Degree Requirements

The following degree requirements apply to Master of Science in Human Centered Design & Engineering. 

To graduate, students in the HCDE Master's program must complete 50 credits of the following:

• Required Core Courses (24 credits)
• Elective Courses in Specialized Content Areas (12 credits min.)
• Additional HCDE Electives (14 credits min.) 

Required Core Courses

HCDE Master's students entering in Autumn 2020 or later are required to complete all of the following courses (24 credits total).

• HCDE 501: Theoretical Foundations of HCDE (4)
• HCDE 519: Qualitative Research Methods (4) or HCDE 516: Experimental Methods (4)
• HCDE 517: Usability Studies (4) 
• HCDE 518: User-Centered Design (4) 
• HCDE 592: Capstone Planning (4) Prerequisite: HCDE 501; HCDE 517; and HCDE 518; and either HCDE 516 or HCDE 519 
• HCDE 593: Capstone (4) Prerequisite: HCDE 592 

Elective Courses in Specialized Content Areas

Students must take at least one 4-credit course in three specialized content areas: Strategy, Design, and Engineering. Students are encouraged to gain depth in any of the three areas by taking additional courses beyond the minimum required four credits per area.

Strategy (4 credits minimum)

• HCDE 503: Navigating Design in Organizational Contexts (4)
• HCDE 512: International User Experiences and Communication (4)
• HCDE 520: Design and Management of Complex Systems (4)
• HCDE 529: Service Design (4)
• HCDE 534: Designing a Human Centered Venture (4)
• *HCDE 561: Strategic Human Centered Artificial Intelligence (4)

Design (4 credits minimum)

• HCDE 508: Visual Communication (4)
• HCDE 511: Information Visualization (4)
• HCDE 515: Accessibility and Inclusive Design (4)
• HCDE 529: Service Design (4)
• HCDE 536: Interaction Design & Prototyping (4)
• HCDE 537: User-Centered Web Design (4)
• HCDE 538: Designing for Behavior Change (4)
• *HCDE 563: Designing and Prototyping with Artificial Intelligence (4)

Engineering (4 credits minimum)

• HCDE 511: Information Visualization (4)
• HCDE 530: Computational Concepts in HCDE (4)
• HCDE 533: Digital Fabrication (4)
• HCDE 539: Physical Computing and Prototyping (4)
• *HCDE 563: Designing and Prototyping with Artificial Intelligence (4)

Elective Courses

Students should select electives based on their specific academic and professional goals. 

• HCDE 502: Empirical Traditions (4)
• HCDE 503: Navigating Design in Organizations (4)
• HCDE 508: Visual Communication (4)
• HCDE 511: Information Visualization (4)
• HCDE 512: International User Experiences and Communication (4)
• HCDE 515: Accessibility and Inclusive Design (4)
• HCDE 516: Experimental Methods (4) 
• HCDE 519: Qualitative Research Methods (4)
• HCDE 520: Design and Management of Complex Systems (4)
• HCDE 521: UX Speaker Series (1) (2 credit max toward degree) 
• HCDE 524: Programming Concepts in HCDE (2)
• ^*HCDE 525: Emerging Issues in Human Centered Design and Engineering (4)
• HCDE 526: Video Prototyping (2)
• HCDE 529: Service Design (4)
• HCDE 530: Computational Concepts in HCDE (4)
• HCDE 532: Web Design Studio (2) Optional skills prep course for HCDE 537
• HCDE 533: Digital Fabrication (4)
• HCDE 534: Designing a Human Centered Venture (4)
• HCDE 536: Interaction Design & Prototyping (4)
• HCDE 537: User-Centered Web Design (4)
• HCDE 538: Designing for Behavior Change (4)
• HCDE 539: Physical Computing and Prototyping (4)
• *HCDE 560: Foundations of Human Centered Artificial Intelligence (4)
• *HCDE 561: Strategic Human Centered Artificial Intelligence (4)
• *HCDE 563: Design and Prototyping with Artificial Intelligence (4)
• *HCDE 564: Human Centered Research and Artificial Intelligence (4)
• ^*HCDE 539: Culminations in Human Centered Artificial Intelligence (4)
• HCDE 596: Directed Research Groups (Students can apply up to 4 credits of 596 + 599 combined to their degree)
• HCDE 598: Special Topics Courses (max. 15) Prerequisite: permission of instructor
• HCDE 599: Special Projects (Students can apply 4 credits of 596 + 599 combined to their degree)
• ENGR 601: Internship (max. 5 credits toward degree)