Interaction Design Specialization Course Syllabus

Overview: This comprehensive Interaction Design Specialization, developed by the University of California, equips learners with essential skills in user experience and interaction design. The program consists of eight courses that progressively build expertise—from foundational principles to advanced experimentation and a capstone project. With approximately 130 hours of content, the flexible structure is ideal for working professionals seeking to enter or advance in the UX field. Each course emphasizes hands-on learning, real-world applications, and practical design thinking.

Module 1: Human-Centered Design: an Introduction

Estimated time: 14 hours

• Principles of designing technologies that bring joy
• Conducting fieldwork to gather user insights
• Techniques for rapid prototyping
• Evaluating interface alternatives effectively

Module 2: Design Principles: an Introduction

Estimated time: 12 hours

• Fundamental principles of visual design
• Organizing and presenting information clearly
• Typography, layout, and color theory
• Evaluating designs through user feedback

Module 3: Social Computing

Estimated time: 9 hours

• Understanding online communities and collaboration
• Challenges in designing for social interaction
• Opportunities in social computing systems

Module 4: Input and Interaction

Estimated time: 9 hours

• Human motor performance and perception
• Cognitive principles in interaction design
• Designing effective input techniques

Module 5: User Experience: Research & Prototyping

Estimated time: 11 hours

• Core processes of experience design
• Methods for understanding user behavior
• Transforming observations into design insights
• Prototyping for user validation

Module 6: Information Design

Estimated time: 13 hours

• Visual design principles for interfaces
• Information architecture and navigation
• Designing across devices and contexts

Module 7: Designing, Running, and Analyzing Experiments

Estimated time: 15 hours

• Designing user-centered experiments
• Running usability tests and studies
• Analyzing data using R
• Validating design decisions with evidence

Module 8: Interaction Design Capstone Project

Estimated time: 35 hours

• Redesign an existing interface, service, or product
• Apply research, prototyping, and evaluation methods
• Develop a polished portfolio-ready project

Prerequisites

• Foundational understanding of design concepts
• Familiarity with basic statistics (helpful for experimentation module)
• Basic comfort with programming concepts (recommended for data analysis)

What You'll Be Able to Do After

• Design user-centered technologies that enhance user satisfaction
• Conduct user research and translate findings into design improvements
• Create intuitive interfaces using visual and interaction design principles
• Prototype and test designs using rapid and iterative methods
• Evaluate user experiences through rigorous experimentation and analysis