Should I get an HCI masters?
Introduction
Put simply… If you’re asking this question, the answer is almost certainly: No.
If you’re serious about getting a master’s in Human-Computer Interaction, you should have very specific reasons for why you want one — a particular area you want to study, research you want to do, people you want to learn from, or specific work you want to become qualified to do. And at that point, you probably won’t be asking strangers on the internet whether you should get one.
If what you’re really asking is, “Will an HCI master’s get me into UX?” that’s different.
Having an HCI master’s won’t magically make you a skilled or experienced designer, (just like getting a masters in Computer Science won’t teach you how to code) – and it won’t make you automatically hirable. You still need to learn how to identify problems, talk to people, make things, test them, understand what happened, iterate, and communicate why you made the decisions you made.
Before spending tens of thousands of dollars and a couple of years on another degree, I’d spend $100 on books and start doing the work. Talk to real humans in the field.
Think of this as a (not so tiny) DIY course. Rob’s course is the lecture. The books are the coursework. Don’t worry about knowing what you’re doing yet — just get in there and start thinking. That’s the fastest way to learn. It’s not a “watch and learn” job. You’re going to spend many many hours a day being uncomfortable and learning to think.
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Rob Sutcliffe’s Udemy course is really great. But don’t be fooled… you’ll still have to do all the work! But if you want a human to set you up – maybe inspire you a bit on the way, this is a good combo with the following books.
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…the essential principles of human-centered design and explores how UX fits within modern digital product development.
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…for software engineers, UX designers, entrepreneurs, or anyone who is just getting started with user interface design and looking to gain a solid understanding of human-computer interaction and UX design. No prior HCI knowledge is required to get started.
And remember
None of this will “get you a job.” These are areas of study. Being useful / designing things that help people / or that make people money — is what will get people to pay you. This isn’t an army training camp. If your plan is to be mediocre – maybe do something else.