Human Computer Interaction
Why Human Computer Interaction?
Human Computer Interaction (HCI) explores computing research at the intersection of culture and technology, with the goal of designing a more just society. HCI addresses critical questions: What are the effects of technology on society? How are people shaping technologies to fit their needs? How do we design technologies that uplift a diverse range of users? Embracing a multidisciplinary approach, HCI integrates computer science, anthropology, sociology, psychology, and the humanities to thoughtfully design technologies for a more equitable future.
The HCI Master of Science at UC Santa Cruz is a four-quarter (15 month) program designed to equip students with the skills and expertise needed for careers in User Experience (UX), including product design and UX research. Located at the UCSC Silicon Valley Campus, our faculty and students lead innovative research relevant to the local tech field, and build on close ties to Silicon Valley industry partners to amplify the impact of cutting edge work.
Meet your HCI advising team
Drop-in advising hours
Tuesday – Thursday, 1:30pm-4:00pm, in-person
Program Director
Program Learning Outcomes
Human Computer Interaction (M.S.)
Graduates from the HCI Masters of Science program will be able to:
- Use an understanding of the role of subject matter expertise to successfully identify the scope of the project and the appropriate resources available, to elicit the necessary knowledge to inform the project, and integrate that knowledge into the appropriate high level specifications for system design and user experience.
- Use fundamental HCI design and evaluation knowledge to compose a detailed specification of systems that will lead to a desired user experience and to design expert and user evaluations for assessing what experience is achieved, making necessary modifications to complete within available time and resources.
- Use fundamental interactive technology and HCI knowledge to select appropriate platforms and frameworks for a project, construct a list of hardware and software components as necessary to integrate into project frameworks, and conduct and execute iterative prototyping to achieve desired system and user behaviors and outcomes.
- Use knowledge of appropriate HCI methodologies to design expert and user evaluations for an interactive system, perform the evaluations, analyze results, and identify potential design improvements arising from the results.
- Use an understanding of communication and collaboration approaches to operate effectively as a member of a team, and support others in doing so.
- Use the knowledge of HCI design, build and methodology to communicate, to scientific and professional communities, the evolution of the developed system and its evaluations.
- Use knowledge of the professional landscape of the HCI field to define their own intended career trajectory.