# Product Design Skills Test and Verified Score > A product design skills assessment built on how you work: live critique sessions, real Figma files and scenario questions about trade-offs and scope. Source: https://getlemma.io/skills/product-design Product design portfolios tend to show the happy ending. Lemma records how you reason through problems in live sessions and scenario questions, so the thinking behind the polish is visible. How product design is assessed ## What product design competence looks like A capable product designer starts with the problem, not the screen. They ask who is struggling, what the evidence says, and what success would look like before opening a design tool. They sketch several directions, kill most of them quickly, and can explain why the survivor fits the constraints of time, tech and business. In practice that means comfortable trade-offs. They scope a first version that ships, then plan what comes next. They work closely with engineers on feasibility and with product managers on priorities. When research contradicts their favourite idea, they change course and say so plainly. ### Problem framing Turning vague requests into a clear problem statement with users, constraints and a measurable definition of success. ### User research synthesis Pulling patterns from interviews and usage data, and separating what users say from what they do. ### Interaction design Flows, states and edge cases, including empty, loading and error states that most mockups skip. ### Design critique Giving and taking feedback that is specific, tied to goals and focused on the work rather than taste. ### Scoping and trade-offs Cutting a design down to a shippable first version without losing the core value for users. ### Working with engineering Checking feasibility early, adapting to technical limits and staying involved through build and release. ## What counts as evidence of product design skills? A portfolio shows the final screens, not the decisions behind them. For product design, Lemma records sessions where someone saw you reason through a critique, an adaptive test and Figma files linked from your account. Here is what each source contributes. See the [evidence methodology](https://getlemma.io/methodology#evidence-types) for how each source is weighed. [Live session](https://getlemma.io/product/sessions) ### A live design critique Walk a practitioner through a past project in a session: the problem, the options you dropped and why. Their rating reflects how clearly you reason about trade-offs, not how pretty the final screens are. [Figma connector](https://getlemma.io/product/passport) ### Flows and edge cases in a real file Attach a Figma file that shows a complete flow with its states, not just hero screens. Lemma confirms the file is linked to your account and re-checks access over time. [Adaptive assessment](https://getlemma.io/product/assessments) ### Scenario questions on product trade-offs Adaptive questions put you in realistic spots, such as conflicting research and a fixed deadline, and ask which move makes sense. The difficulty follows your answers. [Live session](https://getlemma.io/product/sessions) ### Teaching a design process session Teaching someone how you run discovery or critique counts more than attending a session. It shows you can make your process explicit enough for others to use. ## How is a product design skills test run on Lemma? The product design test runs 15 to 25 scenario questions and adapts to your answers, testing how you would act on research, constraints and edge cases. It sits next to critique sessions and linked files in your product design SCI, which counts recent work for more. [How the SCI score is calculated](https://getlemma.io/product/sci)[How adaptive skills assessments work](https://getlemma.io/product/assessments)[Practise product design in live skill swap sessions](https://getlemma.io/product/sessions)[Which evidence types count](https://getlemma.io/methodology#evidence-types)[What your Skills Passport shows](https://getlemma.io/product/passport) 1. ### Present a project in a live session Book a session with a product design practitioner and talk through a real project end to end. They probe your framing, the alternatives you rejected and what you would change, then rate the session. 2. ### Link the working files Connect Figma and attach the file behind the project, including its rough explorations and edge-case states. It shows the work existed and that your account owns access to it. 3. ### Answer adaptive product scenarios The assessment poses realistic product situations, from scope cuts to research that undermines a plan. Questions get harder as you answer well, with time limits on each one. ## Product design skills: common questions ### How do hiring managers assess product design skills? Most look for evidence of judgement: how you framed the problem, which options you rejected and how you worked with engineering. A portfolio case study helps, but live critique is usually where they decide. Lemma gives you that live critique ahead of time, rated by a practitioner and recorded on your Passport. ### What makes a product design case study convincing? Convincing case studies show constraints and dead ends, not just the final screens. Name the problem, the evidence you used, two or three directions you explored and why one won. Include what shipped, what you cut and what you learned afterwards. Honesty about trade-offs reads as seniority. ### Can I show product design skills if my best work is under NDA? Yes. In a live session you can describe a project at the level of reasoning without sharing confidential screens. You can also attach a personal or redesign file through Figma. The session rating and assessment results reflect your judgement, which does not depend on the client's name. ### How is product design different from UI design on Lemma? Product design evidence centres on problem framing, research and trade-offs. UI and UX design evidence focuses more on interaction detail, usability and visual systems. Many designers build both records, and sessions in one often surface evidence that is useful in the other. ## Skills related to product design [Browse the skills directory](https://getlemma.io/skills) [### UI/UX design Show that your interfaces are usable, accessible and consistent, not just attractive. Evidence for UI/UX design](https://getlemma.io/skills/ui-ux-design)[### Figma Show how you build files other designers and engineers can actually work in. Evidence for Figma](https://getlemma.io/skills/figma)[### Product management Evidence of how you prioritise, make calls with incomplete data and ship outcomes. Evidence for product management](https://getlemma.io/skills/product-management) ![Painting of an olive grove in soft sunlight with hills beyond](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/islu4peo/production/613eb3f93566423c9adf45246f2cf1a61437c04c-1680x1120.jpg?w=1080&fm=webp&q=68&fit=max) ## Start your product design evidence record. Lemma is in early access. Request an invite and we will email you when your place is ready.