Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

• Plan and conduct ethical user research with human participants using appropriate data collection methods, and analyze the data using both qualitative and quantitative methods.
• Create, justify, and critique interface designs using appropriate theoretical and methodological HCI frameworks.
• Create prototypes that simulate the interactivity of user interfaces and have enough functionality for usability testing with human participants.
• Design and conduct usability tests for an existing or prototyped product or service.

Career Outcomes

A graduate degree in HCI prepares students for many different kinds of careers in user experience (UX). Graduates have job titles including interaction designer, information architect, user experience designer, usability specialist, and user researcher.

Our graduates work at top companies, such as Allstate, GfK, Grainger, JP Morgan Chase, Microsoft, and Motorola.

$72,800median salary reported by program graduates six months after degree completion

92%of reporting program graduates were employed, continuing education, or not seeking employment within six months of graduation

Curriculum Requirements

Introductory Courses

No Introductory Course may be substituted for any other course at any level.

Introductory courses may be waived for any of the following conditions based on faculty review:

• The student has the appropriate course work to satisfy an Introductory Course based on an official transcript review by faculty and successful grades, typically B or better.
• The student has appropriate and verified professional experience to satisfy an Introductory Course which is demonstrated through successful completion of a GAE exam.
• If a Graduate Assessment Examination (GAE) is available for the Introductory Courses, upon successfully completion of a GAE, a waiver will be issued.

•  IT 411 Scripting for Interactive Systems
•  HCI 406 Web Site Design for HCI
•  HCI 412 HCI Design Fundamentals I
•  IT 403 Statistics and Data Analysis

Foundation Courses

The following Foundation Courses are listed in the suggested sequence for the program.

•  HCI 440 Introduction to User-Centered Design
•  HCI 450 Foundations of Human-Computer Interaction
•  HCI 430 Prototyping and Implementation

Students currently taking Foundation Courses may also register for Major Elective Courses if they have successfully completed the prerequisites for those courses.

Advanced Courses

The following Advanced Courses are listed in the suggested sequence for the program.

•  HCI 445 User Research Methods
•  HCI 454 Interaction Design and Information Architecture
  or  HCI 457 Information Architecture and Content Strategy
•  HCI 460 Usability Evaluation Methods
•  HCI 472 HCI Design Fundamentals II

Major Elective Courses

Students must complete 16 credit hours elective courses from the lists below. At least one of the major electives must be from this first list:

•  HCI 511 Accessibility Considerations in HCI
•  HCI 514 Global User Research
•  HCI 515 Design Ethnography
•  HCI 516 Behavioral Science and Ux
•  HCI 520 Learner-Centered Design

Additional HCI Electives

•  HCI 421 Designing for Content Management Systems
•  HCI 422 Multimedia
•  HCI 511 Accessibility Considerations in HCI
•  HCI 512 Information Visualization and Infographics
•  HCI 514 Global User Research
•  HCI 515 Design Ethnography
•  HCI 516 Behavioral Science and Ux
•  HCI 520 Learner-Centered Design
•  HCI 522 UX Strategy and Web Analytics
•  HCI 530 Mobile Design
•  HCI 545 Embodied Interaction
•  HCI 553 Social Interaction Design
•  HCI 580 User Experience Design Practicum
•  HCI 590 Topics in Human-Computer Interaction
•  HCI 596 HCI Research Capstone

 

Non-HCI Electives open to all HCI students

•  CSEC 440 Information Security Management (Formerly CNS 440)
•  DSC 423 Data Analysis and Regression
•  DSC 424 Advanced Data Analysis
•  DSC 465 Data Visualization
•  CSC 587 Cognitive Science
•  ECT 455 E-Commerce Web Site Engineering
•  ECT 480 Intranets and Portals
•  ECT 586 Customer Relationship Management Technologies
•  GAM 424 Game Design Workshop
•  IS 451 Database Design for Information Systems (Formerly CSC 451)
•  IS 485 Requirements Elicitation, Analysis, and Specification
•  IS 511 Social Issues of Computing
•  IS 570 Managing Change for Digital Transformation
•  IT 432 Web Architecture
•  IT 590 Topics in Information Technology
•  MKT 555 Marketing Management
•  PM 430 Fundamentals of IT Project Management
  or  SE 477 Software and Systems Project Management
•  PM 440 Collaborative Technologies for Leading Projects
•  PSY 404 Perception and Cognition
•  PSY 473 The Psychology of Judgment and Decision- Making
•  PSY 680 Industrial and Organizational Psychology
•  SE 430 Object Oriented Modeling
•  SE 482 Requirements Engineering

Open Elective Courses

Student must complete 4 credit hours from advisor-approved CDM elective. Open elective courses are in the range of 421-699 and must be from the College of CDM.

Capstone

•  HCI 594 Human-Computer Interaction Capstone

 

Degree Requirements

Students in this degree program must meet the following requirements:

• Complete a minimum of 52 graduate credit hours in addition to any required introductory courses of the designated degree program.
• Complete all graduate courses and requirements listed in the designated degree program.
• Earn a grade of B- or better in each introductory course of the designated degree program.
• Earn a grade of C- or better in all courses beyond the introductory courses of the designated degree program.
• Maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher.
• Students pursuing a second (or more) graduate degree may not double count or retake any course that applied toward the completion of a prior graduate degree. If a required course in the second degree was already completed and applied toward a previous degree, the student must meet with a faculty advisor to discuss a new course to be completed and substituted in the new degree. This rule also applies to cross-listed courses, which are considered to be the same course but offered under different subjects.
• Students pursuing a second master's degree must complete a minimum of 52 graduate credit hours beyond their first designated degree program in addition to any required introductory courses in their second designated degree program.

Students with a GPA of 3.9 or higher will graduate with distinction.

For DePaul's policy on repeat graduate courses and a complete list of academic policies see the DePaul Graduate Handbook in the Course Catalog.