Interaction Design MA

This unit launches your master’s study experience at Norwich, encouraging you to explore leading practices and emerging research within and around the discipline of interaction design. Engaging with core interaction design methodologies will enhance your critical understanding and knowledge in conceiving, prototyping, and producing human-centred experiences in interactive digital contexts. Research-led projects will immerse you in modern interaction design techniques, enhancing your confidence in conceptual and practical problem-solving. You will adopt iterative, qualitative, and participatory practices to address complex challenges through in-depth critique and analysis. Continuous experimentation and critical reflection will strengthen your methods within broader conceptual frameworks and ethical considerations.

This unit focuses on developing advanced technical skills essential for idea generation, problem-solving, and practical development in design practice. You will engage in various media and processes, enhancing your ability to design digital products and services through project-based learning. The unit takes an expanded approach to the discipline, encouraging you to challenge technical expectations in contemporary design practices covering coding, physical computing, user experience, agile working, design thinking, systems thinking, data analysis, and emerging technologies (AR/VR/AI). Through continuous technical experimentation and practical application, you will enhance your practical skills and working methods, ensuring you are well-prepared to tackle real-world challenges and able to develop innovative and effective design solutions.

This unit encourages deep exploration of leading practices and emerging research in digital design. Through reflective analysis and interactive sessions, you will develop a critical understanding of your discipline within broader socio-economic, political, ethical, and cultural contexts, exploring themes like design history, identity, human/computer interaction, aesthetics, Gestalt psychology, and globalisation. You will develop a range of research approaches, using discursive interaction to inform your inquiry and push your creative boundaries to inspire new perspectives on communication design. Research-led projects will enhance your ability to synthesise conceptual and practical problem-solving to extend and explore your chosen area of expertise.

This unit encourages your exploration of a range of professional-level technical skills essential for human-centred design and interaction in digital design practice. You will experiment across a range of media, building on the skills and techniques covered in the ‘advanced technical skills’ unit. Through individual and group projects, you’ll refine technical processes and explore innovative aspects of design creativity and prototyping, developing innovative solutions for modern media platforms using digital and analogue techniques. Topics include coding, prototyping, user flows, and emerging technologies like AR, VR, and AI, merging creative ideas with technical expertise to extend and explore your chosen area of expertise.

This unit deepens your understanding of leading practices and emerging research in digital design. By developing effective research and reflective strategies, you will enhance your critical understanding of key methodologies and gain insights into creative thinking within socio-economic, political, ethical, and cultural contexts. Building on the ‘dialogue, debate, and domain knowledge’ unit, you will explore themes such as design history, identity, human/computer interaction, aesthetics, and globalisation. Research-led projects will help you to develop your overall creative persona and assist in developing strategies for conceptual and practical problem-solving, positioning you as a critically engaged and reflective practitioner.

This unit represents the culmination of your master’s study, integrating everything you’ve learned on your studies. You will consolidate specialist knowledge, communication skills, and advanced interaction design practices. You will identify a research question and create a viable project to test your hypotheses, aiming for original outcomes supported by feedback from tutors and industry professionals. You will deepen your understanding of the historical, theoretical, cultural, technical, and economic contexts, addressing social and environmental sustainability challenges. You will situate your practice within regional, national, and international contexts by identifying relevant industries, audiences, and stakeholders. Your project will enable you to reflect on your voice, demonstrate creativity, develop technical skills, and support your professional practice as an ethically minded, astute, interactive designer and problem solver.