologist position to work in a lower full-time laboratory position and study UI/UX Design part-time with Springboard. I finished Springboard’s UI/UX Design bootcamp in about 10 months in March of 2022, and I was able to accept an offer to become a UX Designer for Berkeley Lights, a biotechnology company, 1 month after completing the bootcamp. Being a UX Designer felt like a dream, and unfortunately, within 1.5 months as a UX Designer, I was laid off in mid-July. Three months into my lay-off was extremely difficult physically, mentally, and financially. Thankfully, in early October of 2022, I accepted and received a job offer from Boeing, and I was able to continue my path into UX.
Throughout my life, I was running away from my passion for the arts by convincing myself, and my family, that I could pursue a career in the sciences. Aside from my scientific background and education, I was always drawing charcoal portraits, editing videos, traveling, and taking photos with my drone. Although I pushed my artistic and creative talents aside, my passion found its way into my career as UX Design. I hope that I can transform my future experiences in product management to build a business that combines art, drone photography, and science.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
My story has not always been smooth. Throughout my life I have struggled to find a balance between my scientific background and artistic talents. Recently, I believe and feel that a career in UX Design will allow me to combine both my scientific education and passion for the arts.
The career transition was also not easy as I had to leave a good-paying position to study UX Design, a field I did not fully understand at the time during my career transition. I was afraid that future employers were going to judge my application as someone who came from the scientific research field and simply studied UX design through a program that took 10 months.
Aside from my career transition, I also faced a layoff during my first UX Designer role. I was unemployed for 3 months and it was physically, mentally, and financially draining, especially during this economic time. I am fortunate enough to have recently received, and accepted a job offer with Boeing to become a User Experience Specialist.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Since I recently accepted an offer from Boeing to be a User Experience Specialist, I will be working with their Manufacturing Operations Management team to help optimize shop floor product, development, and delivery systems. Prior to my upcoming position with Boeing, I was a UX Designer with Berkeley Lights, a biotechnology company striving to find the best cells for large entities, such as academic institutions, and biopharmaceutical companies, so that they can conduct the appropriate research, antibody discovery, cell therapy, and vaccine development.
Looking further into my past careers, I was formerly a Biologist for a mosquito and vector control district in central California where I helped develop lab assays to detect multiple mosquito-borne diseases, established a drone surveillance program for mosquitoes, and conducted my own research. I believe employers appreciate my scientific research experiences because I implement my research skills into design. This way, I am not just designing out of creativity, but through a holistic process of researching users, analyzing the data, presenting that data to cross-functional teams, and combining the data collected with my artistic skills to create user-centric and modern design solutions.
I believe my years of experience in the scientific research field sets me apart from other designers. Not only do I have a research background and a passion for the arts, but I also bring project management, program development, and presentation skills into the UX Design industry.
I never thought about leaving the scientific field until I found UX Design. I feel that my professional and personal experiences led me into the design industry. Although it has been a tough career transition, I am proud of completing my UI/UX Design bootcamp with Springboard, accepted a few UX Designer roles, and I never imagined I would ever feel confident, happy, motivated, and inspired to wake up every day and to start designing.
I am happy and proud to say that I am a UX Designer with a scientific background. I am not only excited to develop new design skills, but I am also excited to be more in touch with my interest to be a better drone photographer. I hope, one day, I can allow people to see the world in a different perspective, and allow people to see the world through a drone’s lens.
What does success mean to you?
I believe success is defined and tied within ourselves. For me, success is realizing self-awareness and acknowledging our own mistakes so that we can harness our confidence, potential, drive, love, and passion and put them towards our work, life, friends, and family. I walked into a new career in UX Design setting my own expectations and goals, and I’ve never felt more empowered to lead, influence, and support others to realize and harness their own potential.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jesseerandio.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hillocchi/
Image Credits
Maria Kristina Lander
