University of Michigan Library Search
In the summer of 2024, I completed a UX research fellowship at the University of Michigan Library, focusing on improving the search experience for novice users. My research led to key design recommendations that:
Clarified search navigation
Improved search results readability
Enhanced access to online materials
UofM Library's 'Everything' search results page prior to my project
Role
UX Researcher
Timeline
May - July 2024
Skills
User interviews
Subject matter expert interviews
Usability testing
Competitive analysis
Prototyping
Tools
Figma
Miro
Google Analytics
Hotjar
The Problem: The Novice Researcher Experience
Navigating Library Search, the University of Michigan library's discovery layer, can be daunting for novice users, especially for new undergraduate students, as it requires a different academic research skill set than they have used in their previous educational experience. If students can't easily access research materials, they may resort to lower-quality sources or avoid using the library altogether.
My research aimed to:
💡 Identify key usability challenges for undergraduate students
💡 Ideate design improvements that enhance the discoverability and usability of library resources for students
Research Process
📖 Literature Review → Reviewed previous literature on current approaches to library search interface design and previous UofM Library Search user research.
🔍 Comparative Analysis → Analyzed 13 university library search tools to identify common features in library search UI.
🎤 Librarian Interviews → Spoke with 11 teaching librarians to understand students’ search habits and challenges.
🧑🎓 Usability Testing → Conducted hands-on usability tests with two undergraduates to observe pain points.
Key Findings
Students expect Library Search to work like Google
Many current undergraduate students, who grew up online, approach Library Search with Google-style expectations, assuming it can handle natural language queries in the same way.
Friction arises because library databases require more structured queries, causing frustration when searches don’t yield expected results.
Keyword selection is a major challenge
Students struggle to create effective search terms, resulting in irrelevant results due to:
Overly broad research topics, making keyword selection difficult.
Limited subject knowledge, leading to ineffective terminology.
Habits from Google, where imprecise searches still yield useful results.
Search results feel overwhelming
Large result lists create choice paralysis, even when filters are applied.
Unclear distinctions between Catalog and Articles sections confuse students.
Records lack summaries or abstracts, forcing students to click into multiple items to determine relevance.
Accessing materials is confusing
Multiple, unclear, or broken access links create uncertainty.
In addition, books are labeled simply as "Book" and don’t differentiate between physical and electronic copies, making it easy to overlook digital access.
Design Recommendations
Provide a description of categories in ‘Everything’ search results
Students struggle to differentiate between categories like Catalog and Articles, leading to confusion about where to find specific resources. To improve clarity, we should display brief descriptions within the ‘Everything’ search view, explaining what each category includes.
✨Update: This improvement was implemented in December 2024!✨
Include Summaries, Abstracts, and Keywords into Search Results
Students rely heavily on summaries and abstracts to evaluate whether a resource is relevant, yet the current search results do not surface this information. To reduce unnecessary clicks, summaries should be added to the search results in the Catalog and Articles, rather than buried within the individual record view.
✨Update: This improvement was implemented in December 2024!✨
Improve Access Information for Search Results
Students frequently struggle to determine how to access an item due to vague or unclear labels. Many mistakenly assume print books are digital or vice versa. To reduce confusion, I propose adding clear access labels or icons to indicate physical vs. digital formats.
✨Update: This improvement was implemented in February 2025!✨
Improve Visibility of Help Documents
Many students are unaware of existing research guides and help documents, as they are currently buried in dropdown menus. To make these resources more accessible, I recommend placing a prominent link near the search bar for helpful guides, such as ‘Tips for Using Library Search.’
Reflection
I had a wonderful experience with this research fellowship and I greatly improved my user research skills! Through leading 13 research sessions, I honed my interviewing skills, becoming better at writing interview questions to draw out key insights. I also learned the importance of adapting my questions on the spot to dig into any unexpected insights that come up.
Upon reflection, I acknowledge that this research had some limitations due to the short timeline and school being on break. For example:
The small sample size (two students) limited the generalizability of our findings. While I identified key usability issues, a larger and more diverse participant pool would have provided a broader understanding of user needs and pain points. In future research, I would prioritize recruiting a larger sample size of five to seven students.
Conducting the tests in a controlled setting allowed us to focus on specific tasks, but it may not have fully captured the nuances of real-world library research. Observing students searching for actual coursework in their natural environment would provide richer insights into their search strategies and information-seeking behaviors. For future studies, I would explore incorporating contextual inquiry methods.
The skills and insights I gained during this fellowship, including experience with interviewing and usability testing, will be invaluable as I continue to take on research and design projects and contribute to creating user-friendly experiences.