Selecting a program concentration allows IXD students to focus their studies and build a cohesive set of knowledge and skills targeted to a specific career pathway within the User Experience (UX) profession. Students are encouraged to select a concentration early in their studies, but are also free to create their own customized study plan based on their career interests and academic goals.
Two program concentrations are available:
Design
The Design concentration is for students interested in designing engaging and understandable digital interfaces and services. Coursework in this concentration emphasizes the full user-centered design lifecycle, from discovery research and content architecture to ideation and prototyping.
This concentration prepares students for the following types of roles:
- UX Designer
- UX/UI Designer
- UX Architect
- Product Designer
- Interaction Designer
- Information Architect
Recommended Electives
- 606 Digital Accessibility
- 636 Conversational User Experience Design
- 641 Visual Communication & Information Design
- 642 Content Strategy
- 646 Digital Product Design
- 648 Mobile Interaction Design
- 649 Practical Ethnography for User Experience
- 650 Speculative Design
- 651 Emotional Design
- 658 Information Visualization
- 671 Sustainable Interaction Design
- 682 Projects in Information Experience Design
- 696 Advanced Projects in Visualization
Research & Evaluation
The Research & Evaluation concentration is for students interested in understanding user needs, identifying insights to inform design decisions, and evaluating digital products. Coursework covers both qualitative and quantitative methods for gathering user feedback, assessing design quality, and measuring user engagement.
This concentration prepares students for the following types of roles:
- UX Researcher
- User Researcher
- Usability Analyst
- Design Researcher
Recommended Electives
- 608 Human-Information Interaction
- 630 Human-Centered Research Design & Methods
- 640 Data Analysis
- 642 Content Strategy
- 645 Advanced Usability and UX Evaluation
- 649 Practical Ethnography for User Experience
- 658 Information Visualization
- 681 Community Building & Engagement
- 685 Digital Analytics: Web, Mobile, and Social Media
- 693 Audience Research and Evaluation
- 696 Advanced Projects in Visualization