BSc Computer Science (Human Computer Interaction) with Industrial Experience

The aim of this course is to give you, the student, the tools, techniques, and the mindset necessary to competently approach your first user testing and user experience job. The course is designed from a practical perspective and will enable you to take a junior role in a user experience department, or usability company, and will provide you with the overall knowledge to communicate with others and make sensible suggestions regarding UX work. Further, it will provide you with a basis for future self study within the UX domain or the wider human factors world.

Students who are not from the Department of Computer Science must have permission from both Computer Science and their home School to enrol.

Pre-requisites

To enrol students are required to have taken COMP23311 (Software Engineering 1) and COMP23412 (Software Engineering 2) or a demonstrable equivalent.

The aim of the unit is to give the student: tools, techniques, and the mindset necessary to competently approach their first user testing and user experience job. The unit is designed from a practical perspective and will enable the student to take up a junior role in a user experience department, or usability company, and provide them with the overview knowledge to communicate with others and make sensible suggestions regarding UX work. The unit is not intended to be a comprehensive treaties of the subject - indeed this could not be accomplished in such a short space of time - however, it will provide the basis for the students future study within the domain.

• Describe aspects of user interaction and cognition as they relate to UX.

• Explain the role and importance of Standards, Technologies, and Guidelines in the UX process.

• Describe methods including experiment design, application, and the ethical process

• Select and apply appropriate methods for analysing a design

• Select and apply the relevant descriptive statistical tests associated with UX Engineering;

• Analyse and critique UX work, experimental studies, and computer interfaces

• Analyse problems associated with different designs and suggests solutions for their resolution.

The unit comprises twenty-one teaching sessions with one extra for the covering of revision topics. Students will be expect to devote further time for their own study and for the completion of their coursework. The twenty-one traditional lectures will be interspersed with four discussion lectures in which the material for the coursework will be discussed. The majority of this material will be covered by directed reading followed by discussion. Coursework work will take the form of a critique of the students previous Software Engineering HCI focused work, along with 3 x 250 word discussions of key UX topics.

COMP33511 runs as a 'flipped classroom' in that I expect you to read the notes before the lecture, and then in the lecture we discuss the topics covered in the notes as well as problems you are having etc. There are videos of our discussions to refer to afterwards. My primary expectation is that you will talk to me, interact, ask questions, and challenge me if you think I'm wrong; in general be interested. 

Assessment is via coursework assignment and tests. Coursework comprises three short assignments (reading and a 250 word report each) worth 30% total (2 x 15%). One optional formative assignment covering 'Evaluating' and 'Analysing' and for feedback only. And two summative assignments covering 'Evaluating' and 'Analysing' 2x15 marks. The two tests are therefore worth 70%. Test 1 comprises 10 MCQs and two short answer questions covering 'Remembering' and 'Understanding' worth 10/5/5 marks. Timed and drawn randomly from the Question Bank for each student and to be taken before the start of the nominal exam period. And Test 2 comprises Two 'Application' questions at 15 marks each and one 'Creating' question at 20 marks. Timed and drawn randomly from the Question Bank for each student and to be taken before the start of the nominal exam period.

1 Formative assignment

Feedback is via face to face communications, written feedback for coursework assignments, and for informal discussions twitter.

COMP33511 reading list can be found on the School of Computer Science website for current students. 

Course unit materials

Links to course unit teaching materials can be found on the School of Computer Science website for current students and the course unit Blackboard page. 

Links related to COMP33511

• Video titled What's User Experience?