One of NJIT’s strong suits is offering cross-disciplinary majors that allow students to integrate knowledge from different fields to face complex challenges. The Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) major is one of these. HCI combines the fields of computing, design, information science, behavioral science, sociology, and psychology.
Students are taught to solve real-world problems through empathetic designs and human use of technology. After graduation, students are able to enter user experience design, user research, or development roles in a variety of different industries.
HCI is a program that has a long-standing history at NJIT, where it has been offered as an undergraduate major since 2003. NJIT was one of the first universities to offer an HCI undergraduate degree and is currently the only university in New Jersey to do so. However, HCI is not very well-known and is a small major, with only 13 students in the graduating class.
The HCI major is currently undergoing big changes — while students were previously required to cross-register at Rutgers-Newark for core classes, the curriculum has been revamped thanks to the program director, Adam Spryszynski, and students will be able to take all of their classes at NJIT.
Director Spryszynski expressed his remarks regarding the major, stating that, “The HCI program has a tremendous amount of unrealized potential, thanks to the dedicated students.” Alongside this curriculum update, Professor Spryszynski has introduced new courses into the program, such as IT 380: Educational Software Design, and a special topics course he hopes to integrate fully next spring called IT 485: Rapid Prototyping UX. Other professors have been introducing special topics of their own, with Dr. Malkin introducing IS 393: Usable Security and Privacy and Dr. Pradhan covering IS 485: Design for Accessibility.
Most students outside of the HCI major get their first taste of this multidisciplinary degree through IS 247: Designing the User Experience and generally partake in the Design of the User Experience Minor, encompassing a set of classes that allow any student to bring user-centered thinking into their future careers. HCI students are taught the human-centered design process from the beginning of their education, to empathize with the users, define any issues, and reiterate through each stage of the designing, prototyping, and testing processes. This ensures that designs are made specifically for the intended users and can address their needs.
UX research in particular is a niche field that has slowly been gaining more traction, especially beyond academia. Classes such as IS 375: Discovering User Needs for UX and IS 393 bring the preliminary knowledge and skills, and students can get their first experience in research through one of many labs on campus, such as Dr. Wohn’s Social X Lab, to translate their knowledge into a tangible experience to put on their resume. Independent studies with any relevant professor of their choosing are also an underutilized opportunity for students to find real-world stakeholders to put their skills to the test.
There are also more resources for HCI students now that user experience design has become more of a priority for many companies. There is not only the HCI major and minor, but also SIGCHI, the Special Interest Group for Computer-Human Interaction. It consists of a group of students who are very passionate about bringing the skills and thought processes learnt in the HCI curriculum to a broader range of students. They host workshops, semesterly projects, and even an annual Design Jam, where students at any level can come together to design and prototype.
Jonessa Rodriguez, Vice President of SIGCHI, talked about how: “The world of UX and UI is not just a profession, but a set of skills that can further anyone in their respective field. To be able to understand the human experience and translate that into potential solutions for our problems is a powerful tool!” And she believes it is worth it for every student to learn about the design principles and ideologies, come to SIGCHI meetings, and try out the Design Jam.
Kapila Mane, a third-year HCI major and TA for multiple courses in the HCI program, has been able to combine her love for research and UX design abroad through a study abroad scholarship, stemming from her first project at the Design Jam. “I’m excited to bring conceptual ideas I’ve created through SIGCHI’s Design Jam to an enthusiastic team abroad ready to work on bringing them to life to help so many people,” she says. “It’s really come full circle.”
Being a small major with very few students, HCI is working on bringing more visibility and attention to the degree, as it provides a promising future for students who don’t quite find themselves fitting into a particular discipline while remaining technology oriented. As the semester wraps up, students in Professor Spryszynski’s first cohort of students in IT 485 will be hosting their first Design Showcase in GITC 3200 on May 15, from 6 — 9 p.m. They invite anyone interested in HCI to stop by and see the various creative projects on display in order to understand what this degree is all about.
