DARTMOUTH LIBRARIES
REIMAGINING THE LIBRARIES ONLINE
Redesigning Dartmouth Libraries’ digital front door around clearer search, essential research tools, and a more engaging homepage.
UX/UI DESIGN RESEARCH INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE DESIGN SYSTEMS
Overview
PRODUCT DESIGNER · 8 MONTHS
Working with a designer, developer, and product manager, I translated research into information architecture, responsive UI, and a tested Figma prototype. My work also covered WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility rules and recommendations for launch and content governance.
50+
USER INTERVIEWS
1 M
ONLINE PATRONS
8
RESEARCH METHODS
Challenge & Research
A dense homepage blurred catalog and website search while essential tools competed with other content. Research helped establish what deserved priority.
Follow the behavior
Analytics identified Research Guides, Databases, and Study Spaces as key destinations.
Listen across the campus
Interviews surfaced clutter, unclear navigation, and hard-to-find support.
Compare, test, refine
Peer-library research, Figma prototypes, Useberry, and moderated testing guided iteration and accessibility decisions.
BEFORE — Competing search modes and links
AFTER — One focused library search and three essential shortcuts
The New Homepage
A clearer digital front door, organized around essential research tasks and campus stories.
Put essential tasks first
One focused search entry, visible Advanced Search, and three priority research shortcuts.
Give stories an editorial hierarchy
A lead story and supporting articles create a clearer editorial hierarchy.
Make events useful at a glance
Grouped dates, short descriptions, and simpler tags. Testing informed the maintainable text-first approach.
Redesigned homepage: focused search, editorial news, and populated event listings.
Search & Discovery
The homepage refresh launched alongside the Libraries’ Next Discovery Experience. Clearer entry points connect the homepage to collection discovery and research support.
A clear starting point
Collection scope, query, and Advanced Search grouped in one prominent area.
Research tools within reach
Direct access to guides, search tips, interlibrary borrowing, and library accounts.
Continuity across the site
Consistent Libraries branding and navigation connect the catalog to the wider site.
Final Dartmouth Libraries Search interface.
Launch & Impact
The coordinated homepage and catalog release launched June 16, 2026, during the lower-traffic summer interim, and featured in “Dartmouth Libraries Search Upgrade and Homepage Refresh.”
What changed
The work established clearer resource entry points, consistent navigation, and maintainable news and events patterns.
Design takeaway
Balancing user needs, stakeholder priorities, and content maintenance was as important as the visual refresh.