About me

Manuel Hortelano Rodríguez - User Interface Designer

Passionate about technology and its impact on people, I specialize in user interface design and user experience. I consider myself a committed and trustworthy person. After studying Engineering in Valencia and receiving awards for academic excellence, I worked at Ford Motor Company, where I developed creative, communication, and innovation skills. During this job I immersed myself in the field of User Interface design for Virtual Reality applications. I worked with multidisciplinary teams in the fields of electrical engineering, process engineering, video game development as well as being responsible for designing UIs for new applications and web pages. I also learnt new skills in Front End and User Experience where I participated in the Virtual Reality team to improve the user experience of training applications. Because of this I decided to pursue a Master's in Human Computer Interaction & Design at EIT, expanding my knowledge in the field of User Interface design and User Experience. In the first year of the program I learnt about user-centered experience design, with an emphasis on innovation, as well as entrepreneurship. In my second year of the Master's program I’m specialising in Cross-Device Interaction with courses on user interface development techniques embarking from web and mobile development towards post-desktop interactions. On a personal level, I see myself as empathetic with a good sense of humor. My hobbies include sports, motorcycle rides, and reading (yes, manga too). Motivated by curiosity, I am always ready to learn and think in different ways to solve problems. One of my favorite quotes is, "the future is uncertain but promising".

My journey so far

It all began with a little kid with a deep interest in knowing how do machines work. A few years later and lots of hard work, this is where I'm standing:

EIT Digital Master School Logo
Polythecninc University of Madrid Logo
EIT Digital Master School Logo

2018-2022

Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Design Engineering and Product Development|Polytechnic University of Valencia

2021-2023

T.S.E.|Ford Project Internship & Full Time Job|User Interface and User Experience Designer

2023-2024

EIT|Digital Master School|Double MSc in HCID|UPM First Year

2024-Present

EIT|Digital Master School|Double MSc in HCID|Aalto Second Year

My skills and education

Design Skills

  • Prototyping: 5/5 – Expert 
  • Usability Tests: 4/5 – Advanced 
  • Design Systems: 4/5 – Advanced 

Coding skills

  • HTML & CSS: 4/5 – Advanced 
  • JavaScript 3/5 – Intermediate 
  • Type Script: 3/5 – Intermediate 
  • Angular Framework: 3/5 – Intermediate

Personal skills

  • Creativity: 5/5 – Expert
  • Communication: 5/5 – Expert

Highlights

There is no clear way to illustrate a whole life. However, here I will try to show some experiences and achievements that I'm really proud of.

Summer Science Campus - 2017

This was my first universitary experience. During 7 days, you study a course in one university from Spain. There you meet high school students from all over the country while learning.

I found it very positive as I could meet marvelous people and also clever. I want to point out “clever” because in order to access this campus, you needed to have an impeccable record (so did I).

STARTUPV 2K19 University Entrepreneur Contest

One year after I joined university, I had an idea about an environmental-based business. Thanks to the entrepreneurial environment that the university facilitated, I had the chance to visit their Employment Forum where they help to grow innovative ideas.

I had to propose a business model and sell it to some stakeholders. During this process I had the chance to learn about Lean Canvas, leadership and other soft skills such as speech skills. In the end, I won a prize in Advanced Idea Category. 

Me with my family while I hold the award

Prize First and Second-year students with best academic record

I was very happy when I won the prize for best academic record in my first and second years of university! It was a great achievement for me as it shows that all those late nights studying and early mornings were totally worth it.

I’m so grateful for the support of my teachers, family, and friends throughout this journey. Here’s a photo from the award ceremony.

Prize for the best academic record of my Bachelor's

If winning the prize for the first two years was an incredible achievement, imaging being the top graduate of the whole bachelor’s and receiving an award!

Looking back in time I can see that my dedication and determination really paid off!

Interests

Me, 15 years old next to a bizarre motorcycle

Manga Fan arts

Some of anime fan arts I've bought

Scuderia Ferrari wallpaper

Scuderia Ferrari wallpaper - Formula 1 fanboy!

My interests go along with my personality – or maybe it’s the other way around. Either case, I studied engineering because I’m a big fan of vehicles in any of their its form. Specially, I’m really interested in motorcycles. Regarding memes, I will just say that my colleagues call me “Meme supplier”. I’m not sure if it’s something to be that proud of but in the end I make people laugh so I’ll stick with it. About my other interest, I read mangas and I’m quite interested in anime fan arts!

Other activities

Movember Foundation

Cake Cup Competition

Competition Chart

Logo of the tournament

Finally, to promote team-building and test our skills, we created a competition to see who is best cake chef! In each duel, we get to try a new cake. It is a great way to begin the working day!

Custom Sneakers

Photo of the custom sneakers
Photo of me with the custom sneakers
Photo of the custom sneakers

During the summer of 2023, I had enough free time to do a “project” that I had in mind for a long time. Starting from some used white sneakers and without being an artist or anything like that, I have painted them. I love the way they have turned out!

I’m not particularly skilled at painting or drawing, but having dared to do something I’m not good at is the most remarkable thing about this. Regarding the colors, I have been inspired by a certain automotive team…

Are you interested?

Thanks for visiting my portfolio! If you want more information about me or any project, don’t doubt about contacting me. You can also check my social media and CV.