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

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.

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.

👉 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 geekspodcast@uxtweak.com

🔎 Do you want to know more? Check out this episode at:

https://www.uxtweak.com/podcast/mujaahida-shakur-ux-research-career

Episode highlights

00:01:52 - Every UX research career is unique

00:02:58 - AI in the interview process

00:04:12 - Using AI in UX research

00:05:51 - Switching the industries

00:10:38 - Representation in UX research studies

00:11:58 - Framing your resume for success

00:13:01 - Importance of networking

00:19:13 - Discovering your strengths and weaknesses

00:22:40 - Learning from your connections

00:28:26 - Final advice

About our guest

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's currently working as a UXR, studying the ways people use and interact with technology to drive product and program strategy and development.

👉 Did you know that UXtweak also offers a series of webinars packed with practical knowledge for UX professionals? Check out the episode with Maria Rosala from NN/g, where she talks about using AI as a UX research partner: https://www.youtube.com/live/hRWLkpCBiyg?si=Bee9a1Ek7b7HKUqN

About this podcast:

Welcome to UX Research Geeks, where Petra Rajkov, a senior UX researcher and product thinker, talks with researchers from around the globe about topics that matter to them.

🐝 Brought to you by UXtweak, an all-in-one UX research software. Start your research for free at: https://www.uxtweak.com/ 👈

🐝 Where to follow UXtweak:

LinkedIn / Instagram / YouTube / Facebook / Twitter