Degree Requirements

Required Core

• INFO-H 541 Interaction Design Practice
• INFO-H 543 Interaction Design Methods
• INFO-H 561 Meaning and Form in HCI
• INFO-H 563 Psychology of HCI
• INFO-H 564 Prototyping Interactive Systems

Required Selectives

Choose 3 from this list.

• INFO-H 517 Visualization Design, Analysis, and Evaluation
• INFO-H 565 Collaborative and Social Computing
• INFO-H 566 Experience Design for Ubiquitous Computing
• INFO-H 567 IoT Interface Design for Business Innovation
• INFO-H 570 Tangible/Embedded
• INFO-H 581 Experience Design and Evaluation of Access Technologies
• INFO-H 582 UX Design Ethics
• INFO-H 583 Conversational UI

Area of Emphasis in Digital Making

MS HCI students can pursue an area of emphasis in digital making by completing 9-12 credit hours of Media Arts and Science graduate-level sections that count towards 6 elective credits and 3-6 credits of selective courses in the HCI MS programs. The area of emphasis in digital making allows students to complement their HCI preparation with application development skills to produce interactive media experiences and environments, and explore their connections with local businesses as well as the national industry.  This area of emphasis is particularly well-suited to HCI MS students with a solid programming background. The Media Arts and Science graduate-level sections available for this area of emphasis include:

• NEWM-N 501 Foundations of Digital Production
• NEWM-N 505 Advanced Issues in Emerging Media Environments
• NEWM-N 585 Experiential Innovation I – Advanced Visualization
• NEWM-N 585 Real-world Emerging Wearable Technology Applications for Enterprise Business
• NEWM-N 585 Motion Graphics

Open Electives

Recommended electives include:

• INFO-I 595 Professional Internship
• Any 500-level course on campus that complements your HCI background
• Any additional course from the selective list after the first three.

Students must check for prerequisites and course availability from the respective schools and departments.

Final Project

Capstone Option

All HCI students must complete a final MS capstone project by registering for two courses: H680 HCI Professional Practice 1 and H681 HCI Professional Practice 2, taken in two consecutive semesters. Each course includes a formally scheduled in-class time that students must attend. Students will work on one comprehensive, final MS HCI project that extends throughout the two courses, i.e., in both fall and spring semesters. Students will receive an official grade at the conclusion of each course/semester. Incompletes are not permitted.

Thesis Option

The MS Thesis option is reserved for students who possess a demonstrated ability to carry out publishable empirical research. Qualified students must find a research-active faculty member willing to advise them on a thesis by the end of the second semester.

Students taking the Thesis option must take and successfully pass I575 Informatics Research Design or an equivalent research methods course decided in concert with the thesis advisor by the completion of their first year. It is the student’s responsibility to propose a thesis that can be completed within a two-semester timeline. To do this, students MUST provide their primary thesis advisor with a full thesis proposal and outline that includes a timeline for the writing of the thesis.