Interaction design is a rapidly changing discipline, and we maintain the relevance of our education by working with real-world design cases and outside clients that include local industry partners, as well as cultural and civic organisations. Navigating a shifting design landscape also requires the critical mindset of a scholar, and we foster reflective design by teaching research skills and involving students in active research projects.
We educate designers who can articulate and develop cutting-edge practices in key areas of interaction design: tangible and sensor-based interaction, wearable and embodied interaction, game design, participatory design practices, critical design, social innovation and collaborative media development. Students approach these genres within a broad context that considers the social, political and ethical consequences of their designs. Our education is studio-based, bringing students into close contact with our design professors.
This is a one-year programme, which is also offered as the first year of a two-year programme providing a more well-rounded combination of design practice and academic research.
Interaction Design: one-year programme
Interaction Design: two-year programme
The education is provided by the Faculty of Culture and Society at the department School of Arts and Communication.
Our programme was founded in 1998, making it one of the more established programmes of its kind. We focus on areas where our design and research excellence is internationally recognised: tangible and sensor-based interaction, wearable and embodied interaction, game design, participatory design practices, critical design, social innovation and collaborative media development.
Interaction design requires the fusion of multiple skill sets. We recruit students with different backgrounds – design, media, engineering, the arts, and social sciences – and focus our teaching on creating disciplinary synergy in the concrete design work.
The programme comprises full-time study for one academic year, divided into four courses starting with a studio-based introduction to multidisciplinary collaboration and mainstream interaction design. The next two courses address embodied interaction and collaborative media, two of our signature topics. The final course is a Master’s level graduation project.
Upon graduation, you are eligible for the second year of the two-year Master’s programme to learn more about interaction design research and theory. Read more about the two-year Master’s programme
The programme is based on a learning-by-doing pedagogy. This means that we encourage an iterative practice of experimentation and reflection. As teachers, we view ourselves as coaches guiding you in this process.
The programme is studio-based. You will also have access to computer labs, a materials workshop and a prototyping lab for electronics, sensor and microprocessor programming.
The primary method of learning is through group work in multidisciplinary teams with classmates and other stakeholders. Abilities to work in teams and with others – including user communities – are important parts of our curriculum, and several projects are organised to practice doing this.
With our humanistic approach, you will be practicing qualitative research approaches to support your design of tangible artefacts as well as digital and interactive services, systems and artefacts. We emphasize an understanding of people in their use situations.
Prototyping in the studio and real-world contexts is an integral part of becoming an interaction designer.
To practice reflective and experimental design activity, projects and courses integrate seminars and hands-on workshops introducing students to, among other things, ethnographic fieldwork, visualisation, low- and high-fidelity prototyping, microprocessor programming and video sketching, as well as evaluation of use qualities. All these practices are backed up by literature references and examples.
Your thesis project will be a combination of a design project and reflective writing that will involve communicating and discussing your design work. This is one result of a student's work in Thesis Project I.
Students have access to studio space, and we encourage a healthy studio culture. This is where we conduct group-work, seminars, workshops, presentations and discussions. Close by there is a well-equipped materials workshop and a physical prototyping lab for electronics and sensor work. Additionally, we often use the facilities at the MEDEA research centre for final presentations, exhibitions, seminars and programme-meetings.
Students enter the programme with different kinds of expertise, from art and design to engineering and social sciences. Upon graduation, you will have built a strong understanding of how your particular skills play a role in interaction design and how they combine with other specialities of fellow designers.
Most alumni move on to positions as interaction designers, user experience specialists or usability architects in the ICT, telecom and media industries. For some, this involves fine-tuning the interfaces and interactions of current products to users' needs; other interaction designers work on concept development for future products and services. Yet other alumni find their calling in strategic positions where the role of interaction design is considered in relation to market and business development.
Some interaction designers are also found in the role of change agents in public organisations and NGOs.
Master's Degree (60 credits).
Degree of Master of Science (60 Credits) with a Major in Interaction Design.
Master's Degree (120 credits).
Degree of Master of Science (120 Credits) with a Major in Interaction Design.
Interaction Design is one of the most rapidly developing creative fields today. The ongoing revolution of information technology has increased our need for new and enhanced experiences, systems and products. Interaction designers aim to create services and products that add value to people’s lives by focusing on humans, their needs and their emotions.
Interaction Design (IxD) is a theme that has emerged to address the ongoing advancements in technology and the way it relates to people. Designers are constantly facing challenges that can be answered by developing products, services, and systems that have deeper connections and more dynamic relationships with humans. The behavioral qualities of products, services and environments have became more and more important in today’s world, and Interaction Design is playing a key role in addressing this shift. We keep a broad view on Interaction Design and cover more areas than what is related to digital technology.
Here at Estonian Academy of Arts we learn design by doing! Our program is project-based and we will work on real projects together with our industry partners. In our projects, we involve the design community, industry professionals and general public. We will go out, do research, and develop concepts to design products, experiences, services, and environments.
Semester 1:
Semester 2:
Semester 3:
Semester 4:
You can shape the future. You will graduate with a portfolio, training and craftsmanship that industry is seeking. You will be an interaction designer focused on developing the next generation of products and services. You will be a User Experience Designer helping companies build meaningful products. You will join a startup team or an established company to help design the next big thing or to make the exciting experiences better. You may work as:
Employment profiles for IxD graduates:
We focus both on Interaction Design Thinking and Skills. We believe interaction designers need to be strong Thinkers as well as skilful Doers. The design challenges in today’s world can not only be addressed using craft, but rather need system thinking and an understating of the bigger picture.
More information: https://www.artun.ee/masters/interaction-design/ and http://ixd.ma/
This course is for people who want to design technology that meets user needs, creating interactive systems that are useful, easy-to-use and engaging. It is for people who get frustrated when they interact with unnecessarily complicated websites, mobile apps or other interactive systems and want to improve them. This course will help you appreciate design technology based on an understanding of users' needs and ensure that the products you and others design meet those needs.
This course will help you to:
Accredited by BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT for the purposes of partially meeting the academic requirement for registration as a Chartered IT Professional.
After the taught part of the course is completed, you will have the opportunity to take part in a six-month internship which gives you valuable work experience and increases your employability. Internships offer an exceptional opportunity to make you stand out in a competitive job market place. We have extensive experience in helping students to secure placement employment in the IT industry.
Learn more about internships in Industry at City.
You will benefit from the use of the City Interaction Lab - a combined commercial and research lab, where we have undertaken UX consultancy for prestigious companies including Virgin Atlantic.
The lab is fitted with the latest technologies including:
We employ student consultants on some projects, providing the opportunity to work on real client projects.
The course is delivered by distinguished academics from City University London's Centre for HCI Design, who all have a passion for user-centred design. We also have close links with industry. Industry professionals help inform and shape the curriculum, setting briefs for the assessments and participating in teaching and learning - by giving guest lectures and running practitioner tutorials. They also provide feedback on students' design outputs and input into module content, ensuring that students learn the knowledge and skills most valued by industry.
The course is delivered through a combination of lectures, online activities and interactive workshops and tutorials. It is assessed in a variety of ways, including:
Each of these account for around one-third of the total course assessment. However, the exact balance varies according to the chosen elective module.
You will study seven core modules and one elective module that cover the entire user-centred design and evaluation process. Modules are delivered through a combination of lectures, online activities and interactive workshops and tutorials. These include sessions delivered by guest lecturers from industry.
Full-time students spend eight hours per week in lectures and four hours per week in seminars and tutorials. Part-time students spend half this time in classes.
Overall workload is around 36 hours per week for full-time and 18 hours per week for part-time students.
You will also undertake an independent Research Project, for which our module on Research Methods and Professional Issues will prepare you.
A series of optional, but recommended, practitioner tutorials supplement the taught modules. These include talks, workshops and field trips. Previous tutorials have featured HCI/UX practitioners from prestigious companies, such as Foolproof, Futureheads and eBay.
This course enables you to make informed decisions on how to apply your knowledge in original and creative ways. As a result, this course empowers you to succeed in a variety of User Experience (UX) roles in leading digital agencies, business consultancies, IT companies and commercial/government organisations.
Roles include:
There is an increasing need for specialists with a deep knowledge of Human-Computer Interaction design. As the industry continues to expand, there is no better time to become a Master in this field. The course is also an excellent starting point for those wanting to pursue a PhD in HCI.
The Master in Interaction Design aims to train professionals who aspire to be tomorrow’s digital leaders equipped with the collaborative, critical thinking and technical skills required to react, adapt and leverage the impacts of digital transformation and understand how the digital can be harnessed for strategic design.
The Master provides an environment of creativity, design and technological innovation by focusing on projects through a future lens. It provides students with the skillset and mindset to challenge the status quo and produce well-rounded designers who can work across disciplinary, cultural and geographical boundaries to design solutions addressing future individual, societal and business needs by nurturing curiosity, experimentation, technical skills and critical thinking, as well as empathic, collaborative skills.
Study interaction design at an advanced level and explore new approaches to design creating dynamic proposals that respond to the needs of our rapidly changing society.
At Sheffield Institute of Arts interaction design is cross-disciplinary and investigates human-technological futures via design related interactions that lie between the digital and the physical. Using a practice based approach you explore the designing of interactive digital products, environments services and systems.
Interaction design is most often studied by graduates from a variety of backgrounds including • interaction design • digital media • fine art • product design • graphic design • furniture design • architecture • computer science. Your projects are supported by lecturers who are design specialists, researchers and practitioners. Modules are supported by lecturers who are design specialists in areas as diverse as • exhibition design • HCI • medical products • materials development • design thinking • social design • design anthropology.
During the course you work with experts in other departments as well as outside of the University.
As a postgraduate design student you join an established network of creative people that encourage and support you to drive your studies to the next level. Our postgraduate framework of design courses has been designed to allow you to come together with students from different disciplines, backgrounds and cultures to share teaching and learning experiences and explore your creative identities through dialogue and practice.
The primary intention of the programme is to allow you to achieve your personal employment ambitions, whether as a design professional in the creative industries, or in related areas such as marketing or research. You are also well placed to go onto further study at PhD level.
Employability
The course has a strong vocational focus to prepare, encourage and develop your confidence for employment.
The MA/MFA programme has a strong relationship with the University’s Art and Design Research Centre (ADRC), who take an active part in engaging MA Design students in research, knowledge transfer and live projects. You are also encouraged to seek industrial sponsors or collaborators for your individual project work and are given advice and support in doing this. This long established link with our Research Department supports a continuing tradition of graduates from the MA/MFA working as research assistants and/or continuing their studies to PhD.
If you are a part-time student in relevant employment or on sabbatical, you have the opportunity to plan course projects based in your workplace and relevant to your own and your employer's aims. This brings real-world experience to the course. You may go on to work as a professionally employed designer or design manager, work independently as a designer/producer or work as a researcher in design or new product development. You may also wish to go into teaching design in further and higher education.
Project-based course
You choose your own project content and this is supported by lectures and seminars dealing with professional practice issues and reviewing your progress. You also take part in regular group and individual tutorials.
Your final major project is the culmination of your research and studio-based design practice. It demonstrates that you can deal with difficult contemporary questions and take a leading role as a design professional.
Research-led expertise
We are one of the oldest established art and design institutions in the UK, renowned for producing internationally recognised research. Your projects are supported by lecturers who are design specialists in areas as diverse as medical products, materials development, furniture and sustainability.
Vibrant and supportive learning environment
During the course you regularly take part in constructive critical debates about your own work and that of your peers. You need to communicate your research, ideas and designs in ways that are appropriate to professional leadership.
You study alongside MA and MFA Design students for part of your course and benefit from a vibrant, international, collaborative and supportive postgraduate environment.
Excellent facilities and creative resources
You have access to a huge range of creative resources to experiment and engage with including • 3D printing for rapid prototyping • state-of-the-art hardware and software • photography studios • a creative media centre • a gallery • well-equipped workshops.
You also have access to our award-winning learning centre featuring a specialist art, design and media library and extensive online resources.
MA and MFA study
MA and MFA students complete the same modules during the course except that MFA students complete an extra project module. The MFA project encourages you to develop professional skills that help you to identify, instigate, and deliver projects with external partners, such as communities, galleries or businesses. You find a project partner, agree a brief and then deliver the project to a professional standard.
This course is part of the Sheffield Institute of Arts (SIA), an amazing, diverse community of makers – where staff, students and partners work as equals to deliver real innovation and creativity. SIA opened in 1843 and is one of the UK's oldest Art and Design Schools. We have recently moved into the Head Post Office, a redesigned Grade II listed building. It includes state-of-the-art workshops which provide you with a unique studio-based learning environment in the heart of the creative community.
FULL-TIME STRUCTURE
Semester one
• project 1 • theory supporting practice
Semester two
• project 2 • negotiated project
Semester three
• major project
Semester four – MFA students only
• MFA project
PART-TIME STRUCTURE
Semester one (year 1)
• theory supporting practice • negotiated project
Semester two (year 2)
• project 1 • project 2
Semester three (year 3)
• major project
Semester four – MFA students only (year 4)
• MFA project
Assessment and feedback are vital parts of the learning process in creative disciplines. Most assessment is through individual project work which combines research and creative practice. Assessment calls for both excellent creative work and well-documented research.
As a graduate from this course you might become a • creative technologist • experiential marketer • interaction designer • artist • designer • maker • product designer • design researcher • interface designer • systems designer • UX designer • design academic • PhD student.
The Digital Media Practice programmes at Winchester are designed to accommodate a wide range of specialist interests within the digital media industry. Build your theoretical understanding within the context of honing practical skills in a range of specialist careers. Develop new ideas and theories through your engagement with several live client projects, which may culminate in the real-time release of output through different media platforms.
Your practical work is supported and enhanced through masterclasses, seminars, discussions, workshops, tutorials and self-directed study, and work in professional contexts. Partnerships with professional practitioners and bodies give you the starting point to develop your own network of professional contacts. There is a dedicated, fully equipped digital design studio, with practitioner-based lecturers on hand to support you.
Your course consists of five core modules plus two optional modules, where you undertake individual projects and case studies relevant to your particular area of interest. Core modules include Digital Media Principles, Design Practice, and a project on Emerging Media. MA Digital Media Practice includes your choice of any two optional modules, while on the specialist pathways you choose two optional modules from a more specific selection. Examples of module choices include:
Graduates pursue careers in the digital media industry as lead designers, design researchers, account directors, content writers and creative producers.
UK, EU, World
Start dates: September
Teaching takes place: Daytime
Students develop new ideas and theories through their engagement with several live client projects, which may culminate in the real-time release of output through different media platforms. Practical work is supported and enhanced through masterclasses, seminars, discussions, workshops, tutorials and self-directed study, and by undertaking work in professional contexts. There is a dedicated, fully equipped Digital Design Studio, with practitioner-based lecturers on hand during core hours.
Taught elements of the course take place on our King Alfred Campus (Winchester) or at our West Downs Campus (Winchester)
Our validated courses may adopt a range of means of assessing your learning. An indicative, and not necessarily comprehensive, list of assessment types you might encounter includes essays, portfolios, supervised independent work, presentations, written exams, or practical performances.
We ensure all students have an equal opportunity to achieve module learning outcomes. As such, where appropriate and necessary, students with recognised disabilities may have alternative assignments set that continue to test how successfully they have met the module's learning outcomes. Further details on assessment types used on the course you are interested in can be found on the course page, by attending an Open Day or Open Evening, or contacting our teaching staff.
We are committed to providing timely and appropriate feedback to you on your academic progress and achievement in order to enable you to reflect on your progress and plan your academic and skills development effectively. You are also encouraged to seek additional feedback from your course tutors.
For more information about our regulations for this course, please see our Academic Regulations, Policies and Procedures.
The User Experience Design MSc is a flexible course that you can tailor to your own professional interests. It will help to train you for roles that range from usability, interaction and interface design through to general project management and consulting.
The course is for designers and software developers wishing to enhance their knowledge of user-centred design and usability evaluation of software-enabled products.
Course content has been designed for maximum relevancy to the marketplace.
Upon completion, you'll be able to apply your knowledge and interaction design skills to novel interaction paradigms; make effective use of a broad range of design methods; obtain in-depth knowledge of developments in mobile, ubiquitous or wearable systems and understand the commercial contexts of interaction design.
The course can be studied full-time or part-time.
For full-time students the academic year is divided into three 15-week semesters.
The taught element of the course is delivered during the first two semesters. Modules involve approximately 20 per cent classroom teaching and 80 per cent individual or group work. The third semester focuses on your major project.
Part-time students study alongside full-time students with a minimum attendance of one half day per week, depending on the number of modules taken.
On the course, you will study four core modules, two of which will require you to complete individual design projects.
You will also choose from a range of optional modules. These will allow you to specialise in the areas of the discipline that interest you the most.
Modules
Options (subject to change):
Graduates have gone on to work as commercial interaction designers on both software and software-enabled physical products, as well as using this as a starting point for a research career in human-centred interaction design.
Our graduates are working in roles that include:
At the end of the taught element there is the possibility of a placement with a digital media company for the major project module. This puts real experience on your CV as you consolidate your expertise.
Brighton is acknowledged as a major digital media cluster.
There are plenty of opportunities to network with companies and organisations in the sector both through the course through external speakers and taking your own initiative. The course cohort has regularly attended the annual conference UX Brighton and students can attend the many digital media events organised in the city.
A distinctive focus on digital media practice and theory sets this course apart from traditional communication design courses, preparing you for an exciting career in a range of design roles.
MA Communication Design is the study of information and interface design, the course combines creativity with critical analysis of contemporary media and knowledge of the latest methodologies and tools. In our modern, well-equipped studios you’ll learn how to develop effective concepts and prototypes for current and emergent platforms, informed by user experience design principles. Your practice will be supported by excellent facilities including a recently launched Interaction and Prototyping Laboratory (iLab), 3D printing and laser cutting as well as traditional design and print equipment. You’ll learn from academics with industry experience in graphic design, interaction design and design for broadcast media. The course culminates in a practice-led research project, which is an exciting opportunity for you to engage with key debates shaping the design industry and scholarship. When you graduate you’ll be ready for a career in established and emerging design fields, such as, interaction design, user experience design, data visualisation, digital product design and publishing.
This course will be of interest to recent graduates or those with professional experience who wish to extend their creative skills and design knowledge into the realm of digital media, user experience design and design research. While a working knowledge of Windows and Adobe software is required, it is not a technical course; the focus is on how you effectively research users and contexts, develop innovative concepts and produce lo- and hi-fidelity prototypes.
Click here to download the full Programme Specification.
You’ll graduate with a portfolio of high-quality design work and the professional skills you need to secure employment, start your own businesses, or pursue further research.
The degree opens up a wealth of opportunities in the digital, media and design sectors. Depending on your interests there are opportunities to specialise in interaction design, data visualisation or digital product development, publishing or design research.
Past graduates have gone on to work for:
Design for Performance and Interaction is a novel academic field and UCL is one of only very few institutions where it can be studied. The core idea that drives the programme is that the creation of spaces for performance and the creation of performances within them are regarded as symbiotic design activities.
Students learn how to use software that simulates performance spaces and the behaviour of people in different conditions. They learn how to manipulate software and physical hardware to create both simulated and actual 1:1 performance space and performances in an architectural context
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of two core theory modules (45 credits), a skills module (30 credits), and three design modules (105 credits).
Core modules
Optional modules
There are no optional modules for this programme.
Research project/design project
All students undertake a major design project, the 'Design Thesis Portfolio, Final Project' in combination with an individual research project, culminating in the 'Design Thesis Written Dissertation'.
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through design, fabrication and performance tutorials, skills workshops, seminars, lectures, site visits, group working and (optional) field trip. Assessment is via design and skills portfolios, written coursework submissions and verbal presentations.
Fieldwork
There is a field trip as an optional part of the programme.
Maximum cost to the student is £500.
Placement
No placement is offered as a part of the programme.
Further information on modules and degree structure is available on the department website: Design for Performance and Interaction MArch
Careers in physical and virtual interaction design, the design of performance spaces and creation of performative events form one of the most vibrant parts of global design endeavour in the 21st century. They are also the subject of extensive academic research.
Employability
Students gain the following skill set:
The programme teaches students how to place design and performance skills in the context of 1:1 installation and 3D and 4D representation, including collaboration in real-time simulation, networked media spaces, and design for sensory and interactive environments.
Students will gain a working knowledge of sound systems, lighting systems, interactive computation and electronics, behaviour of individuals and crowds, and the equipment and software that is used to track this behaviour.
The programme has been developed together with a network from industry. The development team includes Umbrellium, Bompass and Parr, Jason Bruges Studio, Ciminod Studio, Soundform and Stufish. All have longstanding relationships with The Bartlett.
The Research Excellence Framework, or REF, is the system for assessing the quality of research in UK higher education institutions. The 2014 REF was carried out by the UK's higher education funding bodies, and the results used to allocate research funding from 2015/16.
The following REF score was awarded to the department: Bartlett School of Architecture
81% rated 4* (‘world-leading’) or 3* (‘internationally excellent’)
Learn more about the scope of UCL's research, and browse case studies, on our Research Impact website.
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