nwPlus is a student-led club supporting aspiring programmers and designers, based out of University of British Columbia. Our mission is to foster innovation and creativity in tech for students to connect with passionate peers and mentors, through events such as our annual hackathons — HackCamp, nwHacks, and cmd-f.
Overview
Timeline
May 2024 - May 2025
Toolkit
Figma
Role
Outcome
Our designs successfully powered three large-scale hackathons, drawing 1,000+ participants and receiving praise for clarity, creativity, and user experience.
Process
The Design Opportunity
To start of this years' designs, we first reviewed last year’s hackathons and identified key pain points that needed to be addressed for this year's event
Our Solution
Add more photos and videos to capture the emotion and energy of the event that words alone can't convey.
Include authentic testimonials to share real participant stories and provide powerful social proof.
Include itinerary of events and workshops to provide participants with a clear overview of the event's schedule and help them understand what to expect.
Ideation
Mood Boarding
The initial stage of our design process was moodboarding. Each team member contributed their inspirations and initial ideas for the theme, allowing us to gather diverse perspectives and set a visual direction for the project. After examining the possible theme ideas, we decided on the carnival theme to create a more welcoming, friendly, and vibrant atmosphere for the first-time hackers.
For this year's cmd-f, which is Canada's largest hackathon celebrating underrepresented genders in tech, we decided to go with the baking theme to capture the joy of making in progress, cooking up ideas from scratch, layering on creativity, and serving up something uniquely yours.
The Three Stages of Fidelity
The three stages of fidelity—low-fi, mid-fi, and high-fi allowed us to gradually refine our design, starting with rough sketches and concepts, then moving to more detailed wireframes, and finally polishing the design with precise visuals and interactions. This process enabled us to iterate effectively, gather feedback at each stage, and ensure that the final product met both user needs and design goals.
Key Features
Baking Up Ideas
An engaging baking-themed hero using storytelling to strike a strong visual metaphor to represent idea creation, collaboration, and growth.
Showcasing Our Impact
Adding past projects, testimonials, and a photos/video section specifically to build trust, showcase community impact, and give newcomers a tangible sense of what to expect.
Reflection and Takeaways
Effective cross-functional collaboration means listening, adapting, and always anchoring design decisions in clarity and purpose, not just visual flair.
Reflecting on the project, it was a truly rewarding experience. Not only did I gain practical skills, such as crafting more detailed vectors and pushing my creative boundaries, but I also grew significantly in communication and collaboration. Working in a cross-functional team alongside developers, logistics, and marketing challenged me to adapt my design thinking to diverse perspectives and constraints. As a design co-lead, my partner and I took ownership of the major visual direction, making sure our work aligned with the broader goals of the event.
