Sofia Sandoval Larco
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Bilingual UX Researcher | Accessibility | M.S. in Consumer Psychology
United States
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Accessibility ResearcherNYS Office of Information Technology ServicesOct 2025 - Current (1 year 1 month)- UX Research CoordinatorAnswerLabJun 2025 - Oct 2025 (5 months)
- Bilingual UX ResearcherU.S. Digital ResponseFeb 2025 - Sep 2025 (8 months)Conducted English and Spanish interviews with legal professionals, staff, and citizens to assess language access challenges in the benefits application process for our city partner Identified key pain points in the intake process and developed a service blueprint map to improve bilingual support for 2,000+ applicants
- RFreelance UX ResearcherRelief CompassAug 2024 - Dec 2024 (5 months)Conducted a heuristic evaluation of a disaster relief website to identify critical usability and accessibility issues that could prevent user adoption Designed high-fidelity prototypes using Figma to support user research and design iteration Facilitated cross-functional workshops with development teams to translate research insights into prioritized product improvements, resulting in increased stakeholder buy-in
- Freelance UX ResearcherTech FleetJul 2024 - Sep 2024 (3 months)Collaborated with researchers, designers, managers, and engineers in an agile environment, using Scrum methodologies and tools like Figjam and Trello to co-define the product roadmap Moderated remote usability tests to assess a prototype for a Philadelphia safety initiative, ensuring volunteers could effectively document community violence Used the Wizard of Oz method to test the conversational flow of a chatbot designed to provide teenagers with companionship and resources, with a strong focus on user privacy and safety Show less
- Freelance UX ResearcherAvailyst (Techstars '22)Mar 2024 - May 2024 (3 months)Conducted 6 user interviews to explore how Gen Z leverages generative AI for food-related decisions, uncovering insights that informed the development of an AI-powered MVP
- CX/UX ResearcherImmersion: The Value Measurement CompanyJan 2024 - Jun 2025 (1 year 6 months)Collaborated cross-functionally with customer success, marketing, and product teams to understand user motivations behind engaging with wellness tools and applications Designed and analyzed a quantitative survey with 100+ participants to assess perceptions of emotional well-being, translating insights into strategic product roadmap decisions Conducted in-depth interviews with beta testers that revealed critical usability issues, leading to a redesign that reduced customer support tickets by 20% Show less
- Accessibility ResearcherBJ's Restaurants, Inc.Jan 2024 - May 2024 (5 months)Conducted usability testing with 12 visually impaired users to evaluate the website's conformance to ADA and WCAG 2.1 guidelines, resulting in a more inclusive design Identified accessibility issues to enhance useful website information for screen readers Presented insights to the Director of Digital E-Commerce that prompted additional A/B testing of the website’s homepage to optimize conversion
- GStudent UX ResearcherGoogle Maps (Unaffiliated)Jan 2024 - Mar 2024 (3 months)Moderated 6 usability sessions evaluating offline map functionality against established heuristics, revealing key user pain points when downloading and using offline maps Moderated 6 usability sessions evaluating offline map functionality against established heuristics, revealing key user pain points when downloading and using offline maps
- CX ResearcherBIG CHICKENSep 2023 - Dec 2023 (4 months)Conducted 12 moderated interviews with Gen-Z restaurant-goers to assess brand alignment with consumer values and identify strategies to build loyalty; presenting key insights to C-level executives Designed and distributed a survey on Gen-Z dining behavior and provided actionable recommendations to enhance Big Chicken’s rewards and loyalty program
- Customer Success SpecialistMayweather Boxing + FitnessFeb 2022 - Jul 2022 (6 months)Connected with 400+ customers through our CRM and leveraged consumer insights to create meaningful customer experiences
- MMy Own Business Insitute (MOBI) FellowApr 2021 - Jun 2021 (3 months)Led 1:1 interviews with low-income Latinx business owners to uncover key financial needs and challenges, generating insights to inform an entrepreneurship course and support services Co-facilitated an entrepreneurship course for 36 business owners, guiding them through legal and financial resources to help grow and sustain their businesses
- IImmersion CoordinatorSep 2020 - Apr 2021 (8 months)Conducted a phone-based ethnography to understand day-in-the-life narratives of migrants at the border, including open-ended interviews with both migrants and frontline staff at the Kino Border Initiative Facilitated a remote team-building workshop for 10 students to strengthen collaboration and drive meaningful impact in host (Nogales, AZ) and local (Santa Clara, CA) communities
- Undergraduate Research AssistantSanta Clara UniversitySep 2019 - Jun 2021 (1 year 10 months)Designed and executed an international quantitative study with 150+ participants in U.S. and Ecuador using Qualtrics, uncovering cultural differences in conceptualizations of compassion Published a peer-reviewed research paper in the scientific journal Emotion and presented findings at the Western Psychological Association conference to an audience of researchers
- Art and Art History Student AssistantSanta Clara UniversitySep 2019 - Mar 2020 (7 months)
Education
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- master, Master of Science - MS, Applied Psychology, 4.0University of Southern CaliforniaJan 2023 - Jan 2024 (1 year 1 month)
- bachelor, Bachelor of Science - BS, Psychology, Art History & International BusinessSanta Clara UniversityJan 2017 - Jan 2021 (4 years 1 month)