The 42-day cohort that turns
junior designers into hireable seniors.

The 42-day cohort that turns junior designers into hireable seniors.

Foundry by Designare. Built for 0-to-4 year designers in India who want to skip the next two years and get hired at real product companies.

Foundry by Designare. Built for 0-to-4 year designers in India who want to skip the next two years and get hired at real product companies.

  • 42 days

    42 days

  • 10 modules

    10 modules

  • 7 live sessions

    7 live sessions

  • 180 seats

    180 seats

  • 3 tiers

    3 tiers

  • Cohort 01

    Cohort 01

  • Starts July 10

    Starts July 10

.

Days of work

.

Modules

.

Live Saturdays

.

Total Seats

Detailed Curriculum

The modules

The modules

The modules

Ten modules. Thirty-four recorded lessons. What to film — lesson by lesson — with shot lists, on-screen direction, and the take-home for each.

Module One · Module 01

Real Designer Mindset + Industry vs College

Real Designer Mindset + Industry vs College

Real Designer Mindset + Industry vs College

Where you actually stand as a designer in 2026, and what nobody told you about the gap between college work and industry expectation.

2 Lessons

~35 min

Recorded

All tiers

Lesson 1.1 · Mindset

Recorded · 15 min

The Real Designer Mindset

What to cover

Open with: “If you’ve been calling yourself a UX/UI designer for two years and still feel like a fraud — that’s not imposter syndrome, that’s a real diagnosis”

Define the difference between someone who knows Figma and someone who can design

The “designer = problem solver, not pixel pusher” framing — backed by a 90-second Vannsh personal story

What seniors stop doing (chasing dribbble, framework worship, awards) and what they start doing

The compounding bet — why daily small action over 42 days beats sprint-burnout cycles

TAKE-HOME

The Mindset Reset · 1-pager PDF

Lesson 1.2 · Industry vs College

Recorded · 20 min

The 5 Stages of Designer Maturity

What to cover

The 5 stages model: Tool User → Pattern Copier → Frame Designer → System Thinker → Outcome Owner

What each stage produces (with annotated examples)

The “industry terms” they never taught in college — design tokens, ops, handoff, design system governance, RFC, design crit

Side-by-side: a typical college NID/Pearl portfolio vs a senior product portfolio at Razorpay/CRED

End with the self-assessment quiz callout

TAKE-HOME

The 5-Stage Self-Assessment Quiz · 20 questions

Module Two · Module 02

Problem Framing + The 3 Questions

Problem Framing + The 3 Questions

Problem Framing + The 3 Questions

How senior designers think before opening Figma. The framework-free method for finding real problems inside fuzzy briefs.

3 Lessons

~75 min

Recorded

All tiers

Lesson 2.1 · The Brief

Recorded · 25 min

How to Read a Brief and Find the Real Problem

What to cover

Hook: “Every brief lies. Your job is to find the truth behind it”

The asked problem vs the real problem — show one real Buzzinga brief on screen

The 5 brief signals that mean “this is not actually a design problem”

How to push back on a brief without sounding combative — with 3 actual phrasings to use

Walk through the Brief Decoder Worksheet (the resource) live

TAKE-HOME

The Brief Decoder Worksheet · Notion + Figma

Lesson 2.2 · The 3 Questions

Recorded · 25 min

The Three Questions Senior Designers Ask Before Opening Figma

What to cover

Question 1: “What changes for the user when this ships?” — the outcome question

Question 2: “What’s the smallest version we can test in 48 hours?” — the scope question

Question 3: “Who has to approve this, and what do they actually care about?” — the stakeholder question

For each: a real scenario, a junior answer, a senior answer, the diff

End with the 3-Question screen card — printable studio poster

TAKE-HOME

The 3-Question Studio Poster · Printable

Lesson 2.3 · Framework Detox

Recorded · 25 min

Why Frameworks Slow You Down (and What Seniors Use Instead)

What to cover

Hook: “I haven’t drawn a Double Diamond in 3 years. Here’s what I do instead”

Why frameworks are scaffolding — useful when learning, slow when shipping

The 3 contexts where frameworks DO still matter (stakeholder buy-in, junior teaching, formal RFC)

The “design instinct” replacement — pattern recognition built through reps, not steps

Walk through one real Designare project from brief → ship without naming any framework

TAKE-HOME

Framework Decision Matrix · When to use, when to skip

Module Three · Module 03

User Research for Solo Designers

User Research for Solo Designers

User Research for Solo Designers

Meaningful research in 3 days without a research team. The 5-user protocol that produces real insight — not opinions dressed as data.

2 Lessons

~60 min

Recorded

All tiers

Lesson 3.1 · Solo Research

Recorded · 30 min

User Research When You Don’t Have a Research Team

What to cover

The 5-user protocol — why 5 is the magic number, backed by Nielsen’s data

How to find 5 real users in 48 hours — Twitter, Reddit, LinkedIn, friends-of-friends, paid alternates

The interview script template — opener, deep-dive questions, closer

What to NEVER ask (leading questions, hypothetical futures, feature requests)

Recording, transcribing with AI, tagging insights — full workflow shown live

TAKE-HOME

User Interview Question Bank · 50 questions

Lesson 3.2 · Synthesis

Recorded · 30 min

Turning 5 Interviews Into One Designable Insight

What to cover

The 3-pass synthesis method — raw notes → themes → insight statement

How to write an insight that’s actually designable (not “users want a better experience”)

The 5 patterns junior designers fall into — confirmation bias, sample-of-one, paraphrasing, etc.

Using AI for synthesis support without letting AI hallucinate insights

Walk through one real Designare community insight synthesis live

TAKE-HOME

Insight Synthesis Template · FigJam

Module Four · Module 04

Design Taste + Visual Judgment

Design Taste + Visual Judgment

Design Taste + Visual Judgment

How senior designers develop the eye. The frameworks for visual judgment nobody teaches in college — and the daily practice that compounds it.

3 Lessons

~90 min

Recorded

Cohort + Career

Lesson 4.1 · The Eye

Recorded · 25 min

How Senior Designers Develop Visual Judgment

What to cover

Hook: “Design taste isn’t talent. It’s miles. I’ll show you how to compound it”

The 3 components of taste: visual literacy, contextual fluency, reference depth

Why looking at “good design” isn’t enough — the active interrogation method

The senior eye vs junior eye on the same screen — side-by-side annotations

Reference libraries every designer should follow (Mobbin, Dribbble curated, product Twitter accounts)

TAKE-HOME

Reference Library Starter · 40 curated sources

Lesson 4.2 · Teardowns

Recorded · 40 min

30 Design Teardowns — Why This Works, Why This Doesn’t

What to cover

15 examples of senior craft — annotated frame-by-frame

15 examples of junior tells — same treatment, what to learn from each

Categories: hierarchy, density, spacing, type pairing, microcopy, motion restraint

Indian product examples wherever possible — CRED, Razorpay, Zomato, Cult, Spinny, Cleartrip

Pacing: 60–90 seconds per teardown, fast cuts, annotated frames

TAKE-HOME

30 Teardowns Visual Reference · Figma file

Lesson 4.3 · Daily Practice

Recorded · 25 min

The Taste Journal — A Daily 15-Min Compounding Habit

What to cover

The Taste Journal format — one screen a day, three notes: what works, what doesn’t, what I’d steal

How to set up a Notion template that takes 15 minutes daily

The 90-day promise — what changes in your eye after 90 entries

Common failure modes — treating it as a chore, writing too long, looking at the same sources

End with the cohort taste-journal challenge — daily share in Discord during the cohort

TAKE-HOME

Taste Journal Notion Template · Daily prompts

Module Five · Module 05

Craft Systems · Type, Colour, Components

Craft Systems · Type, Colour, Components

Craft Systems · Type, Colour, Components

The 7 invisible things that make junior work look junior. Design systems from scratch in 2 days — typography, colour, microinteractions, mobile, accessibility.

5 Lessons

~180 min

Recorded

All tiers

Lesson 5.1 · The 7 Tells

Recorded · 35 min

The 7 Invisible Things That Make Junior Work Look Junior

What to cover

Tell 1: Inconsistent spacing (the 8pt grid myth)

Tell 2: Saturation overload (why your colours look cheap)

Tell 3: Type hierarchy collapse (everything fighting for attention)

Tell 4: Component drift (3 buttons that should be 1)

Tell 5: Microcopy that sounds like a robot wrote it

Tell 6: Loading states + empty states completely absent

Tell 7: Motion as decoration, not signal — for each: junior screen, fix, senior screen, annotated

TAKE-HOME

Junior-to-Senior Polish Audit · PDF + Figma

Lesson 5.2 · Design Systems

Recorded · 50 min

Building a 50-Component System From Scratch in 2 Days

What to cover

Variables setup — tokens for color, spacing, radius, shadow

Auto-layout discipline — hug, fill, fixed as a complete mental model

Component properties — boolean, instance swap, variant, text — when to use what

The “50 components in 2 days” recipe with timestamps

Build the entire Designare Component Library Starter on screen, step by step

TAKE-HOME

Designare Component Library Starter · Figma

Lesson 5.3 · Typography

Recorded · 30 min

Typography That Doesn’t Suck

What to cover

The 5 type pairings that always work + the framework to invent your own

Letterform anatomy at the level designers can actually use

Why most “modern” type pairings look the same — and how to break out

20 annotated type pairings from real products

TAKE-HOME

Typography Cheatsheet + 20 Pairings · PDF

Lesson 5.4 · Colour

Recorded · 30 min

Colour Systems For Products (Not Brands)

What to cover

Semantic colour tokens — success, error, warning, info — beyond just red/green/blue

The HSB saturation rule — why your colours look cheap and the 80% rule fix

Dark mode setup that doesn’t require redesigning everything

Accessibility-aware palettes — contrast ratios, the WebAIM tool, when to override

Build a token system live for your case study product

TAKE-HOME

Colour System Template + Premium Specs

Lesson 5.5 · Motion + Mobile + A11y

Recorded · 35 min

Microinteractions, Mobile Reality, Accessibility

What to cover

When motion adds value, when it’s noise — the restraint principle

Figma prototyping with variables — conditional logic without code

Loading states, error states, success states — the trust signals nobody designs

Mobile design reality — thumb zones, tap targets, what Figma lies about

The 10-item real-device test checklist before any mobile design goes to dev

The 5 accessibility rules that matter, the 20 to skip for now

TAKE-HOME

Microinteraction Swipe File · 30 examples · Mobile + A11y checklists

Module Six · Module 06

AI in the UX Workflow

AI in the UX Workflow

AI in the UX Workflow

The flagship. v0, Galileo, Krea, Claude, Cursor — when to use what, in which order. AI-native vs AI-augmented products. The four-step senior workflow.

6 Lessons

~150 min

Recorded

All tiers

Flagship

Lesson 6.1 · Thinking Partner

Recorded · 25 min

AI as Thinking Partner, Not Shortcut

What to cover

Hook: “If you’re using AI like Google, you’re losing. If you’re using it like a senior designer, you’re 5 years ahead”

The 4-step senior workflow: Frame → Generate → Critique → Refine

Why “let AI do the boring stuff” is the wrong frame — it’s thinking partnership, not labour replacement

The tourist vs the local — junior designers visit AI tools; seniors live in them

TAKE-HOME

The 4-Step AI Workflow Map · Notion

Lesson 6.2 · AI for Research

Recorded · 25 min

AI for Early Research and Discovery

What to cover

Claude + ChatGPT for synthesizing 10 user interviews in 30 minutes

The “play the user” technique — prompting AI to roleplay as 5 personas

Where AI hallucinates and how to spot it — the cross-reference rule

Full live demo: take a brief, end with synthesised insights in 25 minutes

TAKE-HOME

AI Research Prompt Pack · 30 prompts

Lesson 6.3 · Visual Exploration

Recorded · 25 min

v0, Galileo, Krea — Visual Generation Workflows

What to cover

When to start in v0 vs Figma vs Galileo vs Krea — the decision matrix

Live: generate 5 hero sections in v0 in 10 minutes, then refine in Figma

Prompting for designers — the 4-part prompt structure for visual output

What NOT to use AI generation for (final pixel work, brand-critical work, accessibility-first flows)

TAKE-HOME

Visual AI Tool Decision Matrix + 20 Prompts

Lesson 6.4 · Moodboarding

Recorded · 20 min

Midjourney For Designers — Moodboards That Compound

What to cover

The 4-part Midjourney prompt structure for product designers (subject, style, lighting, ratio)

Building a brand moodboard in 20 minutes — live

When Midjourney beats Mobbin/Dribbble (and when it doesn’t)

The “reference compounding” practice — saving every good output to a personal vault

TAKE-HOME

Midjourney Prompt Library for Designers · 40 prompts

Lesson 6.5 · AI for Critique

Recorded · 25 min

The Paste-Back Audit — AI as Your Senior Critic

What to cover

Hook: “You can have a senior designer critique your work 100x a day. For free”

The paste-back workflow — screenshot, paste, ask the right question

The 10 prompts that produce senior-level critique

How to disagree with AI critique — it’s not always right, and seniors push back

Live: take a junior screen, run it through the paste-back audit, ship the refined version

TAKE-HOME

Paste-Back Critique Prompt Pack · 10 prompts

Lesson 6.6 · Native vs Augmented

Recorded · 30 min

AI-Native Products vs AI-Augmented Products

What to cover

The fundamental difference — Linear is augmented, Cursor is native, Perplexity is native, Notion is augmented

When designing for AI-native, the UI is the prompt — interaction patterns that are emerging

When AI is forced into a product as a bolt-on (and how to spot it)

15 patterns in AI-native product design — annotated examples

End with: what your case study should consider about AI integration

TAKE-HOME

AI Product Pattern Library · 15 patterns annotated

Module Seven · Module 07

Case Study + Portfolio + LinkedIn

Case Study + Portfolio + LinkedIn

Case Study + Portfolio + LinkedIn

The 7-section case study structure that gets interviews. First-screen portfolio formulas. The LinkedIn profile audit that gets you inbound.

5 Lessons

~150 min

Recorded

All tiers

Lesson 7.1 · Case Study Structure

Recorded · 40 min

The 7-Section Case Study That Gets Hired

What to cover

Section 1: Problem (1 sentence, no setup)

Section 2: Stakes (why this mattered to the business)

Section 3: Approach (what we tried — including what we abandoned)

Section 4: Key decisions (3–5 decisions, with the option-tree shown)

Section 5: Tradeoffs (the senior-only section — what you chose NOT to do)

Section 6: Outcome (numbers, before/after, learnings)

Section 7: Reflection (what you’d do differently) — for each: junior version, senior version, the diff

TAKE-HOME

Case Study Story Framework · Notion + Figma

Lesson 7.2 · Voice

Recorded · 25 min

How to Write Case Studies That Don’t Sound Corporate

What to cover

The voice problem — why every junior case study sounds the same

Why “I conducted user research” is the worst opening sentence in design writing

The “moment the project changed direction” line — the sentence hiring managers read for

Annotated examples from world-class portfolios — Behance, Read.cv, personal sites

The AI rewrite trap — how to use Claude/ChatGPT to edit without losing voice

TAKE-HOME

20 Annotated Case Study Examples

Lesson 7.3 · First Screen

Recorded · 30 min

The 4.7-Second Test — Portfolio First Screen

What to cover

The recruiter eye-track data — what hiring managers see in 4.7 seconds

The 3 first-screen formulas that work + the 5 that don’t

Behance vs Notion vs personal site — the decision tree by career stage

Layout patterns above the fold — annotated from real portfolios

How to present your work visually — the Apple-keynote treatment for case studies

TAKE-HOME

Portfolio First-Screen Framework · PDF

Lesson 7.4 · Visual Presentation

Recorded · 25 min

The Apple-Keynote Treatment for Your Work

What to cover

Mockups, scroll videos, before/afters — when and how to use each

How to record case study walkthroughs that don’t make you cringe

The Loom-as-portfolio trick — why some designers get hired from a 3-minute video

Live: take a basic Figma export, give it the keynote treatment in 15 minutes

TAKE-HOME

Portfolio Asset Templates · Figma

Lesson 7.5 · LinkedIn

Recorded · 30 min

LinkedIn That Gets You Inbound (Without Posting Daily)

What to cover

Profile audit — headline formula, banner design, About section that converts

The 80/20 of LinkedIn — minimum effort, maximum hiring visibility

What to post (and what to never post) — the 5 post types that work for designers

How to use LinkedIn to get hiring manager inbound instead of cold-applying

30-minute profile rebuild walkthrough

TAKE-HOME

LinkedIn Designer Profile Audit Checklist

Module Eight · Module 08

Hiring + Salary Intel

Hiring + Salary Intel

Hiring + Salary Intel

Who’s hiring, who’s not, who’s growing. How designers actually get hired in 2026 — the channels that work, backed by data.

2 Lessons

~60 min

Recorded

Cohort + Career

Lesson 8.1 · The Landscape

Recorded · 35 min

Indian Design Hiring Landscape 2026

What to cover

Who’s hiring, who’s not, who’s growing — by city, by company stage

Product vs service vs agency vs MNC — real differences in salary, ceiling, learning

City-wise breakdown — Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, Remote — with real salary bands

The 2026 hiring trend report — AI roles, design engineering, product design split

Where the gaps are — which roles are oversupplied and which are starving

TAKE-HOME

Indian Designer Salary Bible 2026 · Comprehensive PDF

Lesson 8.2 · Channels That Work

Recorded · 25 min

How Designers Actually Get Hired in 2026

What to cover

The 50-designer survey data — exactly which channels actually worked

LinkedIn applications have an 8% hit rate. Cold DMs have a 34% reply rate. Why.

The Twitter/Read.cv visibility play — works at mid+ level, not for freshers

Referral playbook — how to ask without sounding desperate

The portfolio drop strategy — sending work proactively without applying

TAKE-HOME

The 2026 Designer Hiring Playbook · With scripts

Module Nine · Module 09

Interview + Negotiation

Interview + Negotiation

Interview + Negotiation

The portfolio review interview round by round. Behavioural questions and design challenges. Negotiating ₹2–5L more without burning the bridge.

3 Lessons

~100 min

Recorded

Cohort + Career

Lesson 9.1 · Portfolio Review

Recorded · 35 min

The Portfolio Review Interview — Round by Round

What to cover

What hiring managers actually look for in portfolio interviews

The 5 questions that get asked in 80% of portfolio reviews — and how to answer them

The “moment of truth” — when they ask about a project where you made the wrong call

How to present a case study verbally in 5 minutes (the 5-Layer model)

TAKE-HOME

Portfolio Review Prep Pack · 30 Q + frameworks

Lesson 9.2 · Behavioural + Take-Home

Recorded · 25 min

Behavioural Interviews + Design Challenges

What to cover

Behavioural questions every designer faces — and answers that don’t sound rehearsed

Design challenges and take-home tests — how to crush them without burning out

The 48-hour design challenge framework — what to ship and what to skip

Whiteboard interviews — still happening at some companies, here’s how to handle them

TAKE-HOME

Interview Prep Pack · Behavioural + Design Challenge framework

Lesson 9.3 · Negotiation

Recorded · 40 min

Negotiating ₹2–5L More Without Burning the Bridge

What to cover

The negotiation timeline — when to negotiate, when to accept, when to walk

10 scripts for the 10 most common negotiation moments (with role-play)

How to anchor — and how to respond if they anchor first

Equity primer — RSUs, ESOPs, vesting cliffs, what they actually mean in INR

What’s negotiable beyond salary — joining bonus, location, equipment budget, learning budget

TAKE-HOME

Negotiation Playbook + 10 Scripts

Module Ten · Module 10

Freelancing + Going Independent

Freelancing + Going Independent

Freelancing + Going Independent

When to freelance and when not. Going independent. The 5-year designer career map — the modules that turn the cohort from a craft course into a career engine.

3 Lessons

~90 min

Recorded

Cohort + Career

Lesson 10.1 · Freelancing 101

Recorded · 35 min

Freelancing For Designers — The Honest Truth

What to cover

When to freelance, when not — the honest tradeoffs

Pricing models — hourly vs project vs retainer, and what each is worth

Client acquisition without a personal brand — the 5 channels that work for new freelancers

Contracts, scope management, the no-clauses you must include

Common freelance traps — feature creep, late payments, the “friend rate” problem

TAKE-HOME

Freelance Starter Kit · Contracts, calculator, proposals

Lesson 10.2 · Going Independent

Recorded · 30 min

When You’re Ready to Leave Your Job

What to cover

The financial checklist — runway, emergency fund, fixed costs

The emotional checklist — what nobody tells you about loneliness, identity, structure

Vannsh’s own founder journey — Designare + Buzzinga, what worked, what broke

Building a small studio vs solo — which fits your wiring

TAKE-HOME

Independent Designer Roadmap

Lesson 10.3 · Long-Term

Recorded · 25 min

The 5-Year Designer Career Map

What to cover

IC vs management vs founder paths — what each actually looks like at year 3, 5, 10

The 5-year map for designers — when to switch, when to deepen, when to pivot

The skills that compound vs the skills that decay

How to design your career like a senior designer would design a product

TAKE-HOME

Designer’s 5-Year Career Map · Notion

Live Sessions

Live sessions · Seven Saturdays

Live sessions · Seven Saturdays

Live sessions · Seven Saturdays

The live cohort experience — run-of-show for every session. Critique, workshops, mock interviews, demo day. Every minute mapped, every guest mentor slotted.

Live 01 · Jul 12 · Saturday

Cohort Kickoff + Problem Framing Workshop

Cohort Kickoff + Problem Framing Workshop

Cohort Kickoff + Problem Framing Workshop

90 min

7 PM IST

All tiers

Run-of-show

00:00

Welcome + Cohort Hello. Introduce yourself. Set the tone — this is a cohort, not a course. Lay down the 3 ground rules: show up, ship work, give critique.

10:00

Format briefing. How the 42 days run — live cadence, Discord etiquette, weekly submission rule, the “ghost = lose your seat” policy.

15:00

Live Problem Framing Demo. Pick one cohort member’s case study product. Walk through the 3 Questions live. Reframe the brief on the spot.

45:00

3 Hot-seat reframings. 3 students volunteer their case study briefs. 5 minutes each — reframe their problem statement live.

60:00

Open Q&A. Set the precedent that questions are welcome. Take any question — even meta ones about the cohort itself.

85:00

Close + Week 1 brief. Recap the week’s submission expectation. Remind about Discord channels. End on hype.

Week 1 Sunday submission · Due Jul 20

Problem statement (1 sentence) + 3-Question worksheet completed + research plan for case study. Submitted to cohort folder by Sunday 11:59 PM IST.

Live 02 · Jul 19 · Saturday

Design Taste Teardown + AI Workflow Live Demo

Design Taste Teardown + AI Workflow Live Demo

Design Taste Teardown + AI Workflow Live Demo

90 min

7 PM IST

All tiers

Run-of-show

00:00

Week 1 recap. Highlight 3 strong problem statements submitted. Call out 2 patterns of weak framing — without naming. Set up Week 2.

10:00

Live Design Teardown. Vannsh + Guest Mentor 2 (craft specialist) tear down 5 real Indian apps live — mix of good and bad. Open Figma, annotate frames, walk through senior reasoning.

40:00

AI Workflow Live Demo. Take a real problem from a cohort member. Run the 4-step AI workflow — Frame → Generate (v0 + Galileo) → Critique (Claude paste-back) → Refine (Figma). Ship a screen in 30 minutes.

75:00

Q&A on craft + AI workflow. Open floor.

85:00

Close + Week 2 brief. Set up Week 2 submission — hi-fi screens + component library.

Week 2 Sunday submission · Due Jul 27

Minimum 4 hi-fi screens of case study + working component library file (50+ components). Submitted to cohort folder. Peer review opens in Discord.

Live 03 · Jul 26 · Saturday

Component Library Workshop + Case Study Live Write

Component Library Workshop + Case Study Live Write

Component Library Workshop + Case Study Live Write

90 min

7 PM IST

All tiers

Run-of-show

00:00

Week 2 recap. Show 3 strong component libraries submitted (anonymised). Pattern recognition on what made them strong.

10:00

Build-along workshop. Vannsh builds 10 senior-quality components live in Figma. Cohort follows along in their own case study files — variables, properties, auto-layout discipline in real time.

45:00

Case Study Live Write. Vannsh writes a full case study live, section-by-section using the 7-section structure. 30 minutes. Take questions as you write.

80:00

Close + Week 3 brief. Set up Week 3 submission — full written case study + portfolio shell live.

Week 3 Sunday submission · Due Aug 3

One complete case study (designed + written) live on your portfolio. Portfolio shell with first screen. Submitted to cohort folder. Peer + mentor review starts Monday.

Live 04 · Aug 2 · Saturday

Portfolio Teardown — 12 Live Critiques

Portfolio Teardown — 12 Live Critiques

Portfolio Teardown — 12 Live Critiques

90 min

7 PM IST

All tiers

Run-of-show

00:00

The setup. Explain the critique rules — direct, kind, specific. Cohort watches and learns.

5:00

12 live portfolio critiques · 5 min each. 12 cohort students get reviewed on screen — Vannsh + Guest Mentor 1 (product senior) co-critique. Focus: first screen, case study story, narrative voice, layout.

65:00

Pattern recognition session. What did all 12 portfolios get wrong? What did the strong ones do right?

80:00

Cohort wrap + Week 4 brief. Set up the career phase — Modules 8–10 drop, hiring intel begins.

Week 4 Sunday submission · Due Aug 10

Revised case study + polished portfolio based on critique. LinkedIn profile audit complete. Submitted to cohort folder.

Live 05 · Aug 9 · Saturday

Mock Hiring Panel + Interview Round

Mock Hiring Panel + Interview Round

Mock Hiring Panel + Interview Round

90 min

7 PM IST

Career tier only

Run-of-show

00:00

The setup. Vannsh + a real Senior Designer / Hiring Manager from an Indian product company form the panel. Explain the format — a real interview simulation, not a friendly chat.

10:00

5 mock interview rounds · 12 min each. 5 Career tier students get full mock interviews — portfolio review (5 min) + behavioural (4 min) + design challenge prompt (3 min). Live feedback after each.

70:00

Hiring manager AMA. The guest panellist answers Career tier questions about hiring, what they look for, red flags, deal-breakers.

85:00

Close. Next steps — Live 06, the negotiation Q&A. Demo Day prep begins.

Week 5 Sunday submission · Due Aug 17

Salary target written down. Negotiation script drafted using Module 9 templates. Interview prep doc completed. (Career tier only.)

Live 06 · Aug 16 · Saturday

Negotiation + Freelancing Open Q&A

Negotiation + Freelancing Open Q&A

Negotiation + Freelancing Open Q&A

75 min

7 PM IST

All tiers

Run-of-show

00:00

Demo Day prep briefing. Walk through what Demo Day looks like, what’s expected from each student, the 3-minute format.

10:00

Anonymous Q&A on money + jobs. Questions submitted beforehand in a Google Form. Vannsh answers in batches — salary, equity, switching, freelancing rates, “should I quit my job”, “is freelancing worth it”.

55:00

Live negotiation role-plays. 2 volunteers get role-played negotiation scenarios with Vannsh as the hiring manager. Cohort watches.

70:00

Close + Demo Day prep. What to bring to Aug 20. Rehearsal slot offered for the top 10.

Demo Day prep · Due Aug 18

3-minute case study presentation recorded as a Loom (rehearsal). Final polished portfolio. Interview-ready package complete.

Live 07 · Aug 20 · Wednesday · Demo Day

Demo Day + Alumni Induction + Closing

Demo Day + Alumni Induction + Closing

Demo Day + Alumni Induction + Closing

150 min

7 PM IST

Demo Day

Run-of-show

00:00

Opening. Vannsh + all guest mentors on stage. Frame the day — every student presents, top 5 get featured on Designare, the cohort closes tonight as the alumni network opens.

10:00

Student presentations · 3 min each. Every cohort student presents their case study in 3 minutes. ~70 Cohort + Career tier students total. Use a queue + Discord countdown timer for pace.

100:00

Mentor + cohort voting. Top 5 demos selected for the Designare feature. Live reveal.

115:00

Alumni Induction Ceremony. Hand out certificates digitally. Open the alumni Discord channel live. Set the cadence — quarterly alumni meetups, hiring partner intros continue.

130:00

Mentor closing words. Each guest mentor shares 60 seconds of closing reflection. Vannsh closes with the next-60-days framework — how to compound after the cohort.

145:00

Final goodbye. Cohort 01 closes officially. Alumni 01 opens.

Post-Demo Day

All cohort members granted alumni Discord access for life. Career tier students enter the 30-day post-cohort job support Slack with a Career mentor. Designare features the top 5 over the next month.

Recording checklist · What to film, when

Recording checklist · What to film, when

Recording checklist · What to film, when

The full filming schedule at a glance — ten modules, thirty-four lessons, roughly fourteen hours of recorded runtime to capture before Cohort 01 begins.

#

#

Module

Lessons

Lessons

Runtime

Runtime

01

01

Real Designer Mindset + Industry vs College

Real Designer Mindset + Industry vs College

2 lessons

2 lessons

~35 min

~35 min

02

02

Problem Framing + The 3 Questions

Problem Framing + The 3 Questions

3 lessons

3 lessons

~75 min

~75 min

03

03

User Research for Solo Designers

User Research for Solo Designers

2 lessons

2 lessons

~60 min

~60 min

04

04

Design Taste + Visual Judgment

Design Taste + Visual Judgment

3 lessons

3 lessons

~90 min

~90 min

05

05

Craft Systems · Type, Colour, Components

Craft Systems · Type, Colour, Components

5 lessons

5 lessons

~180 min

~180 min

06

06

AI in the UX Workflow · Flagship

AI in the UX Workflow · Flagship

6 lessons

6 lessons

~150 min

~150 min

07

07

Case Study + Portfolio + LinkedIn

Case Study + Portfolio + LinkedIn

5 lessons

5 lessons

~150 min

~150 min

08

08

Hiring + Salary Intel

Hiring + Salary Intel

2 lessons

2 lessons

~60 min

~60 min

09

09

Interview + Negotiation

Interview + Negotiation

3 lessons

3 lessons

~100 min

~100 min

10

10

Freelancing + Going Independent

Freelancing + Going Independent

3 lessons

3 lessons

~90 min

~90 min

Three Ways In

Same curriculum. Three depths.

Same curriculum. Three depths.

Same curriculum. Three depths.

Self is recorded only. Cohort is the full experience. Career adds hiring outcomes.

Self is recorded only. Cohort is the full experience. Career adds hiring outcomes.

Foundry Self

Recorded modules. Self-paced. For self-starters who can’t commit to live Saturdays.

7,999 9,999

One-time · 80 seats

6 of 10 recorded modules including AI Flagship

Core resource library + templates

Discord community access

Alumni community for life

Certificate of completion

6-month recording access

No live sessions

No Demo Day

Reserve Self →

Foundry Self

Recorded modules. Self-paced. For self-starters who can’t commit to live Saturdays.

7,999 9,999

One-time · 80 seats

6 of 10 recorded modules including AI Flagship

Core resource library + templates

Discord community access

Alumni community for life

Certificate of completion

6-month recording access

No live sessions

No Demo Day

Reserve Self →

★ Recommended

Foundry Cohort

The full experience. Every module, every live, group critiques, demo day.

14,399 17,999

One-time · 70 seats

Everything in Self, plus

9 of 10 modules including Salary + Interview

6 of 7 live Saturday sessions

Group portfolio teardown — yours included

Group case study live critique

Demo Day participation on Aug 20

AI Stack Pro Pack included

Discord priority Q&A channel

Reserve Cohort →

★ Recommended

Foundry Cohort

The full experience. Every module, every live, group critiques, demo day.

14,399 17,999

One-time · 70 seats

Everything in Self, plus

9 of 10 modules including Salary + Interview

6 of 7 live Saturday sessions

Group portfolio teardown — yours included

Group case study live critique

Demo Day participation on Aug 20

AI Stack Pro Pack included

Discord priority Q&A channel

Reserve Cohort →

30 seats

Foundry Career

Everything in Cohort plus the career outcome layer. For active job-hunters.

22,399 27,999

One-time · 30 seats only

Everything in Cohort, plus

All 10 modules including Freelancing

3–5 warm hiring partner intros

Live Mock Hiring Panel (Career only)

30-day post-cohort job support

Salary negotiation group call

Career mentor in private Slack

AI Industry Connect Pack

Reserve Career →

30 seats

Foundry Career

Everything in Cohort plus the career outcome layer. For active job-hunters.

22,399 27,999

One-time · 30 seats only

Everything in Cohort, plus

All 10 modules including Freelancing

3–5 warm hiring partner intros

Live Mock Hiring Panel (Career only)

30-day post-cohort job support

Salary negotiation group call

Career mentor in private Slack

AI Industry Connect Pack

Reserve Career →

Reserve

Reserve your seat.

Reserve your seat.

Reserve your seat.

Drop your details. We’ll reach out within 24 hours with tier selection and onboarding.

Drop your details. We’ll reach out within 24 hours with tier selection and onboarding.

Answered

Questions, answered.

Questions, answered.

Questions, answered.

Everything you need to know before reserving a seat.

Everything you need to know before reserving a seat.

How much time will this take per week?

I’m a complete beginner. Can I join?

Will live sessions be recorded if I miss?

What payment methods? Any EMI?

Are there 1-on-1 calls with Vannsh?

Who are the hiring partners for Career tier?

Can I switch tiers after enrolling?

When are the mentors revealed?

What happens after the cohort ends?