Role: Lead Learning Designer | Sector: Higher Education | Tools: Canvas LMS, Figma, Microsoft 365, Adobe Premier Pro

The Challenge

When I joined the project, the international business degree program delivered through UTS’s partner campus in Shanghai was struggling with a fragmented digital experience. Each subject looked and functioned differently, navigation was inconsistent and students weren’t getting the same quality learning experience as those studying in Australia.

The brief was simple but ambitious: completely uplift and unify the Canvas presence so the offshore campus could confidently meet UTS’s teaching and learning standards.

The Solution

Over nine months, I led the digital transformation from end to end, acting as the connector between the onshore academic teams and the offshore delivery partners.

I began with a deep dive into the existing courses — reviewing subject sites, meeting with academics and mapping out where the biggest pain points were. This allowed me to build a clear picture of what students were actually experiencing and where the design inconsistencies were coming from.

From there, I developed a unified visual theme and a suite of Canvas templates that could be rolled out across every subject. These weren’t just cosmetic improvements — they were grounded in learning design principles, accessibility requirements and the practical realities of teaching busy subjects with large cohorts.

Throughout the project, I worked closely with academics to make sure the new templates solved real teaching challenges, not just design ones. I provided guidance, walkthroughs and hands-on support so staff felt confident using the new structure. It became a genuine collaboration rather than a top-down redesign.

The Result

The final product was a cohesive, modern digital campus that looked and felt like UTS — no matter where students were studying from. Navigation became predictable, content became easier to follow and academics had a clear structure that reduced duplication and admin time.

Beyond the visual improvement, the biggest shift was consistency. Students across the Shanghai campus now had the same high-quality experience as those in Sydney. And because the design system was built with scalability in mind, UTS can continue to evolve and optimise these subjects long after the project wrapped.