HCDE welcomes usability study proposals from industry and academic partners. In HCDE's usability studies course, students engage in product and user research, formulate an appropriate usability study, conduct the study, and analyze and report on their findings.
How it works Overall timeline Submit project proposal Explore past projects
How it works
- Deadline to submit projects: December 20 (priority); January 5 (firm deadline)
- Team size: 3 – 4 students
- Duration: 10 weeks (January – March)
- Student level: Master's
- Expected output: Report and presentation summarizing finding and recommendations
- Expected sponsor commitment: An introduction to the product, review of final report or presentation, and access to users or potential users and the product. A mid quarter check-in is often beneficial but not required. There is no cost to propose a usability studies project.
Overall timeline
November – First week of January
- Clients propose projects
- Instructors may ask clarifying questions
Mid-January
- Student teams reach out for initial meeting
- Clients and teams finalize scope
Late January – Early March
- Student teams plan and conduct studies.
- They work to understand the product(s)/service(s) being evaluated, develop a preliminary study plan, and create a full study kit
- Clients may optionally give feedback on these materials
- During this time, students must have access to:
- A stable product or prototype to test
- Target users of the product or service (client support may be necessary for hard-to-reach users)
Early to mid-March
- Student teams prepare written report and a short oral presentation
- If there is mutual interests, students may do a deep-dive presentation with the client
Submit a project proposal
HCDE accepts usability project proposals in autumn quarter for the winter usability studies course. To help you scope a project, please review this example usability studies syllabus from 2025. Students generally complete an initial study proposal, an interaction or experience map, a study plan, a study kit, and a final report and presentation.
To propose a project for Winter 2026 (January – March), please complete this form. Instructors will have the most opportunity to ask clarification questions and iterate on projects submitted by 20 December, but we can work with proposals submitted until 5 January. Project selection will occur in the second & third weeks of January.
To discuss your plans, email Melissa Ewing at mewing3@uw.edu.
If you are interested in sponsoring a larger-scale project for either the undergraduate or graduate level, you may be interested in sponsoring a capstone project. Feel free to contact us at hcdecap@uw.edu to discuss your options.
Explore recent Usability Studies projects
