Spring Quarter in Review
Spring quarter was packed with capstone research, electives, industry visits, and the beginning of sunny Seattle days. Inside the studio, students were hard at work planning and conducting research for their capstone projects. Taught by John Zoshak and Kristin Dew, this course prepared students to officially begin working on their final capstone projects. Capstone topics range from voice security in phone calls, the lobby agent experience at United Airlines, preventing burnout amongst working mothers in tech, and more. At the end of the quarter, after numerous hours spent interviewing, observing, and synthesizing research data, students presented their findings to their respective sponsors and prepared to move onto the design phase of the project.
Two popular electives this spring were Designing Information Experiences (DIE) and Portfolio. In DIE, taught by incoming MHCI+D co-chair Jacob Wobbrock, students explored what it means to truly design for experience. Starting with learning about the philosophy of experience itself, they explored user experience, service design, customer experience, customer journey mapping, information experience, and the business of experience. The course concluded with a 5-week group project where students designed end-to-end experiences from scratch. MHCI+D projects included reimagining tipping practices, maintaining long-distance friendships, creating a stress-free way of trying on clothes in person, and reserving courts and equipment at the University of Washington’s student gym.
In the Portfolio elective, industry professional Clint Rule guided students in creating their design portfolios, an essential element for job recruitment. Students presented their portfolios and received feedback from other industry professionals, which was invaluable for their future career prospects.
In addition to their coursework, several MHCI+D students participated in a design hackathon, “Protothon”, sponsored by UW’s DubTech organization. Teams could select one of four prompts to design for. MHCI+D students Jamie Fong, Kelly Zhong, Tiffany Streitenberger, and Uma Anupindi won special mention for their submission for the prompt “Make the Seattle Fire Department Go Digital.” In a short 30-hour timeframe, they created LiveWire, a multi-platform system that connects firefighters and unit drivers, fire station dispatchers, and 911 callers. You can view their final design and presentation here.
Building off the momentum of their prototyping studio showcase, students Uma Anupindi, Ivy Tseng, Alex Chen, and Tiffany Streitenberger submitted and won the gold prize for Student Design at this summer’s HCII 2024 conference in Washington D.C.
Outside the studio, students had the chance to visit Valve Corporation, the video game developer known for hits like Counter-Strike, Team Fortress 2, Portal, and Dota 2, as well as the creation of Steam. The visit included a tour of Valve’s Bellevue office, discussions with two senior designers, and insights into the gaming industry and its intersection with human-computer interaction and design.
Students also attended an Uber Design Night at the Uber office in downtown Seattle. This networking event featured talks from researchers and designers at Google Maps and Uber, discussions regarding the research behind the Uber home screen redesign and opportunities to connect with industry professionals.
Amid the classwork and events, the cohort took a well-deserved break with a picnic at Greenlake. It was a great chance to relax, enjoy the nice weather, and hang out with classmates outside the studio. The picnic was filled with laughter, snacks, scenic views, and plenty of Cornhole.
This spring quarter was filled with valuable experiences, from engaging electives and insightful field trips to research presentations and networking events. As the quarter ends, students are now brainstorming design solutions and wrapping up their capstone projects. Graduation is just around the corner!