Design Informatics

Design Informatics combines data science with design thinking in a context of critical enquiry to create compelling and meaningful new data-driven experiences, products and services.

The central premise of design informatics is that data is a medium for design: by shaping data, we shape the world around us. Data science provides the groundwork for this, with design thinking underpinning reflective research through design.

Our programme focuses on providing foundational skills on the integration of design thinking and data science with an emphasis on exploring the role of data-driven technologies in society and the potential of such technologies to be a social good. Students are supported to develop an ethically aware, critically reflective technical practice at the interface between data and society by combining theory and research with an open-ended process of making and hacking.

What will I learn?

The programme will provide foundational and advanced knowledge in:

* Fundamentals of data science and its integration into design processes

* Case studies of the role of user research, co-design and speculative design in data-driven system design

* Programming for data visualisation, data physicalisation, physical computing and responsive materials

* Responsible design and ethics and its application in research and practice

You will connect data-driven technology with contexts and domains, such as:

* Societal challenges and sustainable development goals

* Health and care

* Fashion

* Finance

* Urban spaces and smart cities

You will also look at a host of other real-world contexts through case studies as well as individual and collaborative projects.

You will also touch on the ways in which emergent developments in artificial intelligence impact design processes and the ways in which we experience new products and services.