Master of Interaction Design (Extension)
This course is for professionals seeking to advance in the dynamic field of interaction design, including those new to the field, those with related experience, and current practitioners aiming to deepen their expertise. Choose this course to stay abreast of the latest theories and practices in a field where demand outstrips formal training opportunities. An extension of the Master of Interaction Design (C04222), it includes additional advanced study including the choice of a sub-major, a project stream, or a studio experience.
You'll acquire industry-relevant skills, blending your original discipline with professional application to meet the growing demand for skilled designers. Specialise in games design, data analytics, or interaction programming through elective modules, or undertake a research project to contribute new insights to the field.
What sets this course apart is its focus on human-centred design, preparing you to create digital technologies that integrate seamlessly into users' lives. You'll learn through real-world projects, developing solutions that combine your original discipline with advanced interaction design techniques. You will acquire advanced design skills, technical knowledge, and the ability to adapt to the unpredictable nature of user-centred projects. The course emphasises professional practice, project management, teamwork, and applying research to design.
Teaching combines studio-based learning with fieldwork, user testing, and project management, alongside theoretical studies in research methods. You'll apply established theories to practice, using research tools for ideation, development, and validation. You'll engage in research, develop autonomy, and apply expert judgement to your work.
Graduates emerge ready for roles such as interaction designer, UX researcher, and digital experience architect, with the skills to manage extensive projects and drive innovation in the workplace.
While industry demand for skilled interaction designers and various other jobs, such as user experience (UX) designers, service designers etc., is increasing, there is a lack of formal education/training offered by universities in interaction design. This course is designed to provide students with the most current and requisite skills in this fast-evolving field. Graduates possess skills in industrially applicable and cost-effective information environments (i.e. multimedia, interactive systems design and associated information technology). The course provides industry with graduates who can combine these skills with those of their original discipline in professional applications-oriented settings.
The course is committed to producing graduates who have a deep understanding of human-centred approaches to designing digital technologies. This ensures that 'products' created are more likely to 'fit' meaningfully into users' lives, because the design process is informed by a deep understanding of people's practices, particular situations and values.
The Master of Interaction Design is attractive to different types of learners, namely:
- those who are currently working in a job that is not related to interaction design
- those working in jobs closely related to interaction design, and
- those already working in interaction design-related jobs.
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Course aims
In the core subjects students learn through the practice of an iterative human-centred design process to solve a real-world problem with actual users, developing skills to analyse, generate and transmit solutions to complex problems. They also gain advanced technical and theoretical knowledge in interaction design. Students also engage with interaction design for emerging computing contexts, gaining advanced knowledge and skills.
Students develop advanced design skills (including autonomy, expert judgement, adaptability and responsibility) by focusing on learning professional practices in user experience projects, and through the capstone subject where they co-implement a project commissioned with an industry client, focusing on graduate-level outcomes. Skills to demonstrate knowledge adaptability and responsibility as a practitioner/learner are acquired through all the studio subjects where students have to adapt to the unpredictable processes of working with users, conducting fieldwork in the wild, iterating designs and testing with users, and the open-ended nature of an iterative design process. The studio subjects also allow students to demonstrate their responsibility as practitioners through developing project management and teamwork skills.
Students develop skills to research and apply established theories to a body of knowledge or practice through the research methods-oriented subject, which involves developing a research plan, interview schedule, a set of probes and analysis of user research outcomes using interviews and probes. All three studio subjects include significant user research phases, focusing on the structured and systematic use of appropriate research tools in a professional context for ideation, development and validation of a design artifact, and requiring the application-established theories to design practice.
Specialised knowledge and skills are developed through a choice from three modules focusing on either games design, data analytics or interaction programming. These modules include a combination of structured subjects focused on skills and knowledge development for each domain, and assist students to develop their autonomy, expert judgement and adaptability. They also include practical project-based subjects where students develop their specific skills in a project-based mode. Alternatively, students may choose to undertake a research project to produce new knowledge in the field of interaction design.
Students also engage in subjects that enable the development of these skills at an extended level. Due to its intensive nature, this course is a transformative learning experience and prepares graduates for taking on extensive project management and development responsibility within a workplace. Additionally the extended study program achieves greater depth of learning in the specialisation and allows consolidation of the students' experience.
Study plan
To view the study plan please visit the UTS Handbook.Course fees
For relevant fee information, please choose from the following:
Local student
International student
Careers
Graduates can gain employment in a range of technology design-related roles such as interaction designer, UX designer, UX researcher, service designer, or digital experience architect.
For those currently working in closely related jobs, such as web design, graphic design, interface design, etc., this course provides the necessary formal training in the discipline in order to make a more definitive move into jobs in interaction design. Similarly, many find themselves working within the field of interaction design without formal training, and this course provides a good foundation and opportunities to extend their interaction design skills more formally.
For those not working in a job related to interaction design, this course provides the opportunity to learn about the discipline and to transition into the various jobs under the interaction design umbrella.
Course structure
To view the course structure please visit the UTS Handbook.Additional information
Course duration
The course duration is two years of full-time or four years of part-time study.
On campus - WeeklyAdmission requirements
To be eligible for admission to this course, applicants must meet the following criteria.
Applicants must have one of the following:
- Completed Australian master’s or doctoral degree, or overseas equivalent
OR
- Completed Australian bachelor’s degree, graduate certificate, or graduate diploma, or overseas equivalent with more than 75% of all subjects completed at pass level (conceded pass not included)
Applicants who do not meet the criteria above should consider applying for C11272 Graduate Certificate in Interaction Design.
The English proficiency requirement for international students or local applicants with international qualifications is: IELTS Academic: 6.5 overall with a writing score of 6.0; or TOEFL iBT: 79-93 overall with a writing score of 21; or AE5: Pass; or PTE: 58-64 with a writing score of 50; or C1A/C2P: 176-184 with a writing score of 169.
Eligibility for admission does not guarantee offer of a place.
International studentsVisa requirement: To obtain a student visa to study in Australia, international students must enrol full time and on campus. Australian student visa regulations also require international students studying on student visas to complete the course within the standard full-time duration. Students can extend their courses only in exceptional circumstances.
To be eligible for admission to this course, applicants must meet the following criteria.
Applicants must have one of the following:
- Completed Australian master’s or doctoral degree, or overseas equivalent
OR
- Completed Australian bachelor’s degree, graduate certificate, or graduate diploma, or overseas equivalent with more than 75% of all subjects completed at pass level (conceded pass not included)
Applicants who do not meet the criteria above should consider applying for C11272 Graduate Certificate in Interaction Design.
Eligibility for admission does not guarantee offer of a place.
Inherent requirements
Inherent requirements are academic and non-academic requirements that are essential for successfully completing a course at UTS. You can find the inherent requirements for your course via the inherent requirements directory.
Assumed knowledge
This course does not require formal training in IT, but experience in IT would be an advantage. Some subjects require development of various implementation skills, and so an enthusiastic approach to development of technical proficiency is important, but no previous knowledge is expected.
Recognition of prior learning
Students may be eligible for up to a total of 24cp of subject exemptions based on recognition of prior learning (RPL) as follows:
- Students who have completed equivalent subjects in a postgraduate program or UTS undergraduate program if the subjects previously completed are deemed by the faculty to be equivalent to subjects in the course.
- Subject exemption is applicable only to STM91221 Core Subjects A.
Other/additional RPL may be granted via subject substitution to an alternative/advanced postgraduate subject in a similar field of study.
To be considered for recognition of prior learning, subjects must normally have been completed no more than ten years prior to the commencement of this course.
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Information for international students
Find out about support services, the Australian education system, accommodation and more to help you get the most out of your study at UTS.
Domestic students
How to apply
Domestic applicants can apply via UTS Student Portal.
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International students
How to apply
International applicants apply to study via UTS International.
Intake
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