IDES 4301B:
User Experience and Interface Design (Minor Studio)
Instructor: Sara Fortier
Contact Information: [email protected]
Office Hours: During studio hours or by appointment
Course Time: Tues 9:25-12:25, 13:25-16:25 Location: 3464 ME
Course Description:
The 4301B course will provide students a comprehensive overview of the user experience design process. Students will learn key principles, methods and techniques necessary for creating a compelling digital experience. Students will have the opportunity to research, conceptualize, design and test a desktop or mobile website/app from a user-centered design perspective. Deliverables will include task-based personas, information architecture,
wireframes, prototypes, and a final visual design. Students can expect to leave 4301B with a solid foundation for creating digital interfaces based on industry standards and a strong portfolio piece.
Course Objectives:
Through the 4301B course students will be able to:
•
Understand the end-to-end process of designing a digital experience.•
Prioritize product features based on insights gained through user and industry research.•
Apply a toolkit of UX research and design methods to solving digital problems - such aspersonas, information architecture, storyboards, wireframes, prototypes, and visuals.
•
Present a strong portfolio piece when applying for a career in UX with confidence.Project Categories:
Students must design a digital interface within the following project categories.
•
Responsive website•
Mobile app (iPhone or Android)•
Desktop app•
*Product interface (wearables, car interface, etc.)*Note: Students who wish to create a product interface, such as a wearable device, will be required to
work with both 4301A and 4301B instructors. As a result, there is a limited number of available spots for product interface projects.
Themes:
Students can choose to design a digital interface within one of the following themes. Students may also create a project in a theme of their own choosing pending the Instructor’s approval.
•
Health & Wellness•
Productivity•
Lifestyle (i.e. fashion, home decor, travel, food & dining, etc.)•
Social Networking•
StorytellingCourse Evaluation & Deliverables
Required Materials:
Standard Design Studio tools to enable note taking, sketching, concept generation, design research, and design deliverables such as wireframes, prototypes, and presentations. Further materials and tools will be recommended at the Instructor’s discretion.
Course Completion Requirements
To be eligible to pass the course, students must complete all assignments.
Individual/Group Work:
Courses may include various combinations of individual and group work. Students must demonstrate individual aptitude. It is important where collaborative work is undertaken that students be able to clearly demonstrate that individual contribution has been made. Where the evaluation for individual work is below a passing grade, that grade will be awarded for the course.
Deliverable % of mark
Project Definition & Use Cases 5%
Review 1: Preliminary research, problem
area, task-based personas & information architecture.
20%
Review 2: Storyboards, and wireframes of 4-5
main screens & 2-3 detailed interactions
25%
Review 3: Challenge, research, design
process, brand identity and final visual design.
25%
Final Digital Hand-In: Final working
prototype, specifications and portfolio PDF.
15%
Participation & Professionalism 10%
Review Attendance:
Attendance at scheduled SID reviews is mandatory. These are equivalent to exams in IDES courses when indicated in the course outline. Failure to attend will result in a grade of F. If you are not able to attend a review, please call the General Office (613-520-5672) and leave a message in advance. A comprehensive medical certificate or other documentation to substantiate the absence must be submitted as soon as possible after the review. The documentation must state the date of illness onset, the expected date of recovery, and the extent to which the student is incapacitated. A student not remaining for the complete session, or arriving late for the review, without approval from the instructor, will also receive a 10% grade reduction.
Studio Class Attendance
Due to the participatory nature of the studio environment, students are expected to attend studio lectures and classes regularly.
Participation and Professionalism
Active participation and professional conduct are particularly important in studio courses and will be evaluated. At the same time, when the student’s work is reviewed at the end of the course, an evaluation will be made based on one or more of the following: in class discussion;
consultations with instructors; and work ethic. However, none of these evaluations will be used to raise an overall failing grade, to a passing one, based on the quality of the work.
Late Submission of Deliverables:
Course Deliverables
All deliverables submitted late will accrue a 10% per day or part of day deduction from the determined grade, to a maximum of 3 days, from the original deadline time and date. Failure to submit within 3 days, without approval from the instructor, will result in a grade of F.
Review Deliverables
Failure to hand in presentation deliverables at the specified time and to present as scheduled will also receive a 10% grade reduction.
Student Access to Exam Papers
There is no exam paper in this course. The students ongoing work and deliverables will be evaluated (materials that they maintain control over) and the final boards will be submitted for review and can subsequently be picked up by the students.
Academic Accommodation
(Equity Services)You may need special arrangements to meet your academic obligations during the term. For an accommodation request the processes are as follows:
Pregnancy Obligation
Students should advice the Instructor of any requests for academic accommodation during the first two weeks of class, or as soon as possible after the need for
accommodation is known to exist. For more details visit: http://carleton.ca/equity/ accommodation/
Religious Obligation
Students should advice the Instructor of any requests for academic accommodation during the first two weeks of class, or as soon as possible after the need for
accommodation is known to exist. For more details visit: http://carleton.ca/equity/ accommodation/
Academic Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
The Paul Menton Centre for Students with Disabilities (PMC) provides services to students with Learning Disabilities (LD), psychiatric/mental health disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), chronic medical conditions, and impairments in mobility, hearing, and vision. If you have a disability requiring academic accommodations in this course, please contact PMC at 613-520-6608 or [email protected] for a formal evaluation. If you are already registered with the PMC, contact your PMC coordinator to send me your Letter of Accommodation at the beginning of the term, and no later than two weeks before the first in-class scheduled test or exam requiring accommodation (if applicable). After requesting accommodation from PMC, meet with me to ensure accommodation arrangements are made. Please consult the PMC website for the deadline to request accommodations for the formally-scheduled exam (if applicable).
Instructional Offenses / Plagiarism
The regulations of the university require that we bring to your attention regulations on Instructional Offenses, descriptions of which can be found in the current Academic Integrity Policy available on the Student Affairs website. The policy governs the academic behavior of students. At the same time it seems that students do not always understand the meaning of plagiarism and how to avoid it.
In industrial design, ideas and concepts come from a multitude of sources to be modified and utilized in the design and development process. The student should reference sources appropriately.
Student Responsibility
(Studio Course)The student is responsible for knowing the content of this course outline, the schedule of classes, assignments, and reviews; and material covered during any absence from scheduled classes.
Unless otherwise arranged, the class will meet during regularly scheduled studio hours. These meetings are mandatory; important issues and questions will be raised, and announcements might be made. Everyone is expected to be based in studio and to work during scheduled hours. The studio should be considered a professional design studio environment. Because of the special involvement of external professionals, scheduling changes for guest lectures, presentations, and reviews may occur at short notice; students should stay informed regularly.
Changes to the Course Outline
Course Schedule & Deliverables:
*Note: Dates highlighted in purple represent class days that will be held remotely. Students are still expected to participate in Studio for the full-day. The Instructor will insure that remote communication/presentation capabilities are set up and accessible.
Date Topic & Activity Deliverable September 8th, 2015 First day of class. Course & theme
introduction, project overview, UX foundation.
Lecture: UX design 101
September 15th, 2015 Lecture: Defining the problem: User and
industry research & task-based personas.
Studio Time: Research & project definition
Project Definition & Use Cases (5%) Finalize theme & project type. Send 2-3 use cases to Instructor.
September 22nd, 2015 Lecture: Structure: task flows, Information
architecture, navigation, and content strategy.
Studio Time: Create personas, task flows,
information architecture
Sketch task flows for primary use case & review with Instructor in class.
*September 29th, 2015 Remote Review (20%)
Students will present their work in an online group meeting.
Review 1: Preliminary research,
problem area, task-based personas & information architecture.
October 6th, 2015 Lecture: Storyboarding, Conceptual
Wireframes, Detailed Wireframes
Studio Time: Sketching & storyboards October 13th, 2015 Lecture: Testing & Prototyping
Studio Time: Wireframes & detailed
interaction behaviours
October 20th, 2015 No lecture. Working class and one-on-one coaching
October 27th, 2015 No class - Fall 2015 University Break
November 3rd, 2015 Review (25%) Review 2: Storyboards, and
wireframes of 4-5 main screens + 2-3 detailed interactions
November 10th, 2015 Lecture: Moodboards, Brand Identity, Visual
Design
Studio Time: Brand identity and visual
design
Send 2-3 moodboard concepts to Instructor by November 12th.
*November 17th, 2015 No lecture. Working class and one-on-one coaching via Skype.
November 24th, 2015 Review (25%) Review 3: Challenge, research,
design process, brand identity and final visual design.
December 1st, 2015 No class
December 8th, 2015 Final digital hand in (15%) Final working prototype, specifications and portfolio PDF
