Major Project

Major Project

Your major project for this course is an applied piece of user experience research. This can be an individual or a team project. Team projects (groups of 2-4) are encouraged. Teams should come up with a unique team name — shorthand to be used in file naming conventions.

This may be:

  • an investigation of user needs for a proposed product, information system, service, web site, or similar;
  • an evaluation and assessment for a prototype or existing product/system; or
  • some combination of these.

The more real it is, the better the project. The best projects are for an actual client. But you can also pick a site or product with which you have no direct connection.

You must use a minimum of three (3) substantive methods that we address in the course. Select methods that you feel would provide meaningful results for your project, based on project goals.

Given the constraints of the semester, this is likely to be more of a pilot project than an actual, completed project for a client. It’s most important that you get to practice a variety of methods and the entire process from planning to analysis and delivery of a product. It’s unlikely that you’ll have time to go into enough depth with each method to have defendable results.

There will be 3 deliverables from each individual or team:

  1. A written report. Your report should describe what you (individual or team) did, your findings, and how you would do it differently in the future, based on this experience. Feel free to take inspiration from client report models such as the gotomedia Wikimedia Commons Usability Study or the Wikimedia Usability Initiative + Bolt Peters Study, but keep in mind that the audience for your report is your course instructors, not your client. For this reason, it should include more explanation and justification than a client might need or want.

    At a minimum, it should contain:

    • an executive summary
    • background about the project
    • your research questions and goals
    • in-depth descriptions of methods, including sampling and recruiting
    • your key research findings
    • protocols and other supplementary information, in appendices
    • two pages of reflective analysis about your (individual, if working alone, or team’s) initial understandings about user research, and what you learned about UR in the course of your project
    • [teams only] a cover sheet with a paragraph describing each team member’s individual contributions to this project

    This report does not have to be written in Word. It can be in the form of a website. What’s important is that you share what you did and your results in a coherent, detailed, and concise way.

  2. A 20-minute presentation for the class. Treat this as a dry run of the presentation you would/will give to your client, but since we’re not the client you’ll probably have to give us a little extra background. Also, unlike your client, we are as interested in your research methods as in your findings.

    A NOTE ABOUT TEAM PRESENTATIONS: Each team member must share the presentation stage. Presenting research findings is a valuable skill to develop. If you’re not comfortable presenting before a group, this is a wonderful chance to work on that skill.

    Here’s a suggested outline for your presentation — use it as a starting point if helpful:

    • an intro to the problem/situation, and basic context (e.g., your client organization, their users/potential users, etc.)
    • project scope and research goals
    • the methods you selected (and why)
    • key findings
    • your conclusions and recommendations
    • guidance (if any) for any future work beyond the time and scope of your involvement
    • what you learned of specific significance for this class (e.g., reflections on the methods, particular logistical complexities, unexpected developments, problems and how you overcame them)
    • how you might have done this differently if not constrained by limitations of time and assignment requirements

    Pro tip: Incorporating video clips, audio clips, and/or other media can make your presentation more engaging and help you tell a richer story of your research findings!

  3. A brief project abstract, which will subsequently be posted to the course website. Project title, individual or team members’ names, a representative thumbnail image 125px tall x 200px wide, and a paragraph-long description (1-4 sentences), plus links to report and presentation (with client’s permission). These materials will be used for a portfolio-ready project gallery on the course website.

Team presentation due: April 24 (4:00pm)
Report due: May 8 (5:00pm)
Abstract due: May 8 (5:00pm), or preferably earlier

How to submit:

  • Your presentation should be saved in PDF format, then emailed by 4pm on April 24th to instructor and TA. If an online presentation tool is employed, mail the URL and be sure that it’s shared with both instructors. (Teams: Designate one member to do this, and cc: all teammates to confirm submission.)
  • Everyone should be prepared to present on April 24th. Your (or your team’s) actual presentation date will be announced during class on April 24, April 29, or May 1.
  • Your report should be saved in PDF format, then emailed before 4pm on (later) deadline to instructor and TA. If your report is in a different format than PDF (e.g., a website, wiki, etc.), mail the URL. (Teams: Designate one member to do this, and cc: all teammates to confirm submission.)
  • See instructions regarding individual file naming conventions, etc., on the course Assignments page.