UX Case Study

ODU Graduation Status Portal

SIMPLIFYING THE GRADUATION EXPERIENCE FOR OLD DOMINION STUDENTS

The ODU Graduation Status Portal is a UX/UI redesign concept created to simplify how students track graduation requirements, deadlines, eligibility, and ceremony information within the Old Dominion University student portal.

This project focuses on solving the confusion and stress students experience when navigating graduation requirements by improving clarity, organization, and trust within the graduation experience.

UX Researcher, UX/UI Designer

Spring 2026

Figma, Google Forms, FigJam, Adobe Illustrator

Improve clarity. reduce stress, and build trust in graduation information

CONTEXT

Students preparing for graduation often need to navigate multiple disconnected systems such as DegreeWorks, LEOnline, commencement pages, advisor emails, and departmental resources. Information is spread across several pages, creating uncertainty about whether students are completing the correct steps.

THE PROBLEM

Students struggle to confidently understand their graduation status because graduation information is fragmented, unclear, and difficult to verify across university systems.

Research showed that:

8 out of 13 students said graduation requirements felt unclear

7 out of 13 students reported confusion around application steps and deadlines

Most students repeatedly re-check information due to uncertainty

WHY IT MATTERS

Graduation is a high-stakes milestone. Confusion around requirements, deadlines, and eligibility can lead to:

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Delayed graduation applications
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Increased stress and anxiety
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Repeated checking behaviors
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Reliance on unofficial information sources

Reduced trust in university communication

THE SOLUTION

A centralized dashboard that simplifies information, builds trust, and provides clear next steps.

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All graduation info in one place
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Clear progress & eligibility
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Step-by-step checklist
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Easy access to help & resources
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User Research

Methods

Survey responses from 10–13 ODU students
Usability testing with interactive prototype participants
Affinity clustering and friction mapping

Graduation Information Feels Unclear

Students identified confusion around:

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Graduation requirements
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Deadlines
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Ceremony eligibility
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Financial clearance
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Contact information
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Students Start Thinking About Graduation Early

8 out of 13 students begin thinking about graduation more than a year before graduating.

Trust Is Built Through Clarity

The biggest factors affecting trust were:

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Clear and detailed explanations
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Timely updates
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Confirmation emails
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Consistency across systems
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Students Repeatedly Verify Information

Most students:

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Re-check information several times
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Email advisors for confirmation
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Ask classmates or professors for reassurance

myODU Portal | Old Dominion University

MyODU is a web-based, personal gateway for official ODU information, with direct access to many university services. The portal pulls together the ODU online resources you need most, providing easy and centralized access to:

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Student Email
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Canvas
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Leo Online (class registration, schedule, and grades)

University publications, event listings & announcements

Links to academic resources... and more.

Current myODU Portal (No centralized graduation info)

Learn More

With an added Graduation status bar for upcoming graduates in their myODU portal dashboard. Students will have quick and easy access to navigating through their graduation journey and important information.

Market Research

Existing ODU Experience

The current experience requires students to move between:

DegreeWorks
LEOnline
Graduation application pages
Commencement pages
Email communications

Weaknesses

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Information fragmentation
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Dense language
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Lack of progress visibility
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Unclear eligibility status
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Multiple navigation paths
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Opportunities

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Centralized dashboard
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Clear visual progress tracking
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Contextual help/support
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Simplified navigation
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Real-time graduation readiness indicators

Design Process

Low-Fidelity Wireframes

Initial sketches focused on:

Centralizing graduation information
Reducing navigation depth
Prioritizing visual hierarchy
Simplifying status visibility

SEE THE PROTOTYPE IN ACTION

myGraduationStatus

Students own myGraduationStatus bar that would appear on upcoming graduate students dashboard in their myODU portal.

Visual Goals

The interface was designed to feel:

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Clean
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Reassuring
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Organized
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Easy to scan
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Familiar to ODU students
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Graduation Status Page/Dashboard

A full created graduation status page where students can have easy access to important information and support.

Visual System

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ODU-inspired color palette
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Card-based information sections
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Progress indicators
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Checklist interactions
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Clear navigation labels
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Dashboard-style layout
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Reflection and Key Takeaways

What Worked

Users quickly understood the system’s purpose

Participants consistently identified the checklist and progress areas first

Centralizing information reduced confusion

Clear visual organization improved navigation confidence

Most users completed tasks with little to no assistance

What Didn’t

Some first-time users experienced brief uncertainty

Support/contact information needed stronger visibility

Some requirement details lacked enough explanation depth

Certain navigation labels could be more explicit

By centralizing graduation information and streamlining the user journey, the design reduces stress, improves clarity, and empowers students to graduate with confidence. This project reinforced the importance of information architecture, emotional reassurance, clarity, and trust-building in high-stakes educational systems, and showed that lowering user stress depends not just on functionality but on helping users feel assured in their decisions. Future improvements could include personalized graduation timelines, real-time advisor messaging, smarter progress validation, mobile optimization, and interactive onboarding experiences.

TRY THE INTERACTIVE PROTOTYPE

Figma Prototype Link