Website for #1 university in Latvia
Key UX Decisions
How design thinking transformed the way people find information on content‑dense webpages, making navigation more intuitive, prioritizing user needs, and guiding attention through clearer layout and smarter interaction cues.
Some of the departments refused to provide any further details about their page and believed what they had was already sufficient.
I couldn't get more content out of Dorm rooms — so I focused on structure instead: putting every option on one scrollable page so students could compare dorms side by side, with less clicking and less guessing. Result – students can reach the decision more easily and with less effort.
PROBLEM
SOLUTION
Adding read more buttons.
(Sometimes, it really can be that simple.)
Result – users can scroll over large amounts of text on smaller screens saving time in finding their content of interest faster.
Tables of content were not just filled with unnecessary information (as it turned out) but also not responsive on smaller screens.
So one of my challenges was to rethink how we present large amounts of content without overwhelming the user. The drop-down option seemed like the right fit — no matter how many table headers there were, in the result, on mobile you’d see the one or two most important ones up front, with the rest revealed as you unfold the block.
PROBLEM
SOLUTION
Every major section used to open on a wall of plain text links — no hierarchy, no visual entry point, just a list. For key sections like Science, I designed a visual topic map instead: a node-based layout that turns a flat list of sub-pages into a guided path through the content. Sometimes it reads like an actual treasure map; other times it nudges even the most serious minds to browse a little differently — and makes navigation feel intuitive rather than administrative.
Every scientific journal or book had multiple identical links, the same button names cluttering each entry on the page. Talk about cognitive overload…
What if we swapped all of them for a tidy [more] icon and revealed the rest of the options in a gentle pop-up? The page keeps only the essentials — title, cover image, issue number — with room to breathe.
PROBLEM
SOLUTION
Swap PDFs and Paint-drawn pictures for interactive components, please.
Lots of departments = lots of people = lots of work = lots of content = often late = often DIY, because no one has the time or inspiration to make it better. Unfortunately, this is the reality for many large institutions without a designer on hand.
So when it came time to transform self-drawn diagrams and mismatched illustrations — content that didn't reflect the brand identity at all — spent hours happily brainstorming how to present it better. The goal met the result: responsive, understandable, and easy for admins to edit; intuitive for users to read; and, on top of all that, giving the site a real visual edge.
PROBLEM
SOLUTION
From Clutter to Clarity
All those overcrowded pages were transformed into a single, structured page — organized around how users actually navigate it. With thoughtful micro-interactions and a smarter layout, something bigger shifted too: employees started actively editing their own content. They deleted the clutter, weeded out what didn't serve users, and swapped dense text for something easier to read. For the first time, people wanted to revisit and improve their pages, rather than waving them off with a "good enough."
Watching this unfold felt like witnessing the KonMari method in real time — proof that when you organize a space well and give people a gentle nudge on how to maintain it, even the toughest crowd starts to feel the difference, and naturally follows suit.
There are many more examples like this — but they all share one thing in common: structure.
This project is an ongoing journey. Even once it's developed and shipped, a site of this scale will always need attention to stay sustainable and relevant. The backbone we've built is strong, and I already have ideas for how to shape it further in future iterations.
Through this project, I learned how to manage large volumes of content, collaborate across many different parts of a business, and consistently advocate for the user — sometimes holding my ground to keep the experience free of clutter. I'm grateful this project found me, and I'd take on something similar again with far more confidence, efficiency, and a sharper set of tools in hand.
Thank you to my small but mighty team — developer Tom, and every focus group who joined the challenge of tidying up.
Status: In build, targeting production spring 2027.