Human-Computer Interaction and User Experience

Major: Human-Computer Interaction and User Experience
Degree Awarded: Master of Science in Information (MSI)
Calendar Type: Quarter
Minimum Required Credits: 45.0
Co-op Option: None
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code: 30.3101
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code: 15-1210

About the Program

Human-Computer Interaction and User Experience (HCI/UX) is a graduate major that explores creative ideas, theories, and technologies to advance students’ understanding of the complex and tightly coupled relationships between people and computing systems. The program prepares students to create and evaluate technologies that support and complement human needs and abilities in a broad range of contexts such as work, wellness, home, entertainment, and artistic expression. The HCI/UX major is part of the Master of Science in Information (MSI), which prepares students for a range of careers related to user experience research, interface design, and software development.

Admission Requirements

The Master of Science in Information accepts applicants who hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited university. Please visit the College of Computing & Informatics website for more information on admission requirements.

Additional Information

For more information about this program, visit the College of Computing & Informatics MS in Information - Human-Computer Interaction & User Experience webpage.

Degree Requirements

Sample Plan of Study

Part-time

Full-time

Evaluations

The College of Computing & Informatics works continually to improve its degree programs. As part of this effort, the Human-Computer Interaction and User Experience graduate major is evaluated relative to the following learning objectives.

Graduates of the Human-Computer Interaction and User Experience graduate major in the Master of Science in Information (MSI) degree program will be able to:

• Solve problems in applied domains through the development of artifacts, processes, and systems
• Select, use, adapt, and explain appropriate research, design, and evaluation techniques for a range of user experience projects, populations, cultures, and application contexts
• Extend existing user experience design and evaluation techniques, and invent novel approaches to accommodate new interaction paradigms and non-standard contexts
• Build user interface prototypes using a variety of tools at different levels of complexity and fidelity
• Analyze cognitive, social, and technological components of complex systems to understand opportunities, risks, and constraints for systems and interface design

Facilities

3675 Market Street

In March 2019, the College of Computing & Informatics relocated to 3675 Market. For the first time in the College's history, all CCI faculty, students and professional staff are housed under one roof. Occupying two floors in the brand new uCity Square building, CCI's new home offers state-of-the-art technology in our classrooms, labs, meeting areas and collaboration spaces. 3675 Market offers Class A laboratory, office, coworking, and convening spaces. In fall 2019, the College opened a third floor which will include additional offices, classrooms, innovative research labs, and a maker space. Located at the intersection of Market Street and 37th Street, 3675 Market will act as a physical nexus, bridging academic campuses and medical centers to the east and south, the commercial corridors along Market Street and Chestnut Street, and the residential communities to the north and west.

The uCity Square building offers:

• Speculative lab/office space
• World-class facilities operated by CIC
• Café/restaurant on-site
• Quorum, a two-story, 15K SF convening space and conference center
• Adjacent to future public square
• Access to Science Center’s nationally renowned business acceleration and technology commercialization programs

Drexel University Libraries

Drexel University Libraries is a learning enterprise, advancing the University’s academic mission through serving as educators, supporting education and research, collaborating with researchers, and fostering intentional learning outside of the classroom. Drexel University Libraries engages with Drexel communities through three physical locations, including W. W. Hagerty Library,  Queen Lane Library, and the Library Learning Terrace, as well as a vibrant online presence which sees, on average, over 8,000 visits per day. In the W.W. Hagerty Library location, College of Computing & Informatics students have access to private study rooms and nearly half a million books, periodicals, DVDs, videos and University Archives. All fields of inquiry are covered, including: library and information science, computer science, software engineering, health informatics, information systems, and computing technology. Resources are available online at library.drexel.edu or in-person at W. W. Hagerty Library.

The Libraries also make available laptop and desktop PC and Mac computers, printers and scanners, spaces for quiet work or group projects and designated 24/7 spaces. Librarians and library staff—including a liaison librarian for computing and informatics—are available for individual research consultations and to answer questions about materials or services.

CCI Commons

Located on the 10th floor of 3675 Market Street, the CCI Commons is an open lab and collaborative work environment for students. It features desktop computers, a wireless/laptop area, free black and white printing, and more collaborative space for its students. Students have access to 3675 Market's fully equipped conference room with 42” displays and videoconferencing capabilities. The CCI Commons provides technical support to students, faculty, and professional staff. In addition, the staff provides audio-visual support for all presentation classrooms within 3675 Market. Use of the CCI Commons is reserved for all students taking CCI courses.

The computers for general use are Microsoft Windows and Macintosh OSX machines with appropriate applications which include the Microsoft Office suite, various database management systems, modeling tools, and statistical analysis software. Library related resources may be accessed at the CCI Commons and through the W.W. Hagerty Library. The College is a member of the Rational SEED Program which provides cutting-edge software development and project management software for usage in the CCI Commons and CCI classrooms. The College is also a member of the Microsoft Academic Alliance known also as “DreamSpark” that allows students free access to a wide array of Microsoft software titles and operating systems.

The CCI Commons, student labs, and classrooms have access to networked databases, print and file resources within the College, and the Internet via the University’s network. Email accounts, Internet and BannerWeb access are available through the Office of Information Resources and Technology.

CCI Learning Center

The CCI Learning Center (CLC), located in 3675 Market Street's CCI Commons student computer lab, provides consulting and other learning resources for students taking computer science classes. The CLC is staffed by graduate and undergraduate computer science students from the College of Computing & Informatics.

The CLC and CCI Commons serve as a central hub for small group work, student meetings, and TA assistance. 

Research Laboratories

The College houses multiple research labs, led by CCI faculty, in 3675 Market Street including: the Drexel Health and Risk Communication Lab, Interactive Systems for Healthcare, Socio-Technical Studies Group, Intelligent Information & Knowledge Computing Research Lab, Evidence-based Decision Making Lab, Applied Symbolic Computation Laboratory (ASYM), High Performance Computing Laboratory (SPIRAL), Drexel Research on Play (RePlay) Laboratory, Software Engineering Research Group (SERG), Social Computing Research Group, Vision and Cognition Laboratory (VisCog) and the Vision and Graphics Laboratory. For more information on these laboratories, please visit the College’s research web page.