Programme Specifications

Programme summary

1. Programme Aims

(a)  To enable technical or design graduates to advance their knowledge and skills to level 7.

(b)  To enable technical or design graduates to develop their knowledge in a focussed way, through the choice of specialised routes through the course, to improve their effectiveness as designers.

(c)   To enable technical or design graduates to undertake a substantial design and evaluation project with a focus on a particular area of design.

2. Relevant subject benchmark statements and other external and internal reference points used to inform programme outcomes:

Subject benchmark statement (No PGT Design SBS)

Architecture shares many characteristics

The subject benchmark statement seeks to encapsulate the nature of a rich and diverse academic discipline.

“The creative activity of design that lies at the core of “Design” education is

characterised by diversity of method, theoretical underpinning and aesthetic expression.

The contested nature of design gives rise through debate to the advancement of the

subject. Design is a complex process that brings together creative conception and

highly pragmatic detailed development, and is closely related to other important aspects

of “Design” study: technology and environment; cultural context; management,

practice and law; and communication. It is, therefore, the interaction of ideas, intentions

and operations that gives “Design” its distinctive character and allows for the variety

of university programmes………………………………………” QAA

3. Programme Learning Outcomes

3.1 Knowledge and Understanding

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

K1 – current problems and/or new insights of their academic discipline;

K2 – techniques applicable to their own subject area;

K3 – sustainable solutions to problems and have strategies for being creative, innovative and overcoming difficulties by employing their knowledge in a flexible manner;

K4 – the major arguments and issues in User Experience Design practice; appropriate research methods; business and enterprise concepts relevant to user experience design

3.2 Skills and other attributes

a. Subject-specific cognitive skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to: 

C1 – advance their knowledge and critical understanding in the relevant area and to develop new skills appropriate to level 7 achievement;

C2 – develop and apply decision-making strategies in complex and unpredictable situations;

C3 – identify with, respond to and critically reflect upon the opportunities and dynamics for learning with their peers and other external contexts;

C4 – act autonomously in planning and in implementing tasks.

C5 – Interpret User Experience techniques and apply human behaviour data to resolving design problems;

b. Subject-specific practical skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

P1 – the ability to use a range of techniques and research methods applicable to advanced scholarship in the subject relevant to the discipline;

P2 – develop and employ rational, pragmatic and practical steps necessary for a concept to become reality;

P3 – demonstrate numeracy, computer literacy and attention to detail when dealing with specific software tools;

P4 – the ability to create and iteratively evaluate interactive product and service concepts;

c. Key transferable skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able demonstrate transferable skills in:

T1 – professionalism – including acting professionally in accordance with ethical proprieties;

T2 – problem solving – including clarification of questions, consideration of alternative solutions and evaluation of outcomes;

T3 – communication – including visual, written and oral presentation and discussions;

T4 – management – including self-learning, and project and time management;

T5 – methods and methodologies applicable to teamwork;

T6 – communicate ideas, concepts, theories and arguments with different audiences through a range of practical methods and outcomes including visual, written and oral.

4. Programme structure

In the following table, ‘c’ indicates a compulsory module & 'o' indicates an option module.

#Students must select one option module. 

*Students must select from either DSP811 or DSP812 dependent upon the nature of the method they will undertake the brief.

5. Criteria for Progression and Degree Award

In order to be eligible for an award, candidates must meet the requirements specified in Regulation XXI.

6. Relative Weighting of Parts of the Programme for the purposes of Final Degree Classification

Programme summary

1. Programme Aims

The MSc User Experience Design programme aims to:

1. Nurture an intellectual understanding of User Experience (UX) Design, alongside vocational and professional skills, enabling students to reflect on the intricate connections between theory, creativity, and practice.
2. Foster a radical and disruptive approach to idea development through human-centred design research and empirical evaluation of human behaviour.
3. Build knowledge and mastery in the design and innovation of future data-driven technologies and the experiences they create; including Artificial Intelligence (AI).
4. Cultivate the organisational, technical, and collaborative skills required to apply UX Design across a range of sectors, alongside less tangible creative skills including imagination, empathy, and problem-solving.
5. Challenge students’ expectations and preconceptions of UX Design by exposing them to global and transdisciplinary contexts through practice-based learning and involvement in live projects with industry.
6. Enable students to become independent scholars/practitioners in UX Design, preparing them for future study or practice.

2. Relevant subject benchmark statements and other external and internal reference points used to inform programme outcomes:

• Subject Benchmark Statement: Art and Design (QAA, 2019)
• Master's degree characteristics, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, September 2015.
• The framework for higher education qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (FHEQ)
• The European Qualifications Framework (EC, 2020)

3. Programme Learning Outcomes

3.1 Knowledge and Understanding

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

• K1 Current challenges in UX Design when developing interactive encounters within interdisciplinary fields.
• K2 Design Thinking as an approach to producing original interactive encounters that solve complex problems.
• K3 Creativity and innovation’s importance to UX Design when addressing complex problems.
• K4 How UX Designers apply specialised user research methods in multiple user-focused contexts.
• K5 Multiple statistical analysis methods and how they direct the design process of user interaction encounters.
• K6 Analytical technologies and the theoretical and cultural paradigms that underpin Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in user interaction.

3.2 Skills and other attributes

a. Subject-specific cognitive skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• C1 Synthesise evidence, critique its means of production, and evaluate conflicting interpretations of it to defend innovative UX-related design decision making.
• C2 Develop and apply decision-making strategies in complex and unpredictable situations being aware of the impact to interactive encounters.
• C3 Demonstrate originality in the design and application of rigorous user-testing methodologies to reveal the user experience of interactive device encounters.
• C4 Identify tacit – unmet - user experience needs within consumer environments
• C5 Generate original concepts using technology at the forefront of knowledge that aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

b. Subject-specific practical skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• P1 Apply a pragmatic human-centred design process to evolve a concept from initial idea to practical prototype;
• P2 Create interactive prototypes – including apps, websites, and smart interfaces – using industry-standard prototyping software at a fidelity matching its intended professional application. 
• P3 Critically analyse quantitative data – including eye-tracking and survey – with industry-standard analysis software to direct the design of interactive encounters
• P4 Evaluate interactive product concepts through empirical methods to select the most suitable design to address unmet user needs
• P5 Demonstrate originality in the synthesis and application of qualitative human behaviour data to resolve complex design problems.

c. Key transferable skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to demonstrate transferable skills in:

• T1 Professionally manage human data collection within the ethical and legal frameworks governing research practice;
• T2 Express ideas, concepts, theories, and arguments persuasively and coherently using a range of modes including visual, written and oral to convince key stakeholders
• T3 Work collaboratively, identifying the need to resolve conflict and engage with new ideas, and develop a resilient personal design practice.
• T4 Demonstrate professional practice through openness, accountability, autonomy, active engagement and organisation.
• T5 Exercise the independent learning ability required for continuing professional development working in the user experience design sector.

4. Programme structure

1.1      Semester 1

1.1.1       Compulsory modules (45 credits)  

1.1.2        Optional modules (Students must select one module)

1.2      Semester 2

1.1.1       Compulsory modules (60 credits)  

[1] Students will automatically be enrolled on DSP811 but can select DSP812 if a suitable work-based context has been secured and approved.

1.3      Semester 2 and 3

1.3.1       Compulsory modules (60 credits)  

5. Criteria for Progression and Degree Award

To be eligible for an award; candidates must meet the requirements specified in Regulation XXI.

6. Relative Weighting of Parts of the Programme for the purposes of Final Degree Classification

N/A

Programme summary

1. Programme Aims

• To help students develop an intellectual understanding of the field of Applied Storytelling, alongside vocational and professional skills, enabling students to reflect maturely on the intricate connections between theory and practice.
• To promote the development of students’ organisational and collaborative skills required to use Applied Storytelling across a range of sectors, alongside less tangible creative skills such as imagination, empathy and problem solving through practice-based learning and involvement in live projects.
• To challenge students’ expectations, preconceptions and address their limitations in storytelling by exposing them to global and/or transdisciplinary practices within a dynamic Design and Creative Arts community.
• To enable students to become independent scholars/practitioners in storytelling, with a view to preparing them for future study or practice.

2. Relevant subject benchmark statements and other external and internal reference points used to inform programme outcomes:

The Framework for Higher Education Qualifications (FHEQ)

3. Programme Learning Outcomes

3.1 Knowledge and Understanding

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to demonstrate comprehensive knowledge and understanding of

K1 The myriad ways storytelling takes place in contemporary society and its potential as an applied art form in global, contemporary and transdisciplinary contexts.

K2 Methods and techniques for collaborative and transdisciplinary working in Applied Storytelling, with critical awareness of these.

K3 Key theoretical framings and debates in Applied Storytelling.

K4 The concepts and inter-relationships between theory and practice within the context of applied storytelling.

3.2 Skills and other attributes

a. Subject-specific cognitive skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

 C1 Analyse storytelling processes and events, deciphering the social, cultural, political and economic tensions within.

C2 Apply knowledge and an awareness of storytelling in historical and contemporary contexts to storytelling practice.

C3 Present ideas persuasively and engagingly to a range of audiences.

b. Subject-specific practical skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

P1 Create engaging and challenging Applied Storytelling work, independently and with others.

c. Key transferable skills:

On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

T1 Work collaboratively and independently, identifying the need to resolve conflict and engage with new ideas, and develop a resilient personal arts practice.

T2 Demonstrate professional practice through openness, accountability, autonomy, active engagement and organisation.

4. Programme structure

Semester 1

Compulsory modules

Semester 2

Compulsory Modules

5. Criteria for Progression and Degree Award

In order to be eligible for the award of PG Cert, candidates must satisfy the requirements of Regulation XXI.

6. Relative Weighting of Parts of the Programme for the purposes of Final Degree Classification

Not applicable