Summer School Teacher Interview: "Human-centered UX design places people at the forefront of technological advancements."
Learn how to design human-centered solutions in the Human-Centered UX Design course by Aalto University Summer School.
Human-Centered UX Design
Human-centered user experience design places people at the forefront of technological advancements, ensuring that products and services meet their needs and preferences. In an increasingly digital world, prioritizing human-centric design enhances usability and contributes to the overall well-being and inclusivity of society. This course will focus on developing the skills necessary to understand the user experience and integrate it into design projects.
Teaching period:
-
Application period:
1.2.2024 – 19.5.2024
Course format:
Campus
Duration:
2 weeks
full-time
Course level:
Graduate
Doctoral
Professional
Field of study:
Art and design
Credits:
5 ECTS
Organiser:
School of Arts, Design and Architecture
Tuition fees:
1490€ tuition fee
Application deadline for this course is May 19th
Note that the application deadline for this course is May 19th because the teaching starts on July 1st. This allows you to make the tuition fee payment and your travel arrangements on time.
Human-centered design is a methodology that places the user at the heart of the design process. The Human-Centered User Experience Design (Human-Centered UX Design) summer course offers you the core concepts of the human-centered design process in digital services development through designing and prototyping a software application. The course will equip students with essential user interface and experience design skills, emphasizing human-centered design through understanding and specifying the context of use and user requirements, producing design solutions, and evaluating the design.
Design projects in international teams
Students will work on a design project for a digital service from the initial phase to its completion. The projects are executed in small groups, covering different phases of the human-centered design process – including its interfaces and functional implementation using the digital prototyping tool Figma. The course and project are structured around assignments, lectures, in-class discussions, and design work in teams.
Information for Summer School Applicants
Intensive weeks on campus: July 1st to 12th, 2024
- Daily teaching sessions
- Supported project work in teams
- Post work: Final report (To be delivered a week after the course ends.)
At the end of the course, students will be able to
- understand the purpose and the process of human-centered user experience design.
- apply a human-centered design approach in the early phases of digital service development.
- develop a concept for an interactive high-fidelity prototype in Figma.
- evaluate the usability of an interactive prototype with potential users.
Project work in teams
Design project - process (0-50p)
- User recruitment as pre-course work
- Contextual interviews
- Concept design
- Prototyping and evaluation
Design project - outcome: high-fidelity prototype (0-25p)
Final report - To be delivered a week after the course ends. (0-15p)
Peer evaluation (0-10p)
Grading: 0-50p = 0, 50-59p = 1, 60-69p = 2, 70-79p = 3, 80-89p = 4, 90-100p = 5
The total course workload of 135h (5 ECTS) consists of:
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Contact teaching: 40h (Lectures, discussion, group work, feedback)
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Project work in teams: 60h (User studies, design, prototyping, evaluation, reporting)
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Individual work: 30h (Reading and writing)
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Personal reflection: 5h (Time to think)
The course is graded on a scale of 0-5, where
0 = fail, 1 = poor, 2 = satisfactory, 3 = good, 4 = very good, 5 = excellent
Please note that this course is designed for visiting students and can not be included in Aalto degree studies.
This course does not require previous experience in the topic. The minimum requirement for applying to the course is a finished bachelor's degree or the equivalent of 180 ECTS completed in the undergraduate degree.
Prepare to attach the following to your application:
- Motivation letter: Why do you want to attend this course?
The recommended length for the motivation letter is 150-250 words.
If you need a visa, we recommend applying by April 15th 2024
- This is to ensure that we have enough time to process your application and that you have time to make the tuition fee payment, book a visa appointment and wait for the application to be processed.
- You can apply and be accepted to the courses after April 15th. In that case, we recommend that you pay at your earliest convenience so that we can deliver your invitation letter to you promptly.
- According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland, the processing time for a visa application is 15 days. However, the processing time may be longer if a more detailed application examination is required.
Tuition fee
The tuition fee is 1490€ (including VAT 24%). The tuition fee is to be paid by credit card or a Finnish online bank. If the fee is not paid by the due date, the application will be considered lapsed.
Reduced tuition fee (-20%) for students from partner institutions of Aalto University. Please prepare to prove your student status with a study transcript before paying the tuition fee.
Unfortunately, Aalto University Summer School does not offer scholarships for participants.
Learn about the Aalto University Summer School cancellation terms. You will receive the full terms before making the payment and confirming the course participation.
Teacher Information
Antony Joseph is a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Design at Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture. He is passionately dedicated to design, teaching and research in the fields of Human-Centered Design and User Experience Design.
With a profound belief in the transformative power of design, he is committed to shaping the next generation of design leaders with the knowledge and skills required to create experiences that truly resonate with users. As an educator, he fosters a dynamic learning environment that encourages collaboration, critical thinking and hands-on experience.
Human-Centered design in action
Human-centered design has a wide range of applications, particularly in start-ups and new services. Why create something that the end user will not want?
In this course, students learn how to apply a basic human-centered design approach in the early phases of digital service development, recognize foundational principles for database design and imperative programming in software development, and develop a software prototype for a digital service application, including both back-end and front-end components. Students will also learn how to evaluate the usability of a software application with potential users. Put your skills into practice to develop a digital service!
Contact
Summer School team
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