Human-Computer Interaction

Human-Computer Interaction Concentration

Sunyoung KimCoordinator: Sunyoung Kim, Ph.D.

This concentration prepares students for careers focused on designing, implementing, and improving technology to enhance human experiences. Graduates can pursue professional roles in human-computer interaction, interaction design, product management, user experience design, and usability research and testing. Career paths for this concentration include:

  • UX Designer: Crafting user-friendly interfaces and experiences for digital products
  • Interaction Designer: Focusing on how users interact with technology to create seamless workflows
  • Product Manager: Overseeing the development of user-centered products from conception to launch
  • UX Researcher: Conducting studies to understand user needs, behaviors, and preferences
  • Usability Analyst: Evaluating products and providing recommendations for improved usability of digital products
  • Human Factors Specialist: Ensuring technology is safe, efficient, and aligned with human capabilities

Concentration Goals And Objectives

Students will learn practical skills and theoretical knowledge to design, implement, and evaluate interactive technologies. In particular, students will:

  • Create innovative user interfaces through a user-centered design thinking process
  • Engage with both qualitative and quantitative data acquired from users to inform a design thinking process
  • Master prototyping skills from low-fidelity paper prototypes to high-fidelity interactive prototypes
  • Develop analytical perspectives in understanding and evaluating user interfaces
  • Practice communication skills to effectively deliver design ideas
  • Practice the skills for the collaborative projects through a team-based project

For this concentration, you take three concentration requirements designed to acquire essential knowledge and skills for interaction design incrementally. So, it is recommended to take one concentration requirement course per semester by taking “Human-Centered Design” in the first semester, followed by “User Experience Research Methods” and “Interaction Design Studio” in the following semesters.

Faculty in the Field of HCI

  • Tawfiq Ammari – HCI, Social Computing, Data Science
  • Shagun Jhaver – HCI, Social media, Content Moderation
  • Sunyoung Kim – HCI, Everyday Wellbeing, Healthy Aging
  • Alex Lu – HCI, Critical Inquiries, Community-based Participatory Research

Requirements for the Human-Computer Interaction Concentration

Program Requirements

36 credits, plus 3 zero-credit courses

Zero-credit Courses (required for all students):

Minimum Technology Course Requirement (3 Credits):

Note: This course is required for Library & Information Science students. For the other concentrations, our program assumes that students have attained the competencies and objectives listed for 550. Please look at the course to determine if you meet the standards. If you do not, you must also take this course. If you have any questions, contact Associate Teaching Professor of Library and Information Science Anselm Spoerri.

Foundation Courses (6 credits), select 2/4:

Note: Refer to the specific course study plans to see if a particular foundation course is required for your concentration.

Concentration Requirements

Concentration Requirements:

It is strongly recommended to take “Human-Centered Design” in the first semester, followed by “User Experience Research Methods” and “Interaction Design” in the next semesters. It is recommended to take one concentration requirement course per semester.

Concentration Electives & General Elective

Concentration Electives (Select 3 Courses/9 Credits):

* You can also consider taking an Independent Study with a faculty member or any course that meets the approval of the Concentration Coordinator.

 

General Elective (3 Courses/9 credits):

  • Any courses offered in the MI program 
  • Any course offered in the MBS’s UXD program 

* You can transfer up to two courses (6 credits) from outside the MI program (Follow process noted in "Transfer credit policy”).