Freelance Surface Pattern Design Jobs in Utah (NOW HIRING)

If you're passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country-and you're committed to working hard to play your part in building that future-consider WGU as the next step in your career.
Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families.
The salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs.
At WGU, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is:
Grade: Technical 408
Pay Range: $118,900.00 - $178,500.00
Job Description
The Senior User Experience Designer-Software is a key member of the design team and may work on both desktop and mobile platforms (native Android and iOS) and works not only on certain projects but possibly a domain or domains. This is a position of product leadership and partners with Product Managers, PMs, and Engineers, providing insight and solutions to structuring and delivering work.
As a Senior User Experience Designer at Western Governors University (WGU), you will help shape the next generation of our student experience. You will play a key role on the team behind our Next Generation Learning Experience (NGLX) student portal, designing intuitive, data-informed experiences that make online learning smoother, clearer, and more empowering for working adult learners.
You will think strategically about complex problems across the student journey, then translate those insights into practical short- and long-term UX solutions. In this role, you will collaborate closely with product, engineering, research, and stakeholders across the university to shape the experience for both learner and mentor.
About the team
You will join a team of product managers, engineers, and other UX designers who are problem solvers with opportunities in helping learners stay on pace, accessing important learning resources, and in some cases making progress toward their work base learning and field experience. You will also help in building an online structure where the learner feels supported and has a structure to accomplish their ultimate goal of getting a degree.
What you'll do
In this role, you will:

• Lead UX design for high-impact, multi-phase initiatives.
• Think strategically about ambiguous problems, framing them in terms of student and business outcomes, and proposing clear short- and long-term UX solutions.
• Collaborate with product managers, engineers, UX researchers, and business stakeholders to define problems, run workshops, explore concepts, and drive alignment on user-centered solutions.
• Create and evolve holistic design artifacts for product lines (not just single features), including flows, wireframes, prototypes, and annotations that help teams implement with clarity and confidence.
• Use qualitative and quantitative data, including design performance metrics and tools such as Pendo, to evaluate experiences, guide design decisions, and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Proactively surface risks and dependencies, manage expectations with partners, and take ownership of end goals across organizational boundaries.
• Mentor and influence other designers and non-design partners by explaining the "why" behind UX decisions, modeling best practices, and contributing to shared standards and patterns.

What you'll bring

• In-depth understanding of modern User Experience (UX) design principles and how to apply them to complex, multi-system experiences.
• Proven ability to think strategically: you can zoom out to a three-year vision, understand industry and UX trends, and then translate that vision into practical, phased design work.
• Strong communication and storytelling skills, with the ability to explain design decisions and technical concepts clearly to non-design audiences, large groups, and senior stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to balance student and business needs, representing both perspectives in discussions and outcomes.
• Mastery of core UX deliverables (user flows, wireframes, prototypes, design specs, etc.), including when to use each, their dependencies, and their tradeoffs.
• Experience working in cross-functional teams (product, engineering, research, and business stakeholders) and building strong relationships to move work forward.
• A data-informed mindset: you are comfortable interpreting product data and research insights to understand what is working, what is not, and where to experiment next.
• High attention to detail, with a strong sense of ownership over the quality, accessibility, and consistency of the experiences you ship.
• Expertise with industry tools such as Figma and Adobe Creative Suite, and proficiency with Microsoft 365.

Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor's Degree in Visual Communications, Graphic Design, or a related field
- 6 years of experience as a UX designer, interaction designer, information architect, UX researcher, or other relevant role
Equivalent relevant experience performing the essential functions of this job may substitute for education degree requirements. Generally, equivalent relevant experience is defined as 1 year of experience for 1 year of education and is the discretion of the hiring manager.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience working in an Agile development process
- Experience using user research throughout the product life cycle, incorporating data from multiple sources into decision-making
- Higher Education experience
- Agency experience
Job Description Disclaimer: This position description provides the major duties/responsibilities, requirements and working conditions for the position. It is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current position, however management reserves the right to revise or change as necessary to meet organizational needs. Other responsibilities may be assigned when circumstances require.
This position requires occasional travel of up to 20%, including required attendance at designated company summits (typically one to two per year). Additional travel may include conferences, visits to company locations, and other business-related events as needed. Additional travel may be assigned as needed to support business requirements.
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Position & Application Details
Full-Time Regular Positions (classified as regular and working 40 standard weekly hours): This is a full-time, regular position (classified for 40 standard weekly hours) that is eligible for bonuses; medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare; health savings account and flexible spending account; basic and voluntary life insurance; disability coverage; accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages; legal and identity theft coverage; retirement savings plan; wellbeing program; discounted WGU tuition; and flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual, flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual, 11 paid holidays, and other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave.
How to Apply: If interested, an application will need to be submitted online. Internal WGU employees will need to apply through the internal job board in Workday.
Additional Information
Disclaimer: The job posting highlights the most critical responsibilities and requirements of the job. It's not all-inclusive.
Accommodations: Applicants with disabilities who require assistance or accommodation during the application or interview process should contact our Talent Acquisition team at recruiting@wgu.edu.
Equal Employment Opportunity: All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic as required by law.