WGU D653: Empathizing, Defining, and Ideating

What D653 Is and Why It Matters

D653, Empathizing, Defining, and Ideating, is a course in Western Governors University's B.S. User Experience Design program, which WGU houses under its School of Business. It introduces the front half of the human-centered design process: learning who your users really are, framing the right problem to solve, and generating a wide range of possible solutions before you ever build anything. According to WGU's own program description, the course prepares you to incorporate empathy-driven, user-centered design thinking, with an emphasis on research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and equitable design outcomes.

Direct answer: You pass D653 by treating it as a hands-on design project, not a memorization test. Follow the task rubric line by line, produce genuine research-based deliverables (an empathy map, a clear problem statement, well-defined personas, and documented ideation), and make sure every design decision you present is traceable back to user needs rather than your own assumptions.

If you are an adult learner who has never worked in design, this course can feel unfamiliar at first because there is no single "correct answer" to look up. That is intentional. UX work rewards structured thinking and clear justification, and D653 is where you build that muscle. Take it seriously and it becomes one of the more genuinely useful courses in the program.

What the Assessment Covers

D653 is evaluated through a performance assessment (PA) rather than a proctored objective exam. Instead of answering multiple-choice questions, you submit design deliverables that a WGU evaluator scores against a rubric. Based on WGU's published course description, the work centers on these areas:

• Empathizing with users: conducting or synthesizing user research to understand what people say, think, do, and feel, often captured in an empathy map.
• Defining the problem: turning research into a focused, user-centered problem statement (frequently phrased as a point-of-view or "how might we" statement) instead of jumping straight to features.
• Audience segments and personas: identifying who your users are and representing them as clear, evidence-based personas.
• Ideating solutions: applying structured ideation techniques to generate multiple concepts, then explaining how those ideas connect back to user needs.
• Equity and collaboration: considering diverse stakeholders and designing for inclusive, meaningful experiences.

Because the exact number of tasks and rubric aspects can change between course versions, always open your current task instructions in the course of study and let those—not any outside guide—be your source of truth for what to submit.

How Hard It Is and How Long It Takes

D653 is a 3-competency-unit course, which is on the smaller side. Many students report that the challenge is less about difficulty and more about the shift in mindset: if you are used to studying facts and taking an exam, writing up an open-ended design project can feel ambiguous. Students who read the rubric closely and keep their deliverables tightly scoped tend to move through it in a couple of focused weeks, while those who over-engineer their submissions or drift from the prompt spend longer on revisions.

Your own background matters. If you have any exposure to design thinking—perhaps from D081 Innovative and Strategic Thinking or from studying users in D175 Consumer Behavior—the empathize-define-ideate flow will already feel familiar and you can move faster.

A Study and Preparation Plan That Fits This Course

Because the assessment is a project, "studying" here means practicing the process and mastering the rubric, not cramming terms. A practical approach:

1. Read the rubric first, twice. Before touching the learning materials, print or copy every rubric aspect. This tells you exactly which deliverables you must produce and what "competent" looks like for each one.
2. Learn the vocabulary with active recall. Quiz yourself on the difference between an empathy map, a persona, a problem statement, and an ideation method. Being able to explain each in one sentence, from memory, prevents you from blurring them in your submission.
3. Space your work across days. Draft the empathy map one day, the problem statement the next, personas after that. Spacing lets each stage inform the next and mirrors how real design research builds.
4. Practice on a real scenario. Apply the full empathize → define → ideate sequence to a small, concrete example (a campus app, a checkout flow) before writing your graded version. This "practice test" for a PA reveals gaps in your logic early.
5. Self-evaluate against the rubric before submitting. For each aspect, ask, "Does my document clearly show this, under a clear heading?" Evaluators score what they can find, so make each requirement obvious.

WGU also provides course materials and cohort or instructor support; use them, and reach out to a course instructor early with a draft outline rather than waiting until you are stuck.

Common Mistakes Students Make in D653

• Collapsing "define" into "ideate." A problem statement is not a list of solutions. Keep them in separate sections so the evaluator can see you framed the problem before generating ideas.
• Skipping the research trail. Personas and empathy maps built on assumptions instead of documented research read as guesswork. Ground each claim in something a user actually said, did, or needs.
• Writing an essay instead of design deliverables. The evaluator is looking for identifiable artifacts (a map, a statement, personas), not a flowing narrative that buries them.
• Ignoring inclusivity. The course emphasizes equitable design; forgetting to consider diverse users or stakeholders can cost you on the rubric.
• Not matching headings to rubric language. When your section titles mirror the rubric aspects, nothing gets marked "not evident" simply because it was hard to locate.

D653 Readiness Checklist

• Can you explain the empathize, define, and ideate stages in your own words and say what each produces?
• Can you build an empathy map that separates what users say, think, do, and feel?
• Can you write a focused, user-centered problem statement that does not smuggle in a solution?
• Can you create personas that are clearly grounded in research rather than assumption?
• Can you name and apply at least one structured ideation technique?
• Can you connect each generated idea back to a specific user need?
• Can you point to where your submission addresses diverse users and equitable design?
• Have you checked every deliverable against each rubric aspect under a clear heading?

FAQ

Is D653 an OA or a PA?

D653 is assessed through a performance assessment. You submit design deliverables—such as an empathy map, a problem statement, personas, and ideation work—that are scored against a rubric, rather than sitting a multiple-choice objective exam.

How many competency units is D653 worth?

It is a 3-competency-unit course, according to WGU's official B.S. User Experience Design program guidebook. Always confirm against your current degree plan, since CU values can be updated between catalog editions.

Is D653 hard?

Many students report that it is manageable but requires a mindset shift, since there is no single right answer to memorize. The main challenge is following the rubric precisely and grounding your design decisions in user research.

How long does D653 take to finish?

It varies with your background and writing speed. Students with prior design-thinking exposure often complete it in a couple of focused weeks, while those new to UX should budget extra time for revisions. Working the deliverables in stages usually speeds things up.

What should I focus on to pass?

Prioritize the rubric. Produce clear, separate deliverables for empathizing, defining, and ideating; tie every element to documented user needs; address diverse users; and self-check each rubric aspect before you submit.

Where can I confirm the official course details?

Check WGU's official program pages, such as the B.S. User Experience Design program page, and your own course of study inside the WGU portal. For related prep on this site, see our School of Business guide hub or browse the full guide index.