Наталя Хандусенко Увійти в ІТ 11 August 2025, 17:22

How novice designers can get a job at Wix after an internship — insights from Kyiv Playground Academy participants

The first paid internship for designers from Wix — Kyiv Playground Academy — took place in Kyiv. Over the course of five weeks, 15 selected participants underwent training that consisted of mentoring sessions, practical workshops, and individual creative projects. After completing the program, 11 graduates were invited to interview for open positions at Wix, and 9 of them have already joined the team.

We spoke with the participants to find out how they managed to get their dream job.

A feature of the Kyiv recruitment was the background of the participants

«In all previous Academies, the selected participants usually had a formal education in design,» says Daphne Sharabi, founder of Playground Academy at Wix. “ For the first time in the history of the Academy, the majority of participants in Kyiv had a diverse background — mostly beginners, self-taught, but highly motivated .»

Throughout the 5 weeks, designers from Wix offices in Kyiv and Tel Aviv provided mentoring support for the program students. And for one week, mentors from Tel Aviv came and worked with participants offline in Kyiv.

Participants were asked to create a landing page in Wix Studio on the theme of a restaurant or a musician. This approach allowed students to reveal their own visual style to the fullest. As the organizers note, the main goal was to help participants find their creative style and approach to design.

The program covered topics ranging from AI-powered text and image generation to interactive design principles and code-free development. For many students, it was their first experience with web development.

The participants' projects were extremely diverse: from brutalism and man-made elements to Asian retro aesthetics and dark aesthetics.

«Interestingly, the most successful projects were those that felt most personal, where students had identified a direction and brought it to life with a clear visual style,» says Viktoriya Korotenko, program leader of the Kyiv Playground Academy. «After all, that was the core mission of the program in Kyiv: to help young designers define and develop their unique creative identity.»

Valeria Hnatenko from Kyiv, in graphic design since 2021

«I wanted new experiences, inspiration, and acquaintances. I already knew about Wix and followed it, so the decision to apply was not difficult at all,» Valeria told us, who created her first web project from scratch — from design to full implementation on Wix Studio.

«During the program, we participated in various workshops — on 3D, lettering, working with AI — and I tried to integrate new knowledge into my project. Teamwork was also very valuable — the opportunity to collaborate with other designers was a new experience for me,» the designer adds.

She chose a website for a musician — a topic less familiar to her — as a personal challenge.

The biggest challenge for me was justifying my own design decisions to mentors and classmates.

«It was important not just to 'do it well', but to have a clear reason for each element. A cool part of the work was the group discussions — it was there that everyone had the opportunity to communicate more deeply, share ideas and look at their work from a new perspective.»

Valeria is among the 9 who received an offer from Wix. It is important to her that the company is currently actively developing its office and design community in Ukraine, so being a part of this motivates her a lot.

Be genuinely interested, don’t be afraid to share your work — even the ones that seem less than ideal to you.

«Tell me what excites you, what drives you, and why you want to be part of the program. Openness and sincerity are definitely noticeable,» advises Valeria to future participants.

Christian Romaniuk from Uzhhorod, in graphic design since 2022

«I was interested in the opportunity to gain new experience in the field of design and improve my skills in a professional environment,» explains Christian, explaining why he decided to participate in the program.

For him, Playground Academy was useful in many aspects of understanding the process of creating design objects and expressing himself through the medium of digital design. The most striking moment was the methodology of creating a design in Wix: searching for references, the «Frankenstein» method, and the features of creating a design together with a mentor.

Christian created a website for electronic artist COBRAH: «Her music resonates with me, and I was interested in conveying her sound through the prism of design. Her identity is quite dark and expressive, which gave me space to experiment and step outside my comfort zone in the process of creating the project.»

It was a challenge, but it was through it that I experienced real growth.

According to the designer, working at Wix Studio was a new experience, where he learned how to implement a complex visual idea with many small elements, even without prior experience working with such tools.

Christian got a job at Wix, and this is his first experience working for a company like this.

«Wix has definitely proven itself to be a dream company. From the first days in the office, I had thoughts of wanting to work in such an environment. The experience of participating in Wix Playground was exceptional, and I am glad to now have the opportunity to work with this team and company.»

I sincerely advise you to be confident in your design vision and not be afraid to show your expressive and «strange» works.

«After all, it is precisely such works that can become an identifier of your uniqueness, visual experience, and the presence of skills that will allow you to join the program,» advises Christian.

Valentyna Boyko, in graphic design since 2023

Valentina believes that in the field of design, you can’t stand still, so she always tries to look for new opportunities for learning and development. It is for this reason that she decided to take part in the program.

The designer worked on a fast food restaurant website.

«It was difficult and at the same time useful to work with different mentors at different stages of the project. After all, on the one hand, everyone has a different view of your project, and on the other hand, it helped to look at the project from a different angle,» notes Valentina.

When asked why she wanted to get a job at Wix, the designer replied: «I really liked the atmosphere of Playground Academy, the microclimate in the company as a whole. And also the attention paid to design, which really inspires me personally.»

Valentyna advises future participants to update their portfolio, not to hesitate and apply.

Following the success of Kyiv Playground Academy, Wix plans to hold the program annually, maintaining a hybrid format and focus on authorial creativity. While the tasks or duration of the program may change from year to year, the overall format will remain the same.

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