Careers-Finder

Why 60% of users are undecided between career advancement and a career switch—and how that hurts conversion.

CareersFinder (CF) is a MyCareersFuture product that matches users to career opportunities via a short quiz. When users choose "open to both" instead of a clear path, results become less relevant, which weakens match quality and the likelihood they take action. During my internship at GovTech Singapore, I ran user research to understand this "broad middle" and how CF could better serve them.

How might we better serve the needs of users in the "broad middle"?

Role

UI/UX Designer

Timeline

8 weeks

Tasks

• User Research
• User Interviews
• User Testing
• Qualitative Analysis
• Prototyping

User research and conversion blockers

I ran in-depth interviews with five participants from various sectors. A common theme was the need for more clarity and support before making career decisions. That uncertainty showed up as conversion blockers in testing:

• Uncertainty and comfort zones: Participants were hesitant about a career switch (comfort zone, work-life balance) but also hesitant to stay due to limited progression—so they leaned "open to both" and got less relevant matches.
• Preference and fear of starting over: Most gave a 70:30 weight to switch vs advancement and saw it as a high-stakes decision. Worry about starting from scratch added to indecision and reluctance to act on results.
• Irrelevant match results and mixed opinions on the skills match score—weaker relevance reduces the chance users act on recommendations.
• CF felt too broad with limited quiz inputs (e.g. job role and skills), so the product couldn’t deliver enough depth to support decision-making.

Solution: comparison tool

Findings were transcribed and synthesised on FigJam; the team voted on priorities and I created a persona to guide design. I took on a comparison tool mockup (desktop and mobile). The tool has two parts: (1) Skills comparison—skills required across career options—and (2) Job information—salary and government grants.

I placed job information below skills comparison so users see skills first and can reflect on fit before salary—reducing decision friction. The yellow donut at the top acts as a clear focal point when discovering the tool.

Results

Deliverables: research synthesis and persona, prioritised feature set, and a comparison tool prototype. The team is now exploring roadmap items such as the comparison tool, additional filters, and access to career coaches. If shipped, the tool is expected to reduce decision friction and improve match relevance so more users move from results to action.

Retrospective

• Collaboration: Working with content and engineering from the start helped align on feasibility—especially for the non-standard comparison tool—and kept the project moving in one direction.
• Resource management: With a limited incentive budget, I focused recruitment on key demographics and combined interviews with user testing to maximise insights. Coordinating around participants’ schedules, including outside working hours, helped participation.