COM5013 - User-Centred Design

Objectives:

On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
Understand the benefits of a user-centred design approach in the modern digital landscape;
Understand the process of UX design, including user research, prototyping, analysis and the need for iteration;
Understand and apply principles of interaction design when generating and evaluating design solutions;
Demonstrate the ability to conceive of testable hypotheses, design suitable experiments and make sound judgements based on experimental data.

Content:

In this module students learn the tenets of a user-centred design process, including an in-depth understanding of the user experience and the importance of user research, testing and iteration. Essential soft skills such as empathy, creativity and communication are cultivated on the module, along with critical and analytical skills. Taught sessions will stress the importance of empiricism in the design process, equipping students with the knowledge and practical skills needed to carry out robust experiments and derive logical conclusions from observations and data. Through their project work they will practise goal identification and create experiences that address both user and business needs.

The module is closely related to COM5033 Team Project in the sense that this module involves the design of a digital product while COM5033 shall focus on its delivery.

Examples of topics covered on the module include:
- Business objectives vs user goals
- Design thinking and building empathy
- Qualitative user research methods
- Quantitative research tools and techniques for analysis
- Fundamentals of behavioural UX
- Inclusive and accessible User Interface design

Learning and Teaching Information:

The first half of the module will consist of a series of 10 focussed workshops in which a variety of active learning strategies will be deployed. These will be preparing students for a 2-day intensive and learner-led design sprint in Semester 2. Following the design sprint students continue to iterate over their design(s), attending group seminars to discuss topics relating to their project work.

Workshops
Hours: 36
Intended Group Size: Cohort

Seminars
Hours: 24
Intended Group Size: Cohort

Guided independent study
Hours: 240

Further details relating to assessment
Rush Challenge: Students are challenged to design, prototype, test and iterate over an original product idea. In doing so, students develop their understanding of design thinking and lean UX.

Project: Students will plan and carry out a thorough UX research and design process in response to a business brief. Their project should incorporate a variety of experimental methods, data analysis and iteration. The project must result in a functional prototype.

Project report: The report will be a detailed account of the project work in which all phases in the design cycle are documented.

The contents of the report may include (the breakdown by word count is merely illustrative):
- project outline (250 words)
- requirements analysis and project plan (500 words)
- user research and analyses (500 words)
- design documentation (500 words)
- testing (500 words)
- results and discussion (500 words)
- project evaluation (250 words)

Assessment:

001 Rush Challenge; 1000 word equivalent; end semester 1 20%
002 Project Artefact; 2000 word equiv; mid semester 2 30%
003 Project Report; 3000 word equiv; end semester 2 50%

Fact File

Module Coordinator - Gerard Roma
Level - 5
Credit Value - 30
Pre-Requisites - NONE
Semester(s) Offered - 5YL

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