INTERVARSITY

2021

InterVarsity Chapter Finder Redesign

Find a Chapter is a highly functional website using a database of existing InterVarsity chapters on college campuses across the United States — used by college students, parents, donors, administrative staff, and alumni.

CLIENT

Xemelgo Software

YEAR

Jan 2025

TIMELINE

3 Months

PROJECT OVERVIEW

Find a Chapter is a highly functional website that uses a database of existing InterVarsity chapters on college campuses across the United States — used by college students, parents, InterVarsity donors, administrative staff, and alumni.

My Scope:

User Research, UX Design, Branding, Database, Data Analytics, CMS

Tools:

Figma, Miro, HotJar, Google Analytics, Xtensio, Salesforce, Drupal 9 CMS

Duration:

1 Month — July 2021 to August 2021

Client:

InterVarsity

My Role:

UX Design Intern

Team:

Ashley Crutcher — UX Manager
William Cheung — UX Designer
Steven Yeo — UX Designer
Mark Breneman — Director of Digital Services
Gary Nauman — Senior Graphic Designer
Mary Massey — Developer
Ashlye Vanderworp — Editorial Manager

The Problem

During user research in 2016, the main insight found was that users often knew exactly what school they were checking — it was tedious to choose the state and then scroll to find their school. We had school information, so why not let them search by school?

The Goals

Salesforce data: Displayed content can only draw from what is currently in the database.

Design Approach

User Research

Stakeholder Interviews × 5 people

I wanted to understand more of the KPIs and OKRs that determined the success of the website and for the users.

User Interviews × 5 people

Insights:

72% said websites without photos did not motivate them to attend. 86% said hearing other people’s stories and impact boosted their motivation to participate.
The current website has no expression of impact or photos of the chapters.

“If joining that community adds purpose in my life. If I don\’t see people happy there, why would I want to join?”

“It seems like a legit organization, and it shows through photos that a lot of people go.”

Secondary Research Insights

Revisiting previous user research done in 2016, I found key insights that informed the redesign direction.

Hosting UX Audit Activity

With all the information collected from stakeholder interviews, user interviews, and secondary research, I looked at the current website and realized it doesn\’t allow users to donate to a chapter, start a chapter, and it lacks a lot of vision/impact. To confirm my hypothesis, I hosted a UX audit workshop for the team to discover themes.

Affinity Mapping — Themes

It can be confusing when there are 3 different CTAs to do one action
There is a video that describes the importance of InterVarsity chapters — that is a praise
There is no current way for users to learn how to start a chapter

Personas

I wanted to figure out the questions that each different type of user would ask, and make sure those questions were answered in my design.

Wireframing for Layout

The Proposed Landing Page

BEFORE — 2019 Design

White space on both sides, photo banner does not motivate user
Outdated look from the previous version of Drupal CMS
No additional information about starting or working at a chapter

AFTER — 2021 My Design

Full-width banner with one search bar CTA; radio buttons for state/zip search method
Real student testimonies on what it feels like to be at a chapter
Additional information about starting or working at a chapter

Specific Features

Updated Default Search CTA

After

Replaced “Near Me” with “Zip Code” — research showed people never used “Near Me”
Default radio button is “search by school” — users know exactly what school they’re searching

Before