Hi there—thanks for stopping by! As you may know by now, I'm a user experience designer from San Jose, CA. In a past life, you'd find me hunched over the bench in a lab coat, pipetting various solutions as a biochemist in pharma and diagnostics research.

After four years of working as a scientist (and some soul-searching), I found myself at a crossroads—though I genuinely loved science, my true strengths lay in my creative potential and passion for people.

When I discovered UX, I felt like I'd finally found my element. It was the perfect space to harness my creativity and technical prowess to solve real problems for real people. The once unsettling crossroads had converged into a limitless intersection. Coupling design thinking with my roots in scientific research, I take an analytical approach to challenges through the lens of user empathy and advocacy. Turns out that the design process and the scientific method aren't so different after all.

Outside of the realm of design, you can find me listening to music, creating music, and trying to train my all-too-intelligent jindo.

Please email me at mayanag@ucla.edu with any inquiries—I'd love to connect.