UX Research Certification

The UX Research Certification is a free, test-based credential from Science of Apps. It certifies that you can plan, run and synthesize user research that changes decisions — method choice, recruiting, interviewing, usability testing, surveys and analysis. Pass the 20-question, 30-minute test with 75% or more to become a Certified UX Researcher (SOA-UXR). Every question is based on published standards and research — including When to Use Which User-Experience Research Methods (Nielsen Norman Group), Service Manual: User research (GOV.UK), ResearchOps 101 (Nielsen Norman Group) — and each answer is explained with its source.

Read the four skill domains on this page, study the free guides and sources linked to each, then take the 30-minute test online. There is no fee, course or sign-up. Score 75% or more and you get a Certified UX Researcher certificate straight away — on screen, as a PDF and by email — with a credential ID anyone can verify.

Yes. The questions are original scenarios written by Science of Apps, and each one is based on a public source you can read: When to Use Which User-Experience Research Methods (Nielsen Norman Group); Service Manual: User research (GOV.UK); ResearchOps 101 (Nielsen Norman Group); Writing survey questions (Pew Research Center); Leading Questions (Nielsen Norman Group); Thinking Aloud: The #1 Usability Tool (Nielsen Norman Group). The source is shown under each question and linked in the answer review. Science of Apps doesn't copy questions from other tests.

Not to get hired — but a verified credential helps career-switchers, designers moving into research and researchers in markets where the role is new prove they can choose methods, avoid bias and turn findings into decisions.

Yes. The certification is online, in English and free everywhere — people take it from India, the US, the UK, Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia-Pacific. Your certificate is dated with your own local date and can be verified from anywhere at scienceofapps.com/certification/verify/.

It helps you stand out: it shows employers, in a form they can check, that you can apply research planning & methods and interviews & usability testing to real product scenarios. Add it to LinkedIn and your CV, and back it with portfolio work that shows the same skills — certifications open conversations, portfolios close them.

We rate it Intermediate: assumes hands-on experience in the role. It has 20 scenario questions — 5 from each of 4 domains — and a 30-minute limit. You need 75% (15 of 20) to pass and 90% for distinction.

To get a UX researcher job in 2027, show you can answer the questions that matter to a product with the right method: interviews, usability tests, surveys and analytics combined, careful synthesis, and findings that change decisions. AI now speeds up transcription and clustering, so employers value judgement, rigour and influence. Bring two studies where research changed what was built, and verify your fundamentals with a free test. Our full career guide covers the hiring process, interview loop, pay and a prep plan: scienceofapps.com/blog/ux-research-career-guide/

Nothing. There is no fee to take a test, to receive the certificate, to have it emailed or to verify it, and no sign-up.

On our server, not in your browser. The answers never reach the page until you submit, so a certificate can only be earned by passing. Each certificate gets a unique credential ID stored by Science of Apps.

You see your score for each area and every question with the correct answer and why, with the published source behind it. You can retake after 30 minutes, and the retake draws questions you haven't seen yet.

No. Every certificate is dated, so it always shows when you passed. Retake a test any time for a newer date or a higher score.

Yes. After you pass, Add to LinkedIn opens the Licenses & certifications form with the certificate name, Science of Apps as the issuer, the issue date, your credential ID and the verification link filled in. You can also download it as a PDF or PNG, and it's emailed to you as a PDF.

Every certificate has a credential ID and a QR code. Scanning it, or entering the ID at scienceofapps.com/certification/verify/, shows the holder's name, the certification, the score and the issue date from our records.

No. They are Science of Apps' own assessments of applied skill. They aren't issued by a university or standards body, and they work best alongside a portfolio that shows the skills in real work.