Creating a seamless and accessible Spanish-language experience for UT Arlington’s most-visited web pages.
UTA en Español is an initiative to improve access to key university information for Spanish-speaking users. Over four months, the project focused on analyzing web traffic, identifying high-impact pages, and designing a connected user experience to ensure seamless navigation across essential resources.
As the project lead and designer, I conducted data analysis, created user personas, and designed the user experience to connect the top 10 most-visited pages. I collaborated with translators to ensure accuracy, built the pages within the university’s CMS, and ensured the final experience was accessible and user-friendly.
To create a seamless and accessible Spanish-language experience by optimizing UT Arlington’s most-visited web pages for Spanish-speaking users.
4 Months
To ensure our design met the needs of Spanish-speaking users, I conducted a deep dive into web traffic data, identifying high-impact pages and key audience behaviors. I developed user personas based on demographics, language preferences, and content needs, ensuring that each decision—from navigation structure to content placement—aligned with real user expectations. Additionally, I considered accessibility and cultural nuances to create a more inclusive experience that empowered Spanish-speaking visitors to find information with ease.
With over 30% of UTA's population identifying as Hispanic/Latino, ensuring accessible Spanish-language resources was essential to improving the user experience.
The project followed a structured timeline, beginning with data analysis to identify high-traffic pages, followed by user research, leadership feedback, wireframing, prototyping, collaboration with translators, and a review period before development, testing, and final implementation. This allowed me to stay on track and check-in with various stakeholders.
During the ideation phase, I created low-fidelity prototypes to map out the structure and user flow for the UTA en Español pages. A key challenge I faced was working within the constraints of UTA’s CMS, which limited the components I could use. Given the project’s timeline, I had to adapt my designs to fit within existing templates while still ensuring a seamless and user-friendly experience. This required creative problem-solving to optimize the layout and functionality using the available resources.
In the low-fidelity wireframing stage, I focused on creating a clear and intuitive layout that prioritized ease of navigation. A Quick Links section at the top of the page was essential to help users quickly find the most relevant information without unnecessary searching. Additionally, I incorporated a Spanish Support area to ensure users had direct access to language-specific resources and assistance. These elements were key to enhancing usability and addressing the needs of Spanish-speaking students and families.
Collaboration was essential to the success of UTA en Español. I worked closely with the translation team to ensure content was accurately adapted while maintaining clarity and cultural relevance. Additionally, I coordinated with the communication team to align on tone, messaging, and branding, ensuring consistency across all pages. Regular check-ins and clear communication helped keep everyone on the same page, allowing us to meet deadlines efficiently and deliver a high-quality experience for Spanish-speaking users
During the build phase, I collaborated with UTA’s IT team to ensure the CMS could properly support the new pages and function as intended. Given the platform’s constraints, we worked together to troubleshoot technical challenges and optimize the implementation. Once deployed, we will monitor analytics to track engagement and identify potential areas for improvement. Additionally, we plan to conduct a usability test in the future to gather direct user feedback and refine the experience further.
Leading UTA en Español was a rewarding experience that combined data-driven decision-making, UX design, and cross-team collaboration to improve accessibility for Spanish-speaking users. As a first-generation Latino student, this project was especially meaningful to me, as I understand firsthand the challenges that come with navigating university resources in a second language. While the project was a success, there are several key lessons I’ve taken away that would help improve future iterations.
1. This project was especially meaningful to me as a first-generation Latino student, and it reinforced the importance of accessible, culturally relevant resources for Spanish-speaking families. I would love to expand this initiative to include more pages and services in the future.
2. Given the CMS limitations, I had to adapt my designs to existing components. If I had more flexibility, I would explore custom design solutions to enhance usability and better meet user needs.
3. While we plan to conduct usability testing later, I would have liked to incorporate user testing earlier in the process to validate design decisions before development and ensure the best possible experience from the start
This project reinforced the importance of designing with the user in mind while balancing technical constraints and stakeholder needs. Moving forward, I would advocate for more flexibility in CMS design, prioritize earlier user testing, and continue expanding Spanish-language resources to create a more inclusive digital experience for all users.
