MA MA Interaction Design

Offers will be made based on the following selection criteria, which applicants are expected to demonstrate:

• Sufficient prior knowledge and experience of and/or potential in a specialist subject area to be able to successfully complete the programme of study and have an academic or professional background in a relevant subject.
• Also to show a willingness to work as a team player, good language skills in reading, writing and speaking, the ability to work independently and be self-motivated.
• Critical knowledge of and enthusiasm for the subject area and capacity for research-led design, intellectual inquiry and reflective thought through: contextual awareness (professional, cultural, social, historical); evidence of research, analysis, development and evaluation (from previous academic study and employment) and a grounded understanding of the world of sonic, visual and networked culture and the ability to engage in and contribute to critical discussion.
• Portfolio should be conceptual and research based, you must show your thinking and making process and a curious nature to explore, test and experiment.
• A willingness to work in the physical realm with networked digital systems and in areas of design research and practice that challenges preconceptions.
• A willingness to work with networked digital systems and an awareness of how they shape the varied contexts of human behaviour.

Graduates of the course are equipped to work in an increasingly technologically informed and interdisciplinary design world with real skills in areas such as: interactive art and design, foresight and futures, interdisciplinary studio practice, though leadership, and digital arts.

A high number of our graduates continue to PhD research and become BA and MA lecturers, shaping the future of their field.  Graduates are often awarded funded opportunities to exhibit their work around the world with work produced on this course.

Roles and destinations of recent graduates include:

• Mat Denney – Artist and Lecturer in Emergent Technologies, London College of Communication
• Eleni Xynologa – Interaction Designer, Red Design Consultants
• Mariana Marangoni – Artist and Lecturer in Computational Arts, London College of Communication
• Shuo Wang – Game Interaction Designer, ByteDance
• Rania Svoronou - Lead visual interaction design, IBM iX
• Qingyi Ren – PhD Researcher in Digital Technology and Gender, University of Linz
• Anqi Wang – PhD Researcher in Machine Learning, Aalto University
• Simona Ciocoiu - Interaction Designer, ICRI (Intel)
• Masatato Seki - Creative Technologist, The Neighbourhood
• Elliott Hall – Creative Technologist and Support Technician, London College of Fashion

Some international students choose to remain in the UK to gain valuable industry experience whilst others return to their home countries to pursue successful careers.

We are committed to ensuring that your skills are set within an ethical framework, and we have worked to embed UAL’s Principles for Climate, Racial and Social Justice into the curriculum and in everything we do. 

As part of this initiative, we’ve shaped our courses around social and environmental sustainability principles that ensure learning outcomes reflect the urgent need to equip you with the understanding, skills, and values to foster a more sustainable planet.  Our aim is to change the way our students think, and to empower you to work towards a sustainable future.

Each course is divided into units, which are credit-rated. The minimum unit size is 20 credits. The MA course structure involves 5 units, totalling 180 credits.

Autumn, block 1 

Block 1 of the course introduces you to the theories and concepts that are core to the course’s research-led and critical form of Interaction Design. 

Theories and Practices of Interaction Design (40 credits)

You’ll develop a critical understanding of interaction design and its relevance to current theoretical, social and cultural contexts. Through a seminar series you’ll be introduced to both historical and contemporary theories, as well as practices drawn from the worlds of art and design, giving you an understanding of the research context for the course. 

You’ll produce and reflect on a series of individual and group practical projects that engage with social, cultural and political concerns, drawing from you own perspective and context. Through this, you will develop a considered framing for your practice throughout the course and beyond. 

Spring, block 2 

Block 2 offers you the opportunity to engage further with your critical practice to produce research-led and experimental interaction design projects. 

Collaborative Unit (20 credits)

You’ll complete a group studio project in response to a brief from an external partner. Previous partnerships have been with organisations such as the V&A, the Design Museum, and BBC Research and Development. Alongside brief-specific content, you will be supported by seminars on organisation and working methods, expanding your approaches to working in a contemporary interaction design context.

Explorative Practice (40 credits) 

This unit will give you the option to choose between distinct electives to pursue your own thematic path in the field of interaction design. You will explore new practices and methods to develop your skill-set and allow you to produce an innovative project that applies your in-depth research to the practical context of interaction design.

Summer, block 3