Dayan Romero — Case 03 / Noodle

Overview

Designing a Unified Platform for Academic Programs, Students & Faculty

N. Manage is a powerful SaaS product for data insights and process management. It streamlines marketing and enrollment efforts, providing real-time insights into learner retention, forecasting trends, and engagement metrics for higher education institutions.

Over 24 months, I led UX and visual design — working with researchers, PMs, and developers to create a system that streamlined administration, improved faculty oversight, and simplified student enrollment.

Noodle platform — login screen with Google Sign-in

The Challenge

Fragmented Systems Were Blocking Decision-Making

The Fragmented Reality

Institutions operated across disconnected tools with no unified view.

Fragmented systems caused delays in decision-making across departments
Inconsistencies in data between faculty and administrator views
No centralized way to track enrollment, placement, or performance
Limited access to students and institutions for direct research feedback
Academic complexities made intuitive UI design especially challenging

The Unified Vision

A single platform that could serve three very different user types seamlessly.

Centralized, data-driven interface for administrators and program managers
Real-time enrollment insights with AI-driven retention analytics
Intuitive course management tools built for faculty oversight
Streamlined student onboarding and enrollment workflows
Modular design system built to scale with institutional growth

Research & Discovery

Mapping a Complex Ecosystem Before Designing Any of It

I created a complete navigation map of the platform as the first step — fully understanding the entire system before designing any screen. The primary users included students, faculty, and administrators who relied on N. Manage for learning, course management, and operational tasks.

Opportunities Identified

Optimize administration and automate processes for real-time insights
Improve enrollment by simplifying and defining an intuitive onboarding
Enhance faculty oversight with academic program management tools
Leverage AI-powered data for a seamless, centralized platform

"When I am a student, faculty member, or administrator using the platform, I want a seamless experience that supports my tasks efficiently, so I can focus on learning, teaching, or managing without frustration."

Add Course Details — user flow mapping accreditation, documents, and team structure

Design Process

A Four-Phase Repeatable Design System

We built a structured process that scaled across the entire platform. Each feature ticket followed the same four-phase flow — ensuring consistency, documentation, and alignment at every step of delivery.

Requirements

Receive ticket via Jira. Review general, product, and asset details, previous designs, data sources, and technical limitations before scoping the work.

Documentation

Open or continue a Confluence page with date, ticket URL, hypothesis about new design, and notes about opportunities for future design improvements.

Design in Figma

Work across monthly, feature, and experiments files. Design desktop and mobile mockups in all states: loading, default, empty, error, and success.

Delivery

Add links to Jira ticket, upload screenshots to Confluence, and update the Design System and Product Figma files to reflect new components.

Solution

From Wireframes to High-Fidelity, Reducing Complexity at Every Step

Each feature progressed from low-fidelity wireframes to high-fidelity designs — validated with users and stakeholders before moving forward. The course creation flow exemplifies how we reduced a complex multi-step process into a clear, guided experience.

Add Course — low-fidelity wireframe structure

Add Course — high-fidelity design with all form fields

Add Course Step 4 — milestone dates and course build planning

Noodle Placement dashboard — program performance, replacements, and enrollment stats

Users

Three Very Different People, One Platform

Administrator

Program Administrator

Manages program data, enrollment records, and reporting. Needs clear dashboards and the ability to generate reports without relying on technical staff.

Faculty

Faculty Member

Manages courses, student placement, and academic milestones. Needs an efficient way to track student progress and collaborate with program directors.

Student

Navigates enrollment, learning resources, and counseling services. Needs a clear, low-friction path to connect with university programs and support services.

Impact

Outcomes Across the Institution

Administrative Efficiency

Automated processes and centralized data reduced the manual workload for program administrators, enabling faster decision-making across enrollment and reporting.

Faster Student Enrollment

A streamlined, guided enrollment workflow significantly reduced the time from application to course assignment — directly improving the student experience.

Higher Faculty Satisfaction

Faculty reported improved oversight capabilities and less time spent on administrative tasks, allowing more focus on academic program quality and student outcomes.

What I Learned

Key Takeaways

Research-Driven Design Boosts Adoption

Addressing real pain points — even when access to users was limited — ensured usability was never assumed. Every design decision was grounded in observed behavior.

Design & PM Collaboration is Essential

Working in lockstep with product managers on ticket scoping, documentation, and delivery ensured execution quality and alignment with evolving institutional needs.

Modular Design Systems Scale

A modular approach to components and patterns ensured the platform could adapt to new institutional requirements without needing to redesign foundational structures.

Design the UX for a Platform Managing Academic Programs, Students, and Faculty