A User Experience Model For Online Graduate Design Education

Designing
an
advanced
graduate-level
professional
learning

environment
that
blends
face-to-face
and
online
student

engagement

MA DESIGN 2.0 UX:
Integrated Professional
Program Development for
Relevance, Reach & Growth

Michael Eckersley, PhD

MA Design 2.0: Integrated User Experience

Executive Summary
Table
of
Contents

Page

1.
Introduction
&
Background
 
(Michael
Eckersley)

3

2.
Research
Summary
&
Question 
(Noah
Albro)

9

3.
Method
(Amanda
Boyd)

12

4.
Research
&
Design
Development

21

4a.
Onboarding,
Communications
&

Student
Support
(Chin,
Zhang,
Boyd)

22

!

4b.
Live
Engagement
&
Compelling

Delivery
(Albro,
Armstrong,
Sorrick)

30

4c.
Community
Network
&
Content

Library
(Lanzer,
Kelly)

33

4d.
Professional
Network
&
External

Community
(Magario,
Lin)

39

5.
Conclusions
&
Recommendations

47

Research and design development are reported on an
improved and expansive model for graduate-level
professional design education. The model proposes a
comprehensive learning experience for blended groups
of face-to-face and online learners. The current state
of enterprise application software for online education
was studied and followed by focused user research of
online learners and graduate-level designers. A needs- 
clustering technique was employed to assess and
group salient student needs. From these insights,
design teams explored ways of coordinating and
delivering a high quality learning experience to
graduate designers.
Contributing Authors:
Amanda Boyd
Daniel Chin
Taylor Zhang
Rachel Lin
Rebecca Magario

Jordan Kelly
Sarah Lanzer
Noah Albro
Liz Armstrong
Melissa Sorrick


1. Intro, Background
Michael
Eckersley

Q: What is your definition of design?
Eames: A plan for arranging elements in such a
way as to best accomplish a particular purpose.
Q: What are the boundaries of design?
Eames: What are the boundaries of problems?
Q: Does the creation of design admit constraint?
Eames: Design depends largely on constraints.
Q: What constraints?

An
interview
with

Charles
Eames,
1969

Eames: The sum of all constraints. Here is one of
the few effective keys to the design problem: the
ability of the designer to recognize as many of the
constraints as possible (and) his willingness and
enthusiasm for working within these constraints
—the constraints of price, size, strength, balance,
surface, time, etc.; each problem has its own
peculiar list.
Q: To whom does design address itself: to the
greatest number (the masses)? The specialists…
the enlightened amateur…a privileged social
class?
Eames: To the need.


On Design
!
(4-stage design process model)

• "Everyone designs who devises
courses of action aimed at changing
existing situations into preferred
ones." –Herbert Simon

•

"Design
is
only
secondarily
about
pretty

lumpy
objects,
and
primarily
about
a

whole
approach
to
doing
business,

serving
customers,
and
providing

value."
"Design...
has
become
central
to

enterprise
strategy."

Design is all about looking carefully
at qualities of human experience,
understanding the challenges and
opportunities involved, and making
things that point to future new value
and solutions.

–Tom
Peters


On a Human-Centered Focus
Assessing
Stakeholder
Motives,

Needs,
Desires:

!

•
•
•

How design builds value on the basis of human
experience

Student
motivation

Program
motivation

Institutional
motivation


Designing a lively, highfunctioning service experience  
is demanding work
• Services are "living" systems, core to
the enterprise
• Service development is never done
• Services must be curated, improved,
reinvented
• Quality is performance-based, and
ultimately assessed qualitatively,
subjectively
• Service expectations vary widely, and
perceived gaps–however minor–
proliferate and grow in signiﬁcance


Student consumers are being
empowered, and they have no
patience for poor (thin)
educational experiences

Absorption

Passive 
Partic- 
ipation

Entertainment

Esthetic

Education

Active 
Partic- 
ipation

Escapist

Immersion
–Pine
&
Gilmore
(1998)

high
touch

“thick”

experience
quality

low
touch

“thin”

• Human-centered design principles,
methods and practices came about as
an answer to poorly designed, hard-touse software.
• The current state of rigid, complicated,
unreliable and distracting online course
software is ripe for innovation
• Education is a consumer service
experience, and consumers (students
and faculty) cannot fail to notice if the
service has been compromised through
poor design. They have a right to expect
better.

Our assessment (so far) of current
online course application software
•

•

Service failures are not uncommon, making
reliability an issue

•
•
Our
observation
of
online
course
sessions
and
our

demoing
of
various
online
software
leaves
an

impression
of
being
"underwater"
con@ined
in
scuba

gear.
Sure,
we
can
breath,
we
can
(kind
of)
see
and
talk

hear
each
other,
but
the
foreignness
perception
is

pervasive
and
limits
the
quality
of
our
interaction.

Fluency
at
higher
order
forms
of
thinking
(Bloom),

creativity
and
social
interaction
(Goffman)
is
a
real

challenge
when
the
medium
is
such
a
distraction.

Gained
mastery
will
probably
come,
but
it's
a
steep

learning
curve.

The technology is always present, rarely recedes
into the background. The stiffness and nonintuitive UI is frequently a conscious social and
cognitive distraction

Overpopulated MOOCs bleed students

•

The faculty learning curve is steep in bending
the technology beyond the most basic
functionality. Nevertheless, determined effort is
likely to yield functional competency

•

Teachers are expected to adapt their courses
and teaching to the technology's limitations
rather than expect the technology to fit human
requirements in the classroom

The economics of online courses can lead to
expedient choices and weak, “zombie” offerings


2. Research Questions
Noah
Albro

Creating a value ecology

1. Is it possible build a vital, high
functioning graduate program ecology
that meshes Edwards and Lawrence
campus students together with a ratio
of online students?

!

2. Is it possible to take a standard
online course software platform, or
optimize a Google Coursebuilder
conﬁguration and place it at the core of
such a graduate design program–
without suﬀering a loss of coherence
or student engagement?
"Always
design
a
thing
by

considering
it
in
its
next

larger
context..."

-‐
Eliel
Saarinen 


On Systems
We began by studying systems and
engaged in preliminary research to
determine the current state of how
people learn online and the online
education industry.

!

• Service Safari
• Tools for online teaching and
collaborative work
• Online education resource
research


On The Student Experience
We interviewed people who had taken
online classes before and gathered
their impressions and insights.

!

• What worked?
• What lacked?
• What was their motivation?


3. Method
Amanda
Boyd

Understanding Audience
Requirements
The population of graduate level
design students in blended online and
oﬄine programs is, so far, small to
non-existent. So we set out to study
each group independentlygraduate
level design students and current
online students) independently.
Online Student Requirements
Designers’ Graduate Program Requirements

Following this work we constructed
a picture of this composite
audience.

Designers’ Graduate Program Requirements
We
used
insights
gathered
about

designers
to
develop
a
list
of

requirements
that
should
be

present
in
an
advanced
online

learning
experience
in
Design.

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Access to high-value, empowering
knowledge
New professional competencies, skills
Professional credentials
Access to a group of likeminded peers
Access to knowledgeable mentors
Assurance of program value
Assurance of program applicability to
career goals
Prospect of career marketability


Persona Development
Our Target Users

We interviewed designers to
understand their behaviors and
requirements.

!

•
•
•

What do they need, want, desire
in a professional education?
How do they act, talk, present
themselves (their behaviors)?
What would be their
requirements in a blended
online learning experience?


Persona 1: "Jia"

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

25 y/o single female
Lives in midsize Midwestern American city,
and wants to stay there
Art Director at a modest design and brand
comms ﬁrm
Smart, curious, discriminating, but socially
skilled
Realizes her education and skills are not
keeping pace with changing industry
tends, competencies, market demands
Shopping around for the best available
graduate design option
Connected to the local AIGA design
community, has an active online presence
with LinkedIn
Writes a blog on her design, decorating,
photography, cooking interests


Persona 2: "Brian"

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

30 y/o tech project manager for a vertical
software product co. in Midwest US
Married w/ two small children
Strong ego; good copywriter; can’t draw
B.S. Marketing Management, Minor in English
Attended a few design-related conferences;
seeks a design competency that leverages his
marketing background to help him get ahead
Restless; wants career transition, but
concerned it may not go smoothly
Comes from conservative Christian bg, btu
sees himself as a Creative: a music lover; plays
with
Friends in a band on the weekend
Occasionally browses design-related websites:
DMI, Design Taxi, mashables, AIGA, HOW
Design


Persona 3: "Ian"
•
•
•
•
•
•

23 y/o undergrad design student at a small
liberal arts university in the Dallas area
Graduating near top of class with a BFA in
Media Design this Spring
Strong student portfolio; decent technical
skills; weak communication and presentation
skills
Idealistic about design; knows little about
business or markets
Anxious about his future; little professional
experience, but has an Internship lined up for
summer
Fashion savvy: black thick-framed glasses,
Baldwin jeans, Nixon watch - up on current
styles


Current or Recent Online Student Requirements
We
used
the
insights
that
we

gathered
about
the
current

online
students
to
develop
a
list

of
requirements
that
should
be

present
in
an
online
education

experience

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Flexible scheduling
Aﬀordability: cost-beneﬁt
Collaborative group activity
Live content and group interaction
Timely personalized help, feedback
Relatable content by learning style: visual,
aural, verbal, social
Option for doing independent work
Accessible technology


User Modes & Requirements Matrix


4. Research Results
Solve For Four (4) Actionable User Needs:
A. Improved Onboarding, Communications
& Student Support
B. Ensured Live Engagement & Compelling
Delivery of Content
C. Foster a Community Network and
Connected Content Library
D. Build a Professional Alumni Network &
External Community


4A. Improved
Onboarding,
Communications &
Student Support
!

•

Daniel
Chin,
Taylor
Zhang,
 
Amanda
Boyd

What is the current state
experience?
- Personal Journeys
- The Good & The Bad

•

How can the current experience be
improved?

•
•

Prescribed experience
Creating a scenario


What is the current student onboard experience?
Taylor's
International
Journey


What is the current student onboarding experience?
Daniel's
Local
Journey


What do program graduates report?
A
Design
Management
graduate's
journey
1.)
I
was
pleased
to
learn
that
KU
was
now
offering
a
Master's
program
relevant
to
my
current
line
of
work
and
interests,
and
that

I
would
be
able
to
attend
while
continuing
to
be

employed.

Initially
an
IxD
major,
I
later
switched
to
DM
as
I
began
to
see

strategy
was
more
in
line
with
my
goals,
although
it
seems
as
if
there
is
little
difference
between
the
two
program
requirements

other
than
the
focus
of
the
thesis.
2.)
Initially
I
was
discouraged
by
the
coursework
(reason
below)
but
over
time
I
began
to
see

value
in
the
material.

Negative Experiences

Positive Experiences

program
assessment

Application
process

Sem 1

Sem 2

Sem 3

Sem 4

Sem 5

Sem 6

Sem 7

✔

Sem 8......

Graduation

✔

✘

✘

✘
✘

1.)
The
application
requirements,
specidically
the
GRE,
seem
irrelevant
to
the
course
of
study.

The
portfolio
request
may
have
led
to

the
incorrect
assumptions
related
to
point
2.

2.)
At
the
beginning
of
the
program
I
was
disappointed
at
the
amount
of
book
study

and
pure
theory.

Coming
from
a
BFA,
most
of
our
work
was
the
application
of
theory
and
in
the
beginning
I
wasn't
aware
of
the

drastic
difference
between
the
nature
of
Fine
Arts
programs
vs.
that
of
Arts
programs.

I
assumed,
incorrectly,
that
most
design

programs
were
similar
in
format.

I
do
wish
there
were
more
emphasis
on
the
real
world
application
of
learned
theory,
but
I'm
one

of
the
people
who
learn
by
doing.

3.)
I
wish
there
would
have
been
more
structure
surrounding
thesis
material
preparation.

Perhaps
scheduled
peer
collaboration/reviews.

It's
easy
to
feel
like
you're
out
on
an
island
during
that
time.


What do program graduates report?
A
Design
Management
graduate's
journey
The
course
descriptions
were
true
to
the
actual
course
work.
I
enjoyed
the
classes
and
have
been
able
to
apply
what
I
have

learned
almost
immediately.

Positive Experiences

program
assessment

Application
process

✔

Sem 1

Sem 2

Sem 3

Sem 4

Sem 5

Sem 6

Sem 7

Sem 8......

Graduation

✔

✔

Negative Experiences

✘

✘

My
only
negative
is
the
application
process.
It
seemed
very
disorganized.
We
were
expected
to
have
all
these
items
prepared
then

in
anticipation
of
acceptance
and

it
seemed
as
though
there
was
no
sense
of
urgency.
I
didn't
dind
out
that
I
was
accepted
until
it

was
almost
too
late
to
get
into
classes.


Target and solve the
causes of negative
service interactions

Daniel's Experience Journey


A Prescribed Onboarding Experience


A Prescribed Onboarding Experience Scenario
"Jia's" Journey

https://www.youtube.com/watch?
feature=player_embedded&v=rOVSI9Uq7JA


4B. Ensured Live
Engagement,
Compelling Delivery
of Content
Melissa
Sorrick,
Noah
Albro,
 
Liz
Armstrong

•
•
•
•

!
Opportunity for Independent Work
Live Meetings and Discussion
Rich Content and Multi-modal
Delivery
Immersion in Advanced,
Empowering Knowledge


Combined Physical & Online Sessions


A Student Collaborative Teaming Scenario

Key Features

•
•
•
•
•

Screen/video sharing
Planning, diagramming,
sketching
Document Collaboration
Presenting: SlideShare
Project, task Management
Watch
how
graduate
design
students
might

study
and
work
collaboratively
in
a
blended

online/ofdline
program.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rh_s1Z1_oD8


4C. Foster a Community
Network and Connected
Content Library
Jordan
Kelly,
Sarah
Lanzer

•

Powerful program content and
applications that are current, relevant
and engaging to students

•

Opportunity for learning from outside
sources

•

Information sharing to other
classmates

•

Outlets for students to expand on
information

•

Communication between students and
teachers


4C. Community
Network and Content
Library:


4C. Community
Network and Content
Library:
Scenario:
“JIA”
COMES
HOME
Saturday
morning
after
giving
herself
a
break
after
a
long
week
of

work
and
clients.
The
night
before
she
attended
an
event
within
the
surrounding
area.
She

posts
some
pictures
and
her
thoughts
about
the
event
on
the
class
blog.
Then
she
pulls
up
the

lecture
from
the
beginning
of
the
week.
While
listening
she
is
simultaneously
checking
out
the

links
that
were
posted
by
other
students
on
the
twitter
feed.

After
the
lecture
ends,
she
reads

Brian’s
post
on
the
discussion
board.
She
comments
from
her
own
point
of
view
and
also
gives

Brian
some
helpful
pointers.
She
spends
the
next
couple
of
hours
searching
the
web
and
dinds

two
great
articles
on
design
that
she
thinks
will
be
very
benedicial
to
the
students
and
relate

well
to
the
speaker
of
the
week’s
topic.


4C. Community
Network and Content
Library:

Scenario:
“BRIAN”
COMES
HOME

from
school,
and
opens
his
computer.
He
enjoys
watching
the

weekly
lectures
live
because
he
is
able
to
engage
with
the
speaker
and
ask
questions.
Once
the

lecture
is
over,
he
sits
down
the
have
dinner
with
his
family.
After
he
logs
back
onto
the
class

site.
This
response
allows
him
to
understand
the
relationship
between
his
current
position

within
the
workplace
and
his
desired
position.

Scenario:
“IAN”
COMES
HOME

from
studio
and
grabs
his
computer
to
complete
his
online
class

assignment
before
heading
out
with
his
friends
for
the
night.
He
opens
his
computer
and
logs

onto
the
class
network.
He
then
opens
the
lecture
of
the
week
that
was
recorded
a
few
days

before.
He
listens
as
he
glances
at
classmates’
blogs.
He
dinds
the
lectures
interesting
but

usually
struggles
to
dit
them
in
every
week
with
his
busy
schedule.
Which
is
why
most
of
them

are
spent
multi
tasking.
He
quickly
types
up
a
response
to
show
his
understanding
and

knowledge
of
what
the
speaker
was
teaching
and
posts
it
to
the
discussion
board.


4D. Professional
Alumni Network &
External Community
!
Rebecca
Magario,
Rachel
Lin

How professional networks work


Ways to facilitate the growth of a community

•
•

•
•

Creating opportunities for people to
meet and connect (events, conferences,
traveling, volunteering, clubs,
workshops, etc.)
Utilizing public social media, such as
Facebook and LinkedIn to disseminate
pertinent information. As well as,
focusing on improving School web
platform to maximize the ﬂow of
information.
Promote professional online/corporate
contributions from successful people,
students and alumni for learning
opportunities.
Recruitments (LinkedIn, Symposia, etc.)


Using existing social media and LinkedIn platform to
build on current existing professional network model
Current network at KU: informal
and small in scale


A convergence of platforms to a speciﬁc student- 
centered interface

The School could thrive on a
platform that facilitates the
growth of a community
where students, graduates,
faculty and professionals
connect and share
information


5. Conclusions &
Recommendations


5. Conclusions &
Recommendations
• Invite 3-5 online guest students to a

forthcoming KU MA Design course,
and beta test diﬀerent software
conﬁgurations to improve
communication and collaborative
work
• Work with Admins to redesign the

entire MA Design student
onboarding experience.
• Build and test a prototype alumni

and professional community network
channel
• Test launch a series of events: open-

houses, symposia through the KU
Center for Design Research

Designing
an
advanced
graduate-level
professional
learning

environment
that
blends
face-to-face
and
online
student

engagement

MA DESIGN 2.0 UX:
Integrated Professional
Program Development for
Relevance, Reach & Growth

Thanks!
Michael Eckersley, PhD

Contributing
Authors:
Amanda
Boyd

Daniel
Chin
Taylor
Zhang
Rachel
Lin
Rebecca
Magario

Jordan
Kelly
Sarah
Lanzer
Noah
Albro
Liz
Armstrong
Melissa
Sorrick


A User Experience Model For Online Graduate Design Education

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