Ph.D. Degree

Human Computer Interaction Design (HCI/d) is the branch of informatics that studies and supports the design, development, and implementation of humanly usable and socially acceptable information technologies. The goal of the field is to shape new media and tools that will support human use, augment human learning, enhance communication and lead to more acceptable technological developments at the individual and the social levels.

Our track in the Informatics Ph.D. program focuses on building a broad understanding of the HCI research field. The program is research based and has a strong interdisciplinary component. Our Ph.D. students are involved in research projects that span several research areas in the department. They collaborate with faculty in, for instance, complex systems, music informatics, and social informatics. The department provides an environment that makes these interdisciplinary collaborations possible.

Our Ph.D. students are engaged in our HCI/d community, which consists of core HCI faculty and afficliated faculty, a nationally renowned MS HCI/design program with 60 students, and faculty in other schools and departments, and with visiting scholars. The community work closely together and we have several research projects that involve all these participants.

For anyone in the HCI track of the PhD program there are seminar courses that covers the core material in contemporary HCI research. Our students also have the opportunity to specialize and to engage in a Ph.D. minor in another discipline.

If you have questions about our HCI Ph.D. track, please contact us.