BFAInteraction Design
Make technology more meaningful, accessible, and delightful through exceptional interaction design.
Overview
IxD imagines the future
Design at CCA thrives at the intersection of human experience and the built environment. The work we do—often called experience design, digital product design, and user experience design—impacts everything from vehicle dashboards that help us drive more safely to services that power our thermostats more efficiently. Our students imagine future mobile experiences, social networks, products and services, and complex systems while keeping equity, inclusivity, and sustainability at the forefront of design.
In the "Designing for Trust" course, senior interaction design students partnered with Oracle Design to think holistically about automation, smart machines, and the implications of both from a customer experience standpoint.
Study in the creative capital of Silicon Valley
As one of the world’s first undergraduate interaction design programs, and STEM-designated, we benefit from our location in the San Francisco Bay Area, home to Apple, Netflix, IDEO, YouTube, Pinterest, NASA, Google, and many other technology companies. Our program is also part of one of the best art and design schools in the country. This gives you the opportunity to collaborate with fine artists, industrial designers, writers, and other creative practitioners.
Studios & Shops
Core skills for successful design
You’ll combine cognitive science, the history of design, and human-computer interaction techniques to develop a practice that speaks to the issues you care about most. In order to create forward-thinking solutions, you’ll learn to master the following core skills:
- Understand behavior and human systems
- Master technical and visual interactions across multiple touchpoints
- Create, evaluate, and validate physical and digital prototypes
- Demonstrate work and tell stories through presentations and user interfaces
- Identify opportunities and produce original design responses
Connections with industry leaders
We build upon systems thinking and creative prototyping skills during sponsored studios that challenge student groups, often from different disciplines, to investigate a particular project domain. Past sponsors have included major automakers, telecommunication companies, and computer equipment firms. Students also have a chance to explore the professional field of design during required internships. They dive into design research, fieldwork, product development, and more.
Recent sponsored studios
In partnership with Samsung Research America, CCA's BFA in Interaction Design program explores the near future of home for Generation Z.
- Bosch
- Ford
- Intel
- Lenovo
- Oracle
- Samsung
- Visa
Faculty
Innovators who shape design culture
Our faculty are all practicing designers with deep industry connections. They work for Apple, Microsoft, Facebook, Google, IDEO, and numerous design consultancies in the Bay Area. They leverage their networks and experience to guide students to successful career paths and help shape thoughtful leaders.
Erin Malone, Chair of Interaction Design
Erin Malone is an author, design historian, educator and a recently paused senior level user experience designer and researcher who has spent her career deconstructing complex systems, designing web and software applications, social experiences, and leading experience design teams. Most recently she worked with the Center for Technology and Society at the Anti-Defamation League on a variety of projects including the ADL Social Pattern Library and tools to help educate constituents about the ecosystem of hate in online spaces.
She is the co-author of both editions of the book Designing Social Interfaces for O’Reilly Media and author of the new book from MIT Press In Through the Side Door: Fifty Years of Women in Interaction Design, out in October 2024. In her spare time she is a printmaker and letterpress printer at 8 Paw Press.
Faculty stories
Curriculum
We think with our hands
Make technology more meaningful
Interaction Design at CCA is one of the world’s first undergraduate interaction design programs, and our faculty of expert practitioners are defining the field in the creative capital of Silicon Valley. In their courses, you’ll learn investigative research, systematic thinking, creative prototyping, and hands-on building so you can succeed and lead in this growing profession. View sample course descriptions.
Investigate ideas through every dimension
Before diving into their chosen major, every undergraduate participates in the First Year Experience. Students explore a wide range of materials and tools over the course of two semesters. Faculty from different disciplines guide studio projects, group critiques, and theoretical discussions, setting students up for success throughout their major coursework.
BFA Interaction Design
Core Studio
- Drawing 1
- 3.0 units
- 2D, 3D, and 4D
- 9.0 units
Interaction Design Major Requirements
- Core Studio: Foundations
- 3.0 units
- Core Studio: Systems
- 3.0 units
- Core Studio: Prototyping
- 3.0 units
- Core Studio: Behavior
- 3.0 units
- Core Studio: Visual Interaction Design & User Interface
- 3.0 units
- Core Studio: Design Research
- 3.0 units
- Advanced Studio: NUI & Objects
- 3.0 units
- Advanced Studio: Digital Products
- 3.0 units
- Advanced Studio: Service Design or Strategy
- 3.0 units
- Advanced Studio
- 6.0 units
- Professional Practice
- 3.0 units
- Internship
- 0.0 units
- Advanced Studio: Emerging Tech
- 3.0 units
- Senior Thesis 1 and 2
- 6.0 units
Additional Studio Requirements
- Upper Division Interdisciplinary Studio
- 3.0 units
- Critical Ethnic Studies Studio
- 3.0 units
- Studio Electives
- 9.0 units
Humanities & Sciences Requirements
- Writing 1
- 3.0 units
- Writing 2
- 3.0 units
- Introduction to the Arts
- 3.0 units
- Introduction to the Modern Arts
- 3.0 units
- Foundation in Critical Studies
- 3.0 units
- History of Interaction Design
- 3.0 units
- Cognitive Science
- 3.0 units
- Computational Practices
- 3.0 units
- Critical Ethnic Studies Seminar (2000 level)
- 3.0 units
- Literary and Performing Arts Studies (2000 level)
- 3.0 units
- Philosophy and Critical Theory (2000 level)
- 3.0 units
- History of Art and Visual Culture (2000 level)
- 3.0 units
- Humanities and Sciences Electives (2000 or 3000 level, at least 6 units must be 3000 level)
- 12.0 units
Total 120.0 units
Careers
Real-world experiences give students an edge
Our interaction designers emerge from the program with hands-on internship experience and a highly valued skill set. With project examples for recognizable brand names and realistic prototypes to share, alumni find success with design consultancies, startups, and product and service companies.
Potential career paths
- Interaction designer
- Experience designer
- Product designer
- Service designer
- User interface designer
- Design researcher
- Creative director
- Design director
- Information architect
- Voice interface designer
- Product manager
News & Events
What’s happening in the design community?
How to Apply
Designing for the 21st century
Our applicants are often just as interested in compelling visual design as they are in detailed documentation through wireframes and sketches. Whether they’re reinvigorating their careers or approaching interaction design for the very first time, they care deeply about making the world a better place.
Find your creative community at CCA
