Mento Design Academy

Before enrolling with Mento I spend some good 6 months searching and reading about all the different options out there. Although they seem to be very similar at first glance, the professional background of the Mento team Makes them stand out. I Have always been a bit sceptical about all the Bootcamps out there that “promise” a quick transition in UX within 6 months, And since my first “get to know” call with Radu, He was very transparent by setting The right expectations. Their successful careers, honesty by setting the right expectations and a curriculum that offers you the chance to work on real projects - In my personal experience that was what made them “different” from the others. You might be a bit unsure about reviews, but trust me: Book a call with them to get to know the program and you won’t be disappointed.

I’ve participated before the pandemic in a 3 months course and also finished some other shorter courses online, including some on IDF platform. So, since this is not my first UX design course, I have some terms of comparison. The difference is that this is by far the most interactive and full of practice from them all. I love the fact that I was not bombarded with information and it was delivered gradually while doing the assignments. I can easily access more if I want or need and also get guidance from my mentor when I get stuck. I think this is by far a better way to learn and remember something - by focusing on the practice. The course starts with some good pointers on how to be practical about learning, inspires you to set a goal and prepares you to use the processes and tools. By the time you start your projects, you already have some confidence because of already doing these things. My guess is this was not an easy feat, to think about how to deliver it in such a good manner. I want to congratulate everyone for the wonderful job! I think it’s really awesome!

Mento Design Academy was a valuable experience, that I'm glad I did. I started the program in July 2024 and completed it in March 2025, with some weeks off in between. Overall, I would recommend Mento for anyone self driven enough to take their learning into their own hands. Here are my thoughts on various aspects of the program. 
Curriculum: The curriculum seems typical of a bootcamp, though this is the only one I’ve done so I can’t be sure. It is in between self study and academic study- just enough accountability with your weekly mentor meetings so you don’t lose motivation, but no rigid timelines or grades for your assignments. The curriculum heavily focuses on replication, learning by doing, and reflection. The hands on practice was useful, as expected, but unexpectedly the reflections came very much in handy when building my portfolio!
Mentors: Your experience will be heavily dependent on who your mentor is and you don’t have much say in the matter. They get assigned to you at the beginning of the program, seemingly based on your availabilities, though there could be another matching criteria I’m unaware of. Your mentor is often the person you’ll be interacting with most, so experiences with the program will vary since mentors will vary. 
Burner Project: One thing I wish I had done differently is complete more than one project, as intended. If I could offer any sort of advice it’s this: don’t bite off more than you can chew with the burner project. I chose to design an app from scratch- which was a lot of work! Understandably. But it ended up taking the rest of my time in the program, so I wasn’t able to do more than one project in the allotted time. If I could have a do-over, I would choose a smaller scope for my burner project- something like designing a single feature (like in the warm up project) rather than an entire app. That way I could still practice the end to end design process, but in a more manageable way. 
Buddy System: I found the buddy system to be one of the best parts of the program, so I’d highly encourage everyone to take part! I got assigned a buddy and also formed another on my own. Both were invaluable! Having a buddy did a couple things for me: I had someone in the same boat to share experiences with- commiserate, celebrate, bounce ideas off of, etc. The self paced curriculum can be pretty isolating so it was a nice reminder that we’re not working in a vacuum. Second, I was able to see others work and share my own. That was useful in getting inspired and honing my own design sensibilities. Some of the best feedback I got was from my buddies! They were willing to get into the nitty gritty with me, which I appreciated. I still keep in touch with both, so I’m grateful Mento brought us together.

 Initially I spent a lot of time deciding which bootcamp to choose. I read review after review  and ultimately decided on choosing Mento due to the amount of care and support they seemed to provide for their students during and even after the course.

 I've never regretted my decision once. Throughout the program I had an amazing mentor and was also able to meet like-minded peers. The course helped me establish a good foundation that I will now use to further my career. I really enjoyed how the course was structured and it was definitely more intensive than I initially thought. I would recommend having a set schedule or time to work on the course because six months will fly by quickly! Mento occasionally also has workshops and events so even though you work on the coursework yourself you're still able to meet other students and see their work as well! 

After graduating you're able to keep access to the course materials allowing you to reference and go back to it whenever you'd like. Job assistance is also provided. Overall, I really enjoyed my time at Mento and am sure you will too! 

Mento Design Academy has provided me with the essential knowledge and skills required for success in my projects. The academy offers a robust curriculum that transitions students from zero to capable designers of complex conceptual projects. Key strengths of Mento include access to seasoned industry expert mentors and the flexibility to explore project direction to personal interests. Additionally, the Mento community is active on Slack— a significant selling point for me— and organizes UI challenges, book clubs, and community engagement sessions. As with many educational experiences, the outcomes at Mento are proportional to the effort invested; fortunately, the academy provides resources to facilitate success in your work.

If you're interested in a tight-knit community, weekly mentor meetings, and a solid product design framework...you should definitely consider Mento Design Academy! 

As a career transitioner, I came to Mento with very little UX knowledge. I found the curriculum to be well-written and engaging. Resources are offered at the end of each topic for additional learning opportunities. Mento also does a great job of building community and keeping students connected by offering student meetings, study groups, a slack channel for discussion and questions, and webinars for continued learning. 
Two things that really stood out to me in this program were the mentors and the ability to pick projects based on your own interests. Many of the mentors are well-known in the UX world and have years of experience to share. My mentor was phenomenal and balanced the curriculum with her real-world knowledge. She guided me through my project, which was based on something I’m passionate about and will be unique to my portfolio. 
One of the reasons I chose Mento is because of the self-paced learning schedule. However, I did struggle to keep up with the curriculum timeline as did some of my classmates. I would keep this in mind if you don’t have a tech or UX background - you may need more time than you think to finish the course. Other students had no problem finishing in the suggested time frame though. 
Lastly, Mento’s staff is wonderful. They are responsive, kind, and supportive. The head of the program even met with me when I had an issue, and basically UXed my issue to improve the situation. I saw changes made in real time and I know they will continue to improve the program based on student needs. I'm so pleased that I chose Mento. 

Selecting a bootcamp can be overwhelming. I almost didn't go with Mento Design Academy. Luckily, I discovered it in the nick of time. To me, the work always speaks for itself and upon comparing portfolios, Mento graduates blew me away! I connected with a few alumni students who generously answered my questions.

Mento offers a unique experience with real-life projects and interviews, invaluable industry feedback from mentors and professionals, and flexible additional sessions if need be. Their curriculum is filled with real-world best practices, and the inclusive international community provides excellent tools and resources.

Mento also stands out by being a tight-knit community - not to mention access to the founder, Radu, who genuinely cares about each student’s success. The community meetings, workshops, coffee chats, and fun challenges are a fantastic bonus. The more you engage, the more you’ll get out of it. Get comfortable with the uncomfortable.

Changing careers is sometimes about playing the long game. It requires commitment, grit and never giving up on yourself and I’m grateful I began with Mento!

Mento Design Academy has a no cookie-cutter, holistic approach to UX design education. From the get-go I was asked to make the learning journey my own - to embrace my previous career and educational background (which wasn't connected to UX) and use that experience to plan out my UX career path. The lessons focused on the bigger picture and we were asked to reflect on the 'why' of each stage of the UX process, rather than simply following a procedure. Coming into the course, I was worried about the little details like how to create visually striking User Interfaces, but the course had thought me the importance of "Understanding the problem, before hurrying to find solutions." Though frustrating initially, because of presumptions I had of what User Experience is about, this mature approach to UX made sense as the course progressed. I leaned into it and focused on skills like user research. For the portfolio projects, I was again asked to find design problems that concerned and interested me, rather than working on a generic prompt like "Designing a ticketing app for a Space tourism company." 
Throughout the process, what was invaluable was the constant guidance of the mentor assigned to me and the support of an active student/mentors/alumni community. I met once a week with my mentor who was an industry professional. He was always open to questions and gave comprehensive answers. His guidance in each stage went beyond the textbook and I was challenged to think deeper about a problem in each stage. The course content itself is really well put together however, and it followed a logical progression, which clarified most of the questions I had along the way on it's own. 
Saying all that, considering the vastness of the topic that is UX design, I've realised that the learning doesn't stop after bootcamp. I have to especially get better with my UI skills, which isn't given as much concentration in the curriculum. Everything cannot be done in 6 months or 9 months (I took 9). Thankfully, since I get to be a part of the community for a lifetime, I think I can keep learning and stay up-to-date.

Mento is a perfect choice for a person who wants to transition to UX design. They provided much information on the subject that helped me learn all the basic design concepts. Weekly meetings with my mentor also helped me immensely; he was very knowledgeable with years of work in the design field and could answer all my questions. Moreover, Mento has a Slack channel that includes other valuable resources. Also, you can contact other students; they try to keep it interesting with design challenges and Zoom meetings with people working in the design field and many other things. People at Mento genuinely care about their students.

I chose Mento because of the affordability and mentorship program. It did not disappoint! I am in the process of transitioning from healthcare into UX and the program is structured in a way in which it can make any transition/career switch happen smoothly. The weekly meetings with my mentor were key to my success! It gave me the confidence, the guidance, and the feedback I needed to succeed. The bootcamp itself is also well structured and comprehensive. Everyone at Mento is so nice and they want to see you succeed. I definitely recommend this bootcamp!

I had a good experience with Mento Design Academy! A few key factors made me choose Mento over other boot camps. First, the price was very reasonable compared to other options out there. It made it much more affordable for me to pursue my goals.

Secondly, the weekly one-on-one mentor sessions were an amazing resource. I found them to be helpful in my learning journey. It was great to have someone to guide me and offer personalised advice and feedback.

Another thing that stood out to me about Mento was the opportunity to work on more personalised portfolio projects. I had the freedom to choose a project that aligned with my interests and career goals. It made the whole experience more meaningful and relevant to my future plans.

One thing to note is that the program can be quite intensive, especially if you're also working or studying full-time. Finishing the program by completing one test project and three portfolio projects in just six months can be challenging. I personally only completed one project before graduating, and I know others who finished one to two projects before graduating also. It seems like most people take longer than the initial six-month timeframe.

Overall, Mento Design Academy is a good boot camp. They provide you with a dedicated mentor and a vibrant and supportive community on Slack. If you're looking for a well-rounded and sociable learning experience, Mento is definitely worth considering.

I really enjoyed being a part of Mento while I was maneuvering my career change into UX Design. Out of all the programs out there to choose from I thought Mento was going to be the best fit for my learning style. The program was designed in a way that helped me understand the role of a UX Designer at my own pace. I was lucky enough to have a great mentor, Alex. He helped me through the challenges I faced throughout the course and also helped me manage my moments of low motivation to get through the course.  The way the course is structured  allowed me the flexibility to learn at my own pace which made a huge difference in how I retained the information provided. The community itself is very inviting which is comforting for someone stepping into a new career path. The slack channel is always buzzing and provides a space for all the resources one would need when they begin their UX Design journey. I’m very happy with my time at Mento and all that I gained out of my experience.