Building a UX research career in 2026 | Mujaahida Shakur | #78

<p>Mujaahida Shakur, a behavior scientist and UX researcher with a background in public health and experience at Amazon Web Services, reflects on her journey into UX research and the challenge of translating a nontraditional career path into a compelling professional story. She explores career pivots, resume language, AI in hiring and research, inclusive recruitment, and the realities of navigating today’s job market. She also explains how she turned networking into a research project and how her curiosity turned career conversations into opportunities for learning, self-discovery, and genuine connection.</p><p>UPD: During the editing process of this episode, Mujaahida was hired at the SteerBridge as a User Experience Researcher. We wish her best of luck at her new company. </p><p><br></p><p>👉 <em>If you have any tips on fantastic speakers from across the globe, feedback, or any questions, we’d love to hear from you. Reach out to </em><a href="mailto:geekspodcast@uxtweak.com"><em>geekspodcast@uxtweak.com</em></a></p><p><br></p><p><strong>🔎 Do you want to know more? Check out this episode at:</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.uxtweak.com/podcast/joel-barr-ux-research-in-organizations"><u>https://www.uxtweak.com/podcast/</u></a>mujaahida-shakur-ux-research-career</p><p><br></p><p><strong>Episode highlights</strong></p><p>00:01:52 - Every UX research career is unique </p><p>00:02:58 - AI in the interview process</p><p>00:04:12 - Using AI in UX research </p><p>00:05:51 - Switching the industries </p><p>00:10:38 - Representation in UX research studies </p><p>00:11:58 - Framing your resume for success </p><p>00:13:01 - Importance of networking </p><p>00:19:13 - Discovering your strengths and weaknesses </p><p>00:22:40 - Learning from your connections </p><p>00:28:26 - Final advice </p><p><br></p><p><strong>About our guest</strong> </p><p>Mujaahida is a Behavioral Scientist with 10 years of experience. With a background in Psychology and Public Health, she has dedicated her career to increasing equitable access to products, programs, and services that support traditionally marginalized populations. She has applied this interest across a variety of industries, including Education, Non-profit, Public Health, and Tech. She&#39;s currently working as a UXR, studying the ways people use and interact with technology to drive product and program strategy and development.</p><p><br></p><p>👉 Did you know that UXtweak also offers a series of webinars packed with pract