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Design Your Success with a Master’s in UX Design

Home Program Overview

The Flexible, Affordable Master’s in UX Design

Prepare to lead successful and innovative user experience design teams with the Kent State University online MS in User Experience Design. Gain a competitive edge in this fast-growing, well-paid field with our unique blend of instruction in human-centered design, information architecture and management skills, delivered in a convenient, 100% online format.

Course Delivery

100% online

Total Credits

Approximate Cost per Credit

$725 in state
$735 out of state

Time to Completion

Graduate in as few as 2 years

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Compose Your Career in UX Design. Our convenient program can help you advance in this fast-growing field that offers both good salaries and job satisfaction. Designed by and for professionals, the 100% online graduate degree from Kent State University can help you craft your ideal career.

Download our guide to learn more about:

Career Opportunities
Customizing Your Degree
The Student Experience
Admission Requirements
Tuition and Financial Aid

Enhance Your Design Skills. Increase Your Market Value.

The Kent State UX master's degree has been crafted to enhance your design skills and increase your market value. Core courses give you a solid conceptual grounding for your designs.

From there, make the UX master's degree your own through your choice of electives and a capstone course. Our accomplished and professionally connected faculty can help you tailor your elective coursework for your desired specialization or target industry.

You’ll start building your portfolio in the second half of your first semester. By the end of the program, you will have a body of work illustrating your mastery of the field to accompany your degree.

Required classes will help you:

Determine user needs, goals and tasks through various research methods
Understand and apply concepts of:
- Information architecture
- Interaction design
- Content strategy
Design for usability and universal accessibility
Evaluate designs from various perspectives

We’re Committed to Your Success

Kent State has been helping students realize their dreams since 1910, and we launched our first online course almost 20 years ago. We’re committed to helping you reach your goals, and that shows in our accreditation and ranking. We’re proud to be recognized with the Military Friendly^® gold designation.The UXD program’s accreditation from NASAD, the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, reflects the rigor of the program and expertise of our faculty.

Your portfolio and Kent State University online master’s in UX design let hiring managers know you can deliver effective designs from day one.

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A Degree Program Designed by and for Professionals

Why should you earn your master’s in UX design online at Kent State? There are many good reasons.

Designed for busy working professionals, the asynchronous online course delivery of our UX master’s program offers you the flexibility to study around your work and life commitments.
Small class cohorts encourage you to collaborate and build connections with your classmates and the faculty. Our program can help you build your professional network as you build your credentials.
Faculty for our online master’s in UX design are active in professional organizations and have a well-rounded mix of practical experience and scholarly credentials.

Faculty Expertise

Kent State faculty research interests include knowledge organization systems, information processing and related topics, educational technology, inclusive design, and multi-sensory user interactions.

Our faculty’s experience spans diverse industries ranging from media, digital services and e-commerce to transportation, logistics and power management.

Meet the Faculty

Student Testimonial

The faculty here are amazing, simply amazing. Any interaction that I’ve had with a professional in user experience design or any of the knowledge management facets, they always talked about how Kent State’s program is amazing because of the faculty.

Scott R., MS ’15

Your Master’s in UX Design Opens Career Doors

As the importance of user experience design became apparent in online applications, more and more industries have recognized the power of good design in creating desirable outcomes across business scenarios. That means UX design is a good career choice now and for the future.

Kent State’s UX master’s program will help you develop the technical knowledge, research skills and leadership qualities to solve business problems while creating satisfying user experiences.

Your education can open career doors and help you thrive in a variety of roles, including:

User experience designer
User experience researcher
User interface designer
Information architect
UX/UI manager
Product manager
Human factors engineer

Read about one Kent State alumna’s path to becoming a user experience researcher.

Earn Good Pay. Enjoy Your Workday.

Enjoy the challenges of using your integrated skill set to improve customer experiences and create business value. As a UX professional, your value to the organization is reflected in both your pay and your influence. This case study is a good illustration of the positive impact you can have. Some of the roles offering job satisfaction, good pay and ample job opportunities that our program equips you for include:

UX Designer
$97,047

Average Salary¹
#24 Best Job¹

UX Researcher
$98,018

Average Salary²

Product Manager
$125,317

Average Salary¹
#10 Best Job¹

Explore more career information for this fast-paced and growing field.

Develop Your Portfolio Along With Your Skills

Every UX designer needs a robust digital portfolio. In Kent State University’s online masters in UX design, you’ll add to your portfolio with each course while you master the process, methodology and reasoning behind UX tools and techniques.

When you complete the program, a final polish of your portfolio and resume will help you take the next exciting step in your career.

Through my various portfolio pieces, I was able to show that I've been involved in every step of the UX process.

Kendra J., MS ‘19

Ken J., MS ‘17, UX Designer and Program Manager

Ken’s portfolio walks you through the proposal, wireframes, personas, sitemap and prototypes he created for a Lunch Buddy App, which allows parents to manage various aspects of their children’s in-school cafeteria lunch accounts.

View Ken’s Portfolio

Program Snapshot

The UX master's degree consists of 36 credits. Each course is seven weeks long and you can take two courses sequentially each semester, allowing you to complete the program in as little as two years. Twelve three-credit courses are divided as follows:

Seven core courses
Four electives
A capstone requirement

We are pleased to offer the convenience of:

Three program enrollment options per year
A holistic admission process with no GRE requirement

Download Application Checklist

Tuition and Financial Aid

The total tuition cost of your online master’s in UX design from Kent State is a fraction of what you can earn in a year with the skills learned in the program. The convenience of online course delivery means that you can continue to work full-time if you wish.

The payoff for earning your master’s degree makes the challenges of studying while working very worthwhile. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has found that nationally, professionals with a master’s degree earn almost 18% more than those with a bachelor’s degree and enjoy greater job security as well.³

	Ohio Residents	Out of State
Per Credit Hour	$725	$735
Approximate Program Cost	$26,100	$26,460

An additional distance learning fee for all students enrolled in a distance learning course is $15 per credit hour. Program tuition and costs are estimated and subject to change. For comprehensive tuition information, please refer to the tuition rates posted on the Bursar’s website.

We recognize that pursuing a graduate degree is a significant investment. Your Admissions Outreach Advisor can answer your questions on program costs, discuss how a Kent State degree compares to others and connect you with financial aid representatives when you are ready to discuss your financial options.

Please contact an Admissions Outreach Advisor for more information on tuition and fees either by email at onlinedegrees@kent.edu or toll-free at +1 844‑234‑4073.

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Immersive Online Curriculum

Designed for busy working professionals and students seeking to expand their career options.

Explore the Online Classroom

Practitioner Faculty

Study with experts: UXD innovators and entrepreneurs who bring current industry knowledge to their coursework.

Meet Our Faculty

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UXD Career Potential

Graduate with the advanced degree and expertise you need to become a UX leader and desirable hire.

View Career Info

Courses

Core Courses (7 Courses, 21 Credit Hours)

UXD 60001 USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN PRINCIPLES AND CONCEPTS (3 CREDITS)

Students explore the context in which User Experience Design exists and the various methods employed by designers in various fields related to design research, the generation of ideas and implementation of designs. Students are introduced to methods of design evaluation and to the conceptual framework of the related curricula.

UXD 60002 USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN IN PRACTICE (3 CREDITS)

Students learn and employ methods for engaging in creative problem solving. Introduce students to design research methods and current research on human behavior as it applies to user experience design. A core set of design deliverables are examined. Students begin to develop individual portfolio materials.

UXD 60101 INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE I (3 CREDITS)

Introduction to the fundamental concepts and practices of information architecture (IA). Students develop practical skills for comparing, analyzing, critiquing and designing information architectures. Major topics include organization, navigation, labeling, search and other core IA concepts. Students learn to create blueprints, wireframes, process flows and other documents used to communicate an information architecture design.

UXD 60102 PRINCIPLES OF INTERACTION (3 CREDITS)

This course provides students with an overview of interaction design principles and concepts. It is divided into five modules.

UXD 60103 RESEARCHING THE USER EXPERIENCE I (3 CREDITS)

Design research seeks to understand user needs, goals and tasks. Deals with research methods for human-centered design of information-rich artifacts and experiences. Covers interviews, surveys, diary studies and other methods applicable to the formative stages of the design process. Students learn to distill research findings into audience segments, user profiles, personas, scenarios and other documents that model user behavior.

UXD 60104 USABILITY I (3 CREDITS)

Provides a conceptual and practical overview of the processes and methods of usability testing, such as Think Aloud protocols, performance measurements and eye-tracking analysis. Actual usability testing is performed, using quantitative and qualitative methods and employing current and emerging software tools to facilitate data collection and analysis.

UXD 60118 ACCESSIBILITY EVALUATION AND UNIVERSAL DESIGN

This course provides learners with an understanding of the principles of accessibility and universal design, and how they guide and influence the design of digital experiences. Students also learn how to evaluate software and hardware products for accessibility. The course is divided into five modules.

In the first module, students learn about the different types of disabilities (i.e., visual, auditory, physical/motor, cognitive, temporary and environmental), and how they affect a person's interaction with technologies. Students also become familiar with assistive technologies, how people with disabilities make use of them, and what limitations they impose. The assignment for this module will be to write an accessibility and universal design justification brief for an organization. In the brief, learners will describe what accessibility and universal design are, and why the organization should begin to address it.

The second module will introduce learners to key accessibility guidelines and standards for web, mobile and hardware experiences, as well as the principles of universal design. Learners will become familiar with the guidelines and standards for designing accessible experiences for a variety of task types, including form completion, content creation and consumption, and other common web-based tasks. For the assignment learners will apply the knowledge they've gained by creating a plan for conducting an accessibility evaluation on several areas of an organization's web site.

During the third module, students will learn to perform an accessibility evaluation, and then document their findings in a manner intended to persuade an organization to address the accessibility issues they identified.

In the fourth module, learners will put principles into practice by designing an interaction following the principles of universal design.

The fifth module provides learners with the opportunity to create a comprehensive plan for incorporating accessibility into an organization's product/service design, development, quality assurance and deployment life cycle.

Electives (Choose 12 credits from the following)

UXD 60106 CONTENT STRATEGY I (3 Credit Hours)

Introduces the field of content strategy and its relationship to user experience design. Includes history and practices of content strategy, how to analyze user needs for content, the production of written materials related to content strategy and content audits and governance models. This course is the conceptual basis behind content strategy.

Prerequisite: UXD 60001 and UXD 60002; and graduate standing.

HI 60414 HUMAN FACTORS AND USABILITY IN HEALTH INFORMATICS (3 CREDITS)

Provides students with the foundational principles of usability and human factors as applied to safety and quality in health informatics technology. Course readings and materials review the concepts of human factors, usability and the cognitive consequences of health information technology on clinical performance and decision making. Attention is given to the role of mobile computing in health care, as well as information visualization.

LIS 60636 KNOWLEDGE ORGANIZATION STRUCTURES, SYSTEMS AND SERVICES (3 CREDITS)

Introduction to various types of knowledge organization systems, services and structures (KOS) used in the networked environment. Understanding of the functional philosophical, logical and linguistic fundamentals of KOS. Explanation of design options, features of KOS, and procedures to be used in thesaurus, taxonomy and ontology construction.

UXD 60111 INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE II (3 CREDITS)

This course will cover current topics in architecting for a changing web environment. Conceptual and technical aspects of Web 2.0 and Rich Internet Applications (RIA) have created the need for different types of design deliverables and usability considerations. In order to understand how to architect for Web 2.0, we must come to an understanding of what it is and how it works at least at a basic level. In addition, design tools to aid information architects are becoming more advanced and can aid IAs, making them more effective and efficient. These tools will be covered in depth.

UXD 60112 INTERACTION IN PRACTICE

This course provides students with experience planning, designing and prototyping interactions. Students will learn common interaction design (IxD) methodologies, what is expected of interaction designers, and what deliverables a designer typically provides. Students will practice interaction design by specifying content organization, hierarchy and user journeys for a mobile application in wireframe form. Students will create a functional prototype, building in the basic functionality needed for navigation and process funnels. Finally, students will test their prototypes formally. (3 Credit Hours)

Prerequisite: UXD 60001 and UXD 60002; and graduate standing.

Pre/corequisite: UXD 60102

UXD 60113 RESEARCHING USER EXPERIENCE II (3 CREDITS)

In order to design and develop effective user interfaces, task analysis process and theory are explored and applied via principles drawn from anthropology, ethnography, cognitive psychology, document and instruction systems design and marketing research. Practical techniques and methodologies are presented to improve interface design through all phases of the design process.

UXD 60114 USABILITY II (3 CREDITS)

Provides students with an understanding of qualitative and quantitative research methods appropriate for conducting advanced studies of human interaction with computers. In addition, students learn how to evaluate, purchase, implement and operate equipment for usability labs in a manner consistent with research methods.

UXD 60117 UXD LEADERSHIP

The importance of user-centered design to organizational success is increasing, and user experience professionals are moving into higher level roles within their organizations. This course will teach UX professionals about leadership, followership, the ethics of design, and how to become an effective leader within an organization.

UXD 60691 SEMINAR IN USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN (1-3 CREDITS; REPEATABLE FOR CREDIT)

Advanced research by students who are qualified to examine problems of certain special areas related to concentrations of study in user experience design.

UXD 60792 ELECTIVE INTERNSHIP IN USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN (2-3 CREDITS)

Supervised work experience in user experience design of a professional nature of not less than 100 clock hours (for 2 credit hours) or 150 clock hours (for 3 credit hours) with directed readings and preparation of a paper.

UXD 61095 SPECIAL TOPICS IN USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN

Offered irregularly as resources and/or opportunities permit. Topics could include current or emerging issues in user experience design.

Capstone Requirement (Choose 3 credits from the following)

UXD 66080 PROFESSIONAL PORTFOLIO DESIGN AND ASSESSMENT (3 CREDITS)

Students complete the assembly and evaluation of their work throughout the User Experience Design program in the form of a professional portfolio that will be used in efforts to gain employment or freelance work. Evaluation is done through critique by User Experience Design faculty and by peers.

UXD 66092 MASTER'S INTERNSHIP IN USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN (3 CREDITS)

Supervised work experience of an advanced professional nature that concentrates on developing skills in areas of user experience design and integrates their knowledge from all UXD courses and experiences. Students must have completed a minimum of 30 credit hours towards the user experience design major prior to registration.

UXD 66099 MASTERS PROJECT IN USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN (3 CREDITS)

Provides a means for the application of the knowledge, research and competencies learned through study in user experience design to the development of an information system, product, setting or service. Cumulative GPA of 3.000 is required prior to enrolling in the course. Students must have completed 30 credit hours towards the MS-UXDE program prior to registration.

UXD 66198 MASTER'S RESEARCH PAPER IN USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN (3 CREDITS)

Under the advisement of a faculty member, students will complete a research paper that serves as a culminating experience for the M.S.-UXD degree. Students must have completed 30 credit hours towards the MS-UXDE program prior to registration.

UXD 66199 THESIS I (2-6 CREDITS)

Thesis students must register for a total of 6 hours, 2 to 6 hours in a single semester distributed over several semesters if desired. Students must have completed 30 credit hours towards the MS-UXDE program prior to registration.

Admissions Requirements

Completed online application
Complete bachelor’s degree, with a GPA of 2.75 or higher (on a 4.0 scale), from an accredited university*
Three letters of recommendation from professors and/or employers
Application fee: $45
Official transcripts
Goal statement
Resume/CV
No GRE required for admission

*Students who do not meet GPA requirements may be conditionally admitted. Please contact an Admissions Outreach Advisor at onlinedegrees@kent.edu or call us toll-free at +1 844-234-4073 for more information.

The application process is simple and we’re here to guide you through it.

Our Admissions Outreach Advisors are available to answer your questions regarding admissions requirements for the program. If you have questions, please email us at onlinedegrees@kent.edu or call us toll-free at +1 844-234-407 3.

Important Dates

Oct

Priority Application Deadline

Spring 2024 Term

Dec

Application Deadline

Spring 2024 Term

Jan

First Day of Class

Spring 2024 Term

Application Resources

Our step-by-step application checklist will help ensure the success of your application submission.

Download Checklist

Application FAQs

Create an account in the online application system to save your work and track the progress of materials submitted via the application system.

I am a U.S. citizen. Where should I send my application materials?

If you are a U.S. citizen or permanent U.S. resident, all required application materials should be sent to the Division of Graduate Studies at gradapps@kent.edu or by mail to:

Graduate Admissions
P.O. Box 5190
Kent, OH 44242

Please be sure to include your full name and Kent State ID (9-digit number starting with 8) on all submitted documents. For questions, contact Graduate Admissions at +1 330-672-2661 or gradapps@kent.edu.

I am not a U.S. citizen. Where should I send my application materials?

If you are not a U.S. citizen or permanent U.S. resident, all required documents should be submitted to the Office of Global Education at intladm@kent.edu or by mail to:

Office of Global Education
Kent State University
106 Van Campen Hall
625 Loop Rd.
Kent, OH 44242
USA

For questions, contact International Admissions at +1 330-672-7970 or intladm@kent.edu.

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Course Requirements

Courses are delivered through our course management system, Blackboard Learn. Course content consists of text, narrated PowerPoint presentations, video and audio, live chats, discussion groups and other learning enhancements.

To participate in this online program, you will need a computer and broadband Internet connection. Your program may have further requirements that include the ability to record video and audio. If you have questions regarding technology requirements for the program, please contact your Admissions Outreach Advisor at onlinedegrees@kent.edu or call us toll-free at +1 844-234-4073.

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Sources

Retrieved on June 22, 2022, from glassdoor.com/List/Best-Jobs-in-America-LST_KQ0,20.htm
Retrieved on June 22, 2022, from glassdoor.com/Career/user-experience-researcher-career_KO0,26.htm
Retrieved on May 5, 2023, from www.bls.gov/careeroutlook/2022/data-on-display/education-pays.htm