User Experience Design MA (Online) Falmouth University

Apply key principles of user-centred design to create original work

Use human-computer interaction research methods to evaluate the user's needs and improve the experiences you create for them. Join our UX Design master's course and gain practical skills in how to evaluate artefacts and development processes in an ongoing and iterative way.

Learn how user-centred design can be applied in areas such as the Internet of Things, creative apps, museum installations, educational technology and immersive business.

You will:

• Explore how to innovate as a user experience designer.
• Learn methods from experimental psychology and data science to better understand how people engage with digital products and services.
• Practice interaction design across a range of application domains, including cybersecurity.
• You'll also be able to keep and control any IP interfaces you produce.

On this UX Design course, you will learn to create engaging interfaces and interactions, appropriately evaluate usability and professionally apply key principles of experience design. You'll gain the ability to critically reflect upon and evaluate working methods and find the most effective ways to collaborate on projects. You'll also learn how to pitch your ideas; communicate concepts and present artefacts visually with clarity and enthusiasm.

Modules

This online UX Design course is comprised of five modules, four 30-credit modules and one 60-credit project (180 credits in total). The modules have been specifically designed to be studied in a non-linear order, with the order in which you’ll study the modules depending on when you begin the course. All modules on the course are compulsory and must be passed in order to complete the award.

• Development Practice
• UX Design
• Co-creative Design and Development Practice
• UX Research
• Final Major Project (MA only)

The modules above are those being studied by our students or proposed new ones. Programme structures and modules can change as part of our curriculum enhancement and review processes. If a certain module is important to you, please discuss it with the Course Leader.

How you'll learn

You'll learn through a blend of lectures, webinars, guest talks, tasks and discussion forums, which you'll access via our dedicated virtual learning environment. This is also where you'll find all key documentation, get course announcements and access extensive learning resources.

You'll be supported academically by Online Tutors, who will also deliver weekly webinars and facilitate the online forums. If you need assistance with anything that isn't directly related to course material, a dedicated Student Advisor team will be on hand to help. You'll also have access to Falmouth University's excellent employability service, RealWORKs.

You'll master key principles of experience design, spending 20-25 hours a week working on your craft. We incorporate optional face-to-face events for all our online students. There will be up to two per year and will typically run over weekends, to fit around your other commitments.

Study hours

A postgraduate student should dedicate at least 20-25 hours per week for study.

Assessment methods

The assessment provides the course team with a means of offering tailored guidance alongside advice on how to progress knowledge and skills in key areas that relate to the course Learning Outcomes. The course team will identify your strengths and weaknesses as an individual and discuss them with you throughout your time on the course.

Assessments are 100% coursework, submitted in an electronic format to the virtual learning environment, and designed to reflect professional practice. Assessment methods include:

• Projects
• Portfolios
• Pitches
• Papers

This UX Design master's degree is for anyone who is excited by the opportunities presented by technology and who wants to carry out practice-based research to create thoughtful and engaging user experiences.

Games Academy graduates have worked as:

• Creative practitioners at companies such as MediaTonic, Firesprite, Creative Assembly, Project Gamechanger and Rare
• Creative AI specialists at companies including Ultrahaptics, Solutionpath and Bewsign
• Researchers and developers at companies such as Facebook
• Further study at doctoral level in artificial intelligence and/or data science, sponsored by the likes of Google