User Experience and Usability Certificate

User Experience (UX) has emerged as one of the fastest growing specializations in today's business world. There is a significant demand for knowledgeable professionals to work in UX careers as user-centered design is needed for everything from web or mobile applications, personal computers, devices and other products.

What is User Experience (UX)?
User Experience is the crafting of positive, effectual interactions between users and products or technology which serve or benefit the user.

User Experience, often termed "UX" or "UE," may be thought of as a human response that derives from the application of cross-disciplinary elements and methods used in the planning, design and testing of systems, devices, software, interfaces and specialized environments.

Cal State Fullerton’s Professional Development Certificate: User Experience and Usability
This program consists of six required classes (87 hours of lecture, lab and discussion) designed to give participants an applied understanding of the concepts, practical knowledge and skills necessary for user-centered design and usability testing. Instructors are recognized industry practitioners who will share their expertise to help you achieve your goals (see "Meet our Faculty" below).

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Upon completion of the certificate program, graduates will be able to:

1. Gain an understanding of the fundamental principles and functions in User Experience and its relationship to human-centered research and usability assurance
2. Understand and justify the business case and architecture that enables user-centered design implementation
3. Gain an understanding of and discuss the role and relevancy of human-centered research in the user-centered design process
4. Identify and discuss best practices in the gathering and documentation of user-centered data
5. Understand and apply the principles and methods of user-centered design
6. Understand the use of and apply wireframing and prototyping methods in a user-centered design context
7. Gain an understanding of and discuss the principal elements, methods and concepts of usability testing and its role in User Experience

Who Could Benefit from User Experience Training?

• Customer Relationship Management Practitioners
• Human Factors Practitioners
• Industrial and Product Design Practitioners
• Information Architects
• Interaction Designers
• Medical Device and Appliance Designers
• Mobile Applications Developers
• Product Managers
• Project Team Leaders/Project Managers/Scrum Masters
• Software and Application Developers
• Technical Writers
• Usability Analysts/Researchers
• Visual/Graphic/User Interface Designers
• Website Developers and Administrators
• Business Analysts and Consultants
• Business Intelligence/Web Analytics Professionals

Looking for an Overview of User Experience? The first course in this certificate program, Introduction to User Experience and Usability provides the perfect overview for managers and business owners looking to learn more about the topic. Set aside a few hours to find out if this is what your company needs to better connect with your customers and extend your brand. The next offering is scheduled for February. Registration is open now.

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Meet our Faculty

Hilary Bienstock, MA
Hilary is principal of Hilary User Experience, a Santa Monica-based consultancy specializing in helping internet and entertainment companies design and implement user experience initiatives. She provides clients with insight into consumers' mindsets and motivations by conducting user research and then analyzing and interpreting that research to guide new web site and application designs.

Prior to establishing her consultancy, Hilary worked for Los Angeles Times/Tribune Interactive, Yahoo, Inc., TiVo, Inc. and Move, Inc. as a User Researcher. Earlier in her career, she worked at Sandia National Laboratories as a Usability Engineer and Project Manager, establishing user experience best practices and developing vital project and budget management experience.

She holds a Master of Arts in Communication, with a concentration in Media Studies, focused in Human-Computer Interaction, which she earned at Stanford University, California. At Stanford she also earned her Bachelor of Science in Symbolic Systems, with a concentration in Human-Computer Interaction and a Minor in Anthropology.

Virginia A. Lang, Ph.D.
Virginia is owner and president of HirLan, Inc., a consultancy dedicated to helping companies develop innovative products that increase the efficiency and productivity of their users.

Previously, Virginia has held several management and teaching positions wherein she acquired extensive experience in a variety of areas related to Human Factors Engineering, usability and User Experience. She possesses over 30 years of experience in various aspects of these subjects, working for such companies as AOL, Motorola, Symantec and others.

She has an equally strong background in education, having taught at the community college and university level for several institutions, including State University of New York at Binghamton, Wichita State University and Montclair State University.

Virginia holds a Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from State University of New York at Binghamton, as well as graduate degrees in Systems Science and Experimental Psychology. She has authored and co-authored numerous articles regarding clinical and developmental psychology. She is an active member of several psychology, usability and human factors professional associations.

Joely Gardner, Ph.D.
Joely is currently Chief Customer Experience Strategist for Human Factors Research, Inc., a consultancy dedicated to helping companies to implement usability, human factors and customer experience initiatives. She is an expert in conducting and managing usability protocols and research methods.

Previously, Joely held several consultative and teaching positions where she acquired extensive experience in usability and User Experience. She has taught at the high school, community college and university level. She also possesses over 30 years of experience in various aspects of these subjects, working for such diverse companies as Gateway, Invitrogen, France Telecom, and Hewlett Packard.

Joely holds a Ph.D. in Psychology from Boston University as well a Master's in Education and Instructional Design. Dr. Gardner's undergraduate degree is in Business Administration from Simmons College in Boston. She is a member of the Board of Directors for the American Society for Quality (ASQ). Watch her video on Emotional Design.

Sean M. Kelly, MA
Sean is currently User Experience Manager/Product Development Lead for Kaiser Permanente, Inc., a leading healthcare management corporation. There, he leads a team of graphic designers, content authors, interface developers and researchers who develop technical artifacts and documents needed by Kaiser Permanente to further develop new products while adhering to brand standards and user expectations. He is also responsible for training development and has done significant hands-on training curriculum development and instructional work.

Previously, he worked for Boeing and Raytheon as an engineer/scientist working on human factors issues in military aircraft/avionics design. With this aeronautical engineering experience, he brings noteworthy knowledge of mission-critical human-factors considerations to the certificate.

Sean possesses a strong science education. He holds a Master of Arts in Human Factors and Applied Experimental Psychology, which he earned at California State University, Northridge. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Cognitive Science and Sociology, with a specialization in Computing at University of California, Los Angeles.

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How do I get started?    The first required course is Introduction to User Experience and Usability.
To register, use the link above and then click on the word "Add" next to the course fee.

What if I have questions?
If you have questions about the registration process, please call 657.278.2611.

If you have questions about the program, please call Mimi Lawson at mlawson@fullerton.edu or 657-278-3313.

What do the Experts Say?

"If I were to start a web-based or mobile company today, I would first hire great user experience talent. Outside of free, it's the number-one way to differentiate yourself in a sea of websites, applications and electronic devices. Great talent is scarce though. Southern California, in general, needs more user experience professionals!"
Jesse Gant
VP, Product & User Experience
RealtyTrac

"User Experience Design is probably one of the fastest growing fields that no one knows about. As new media becomes more and more prevalent, user experience designers and usability experts will be at the forefront of that growth. Everyone knows what sites they enjoy interacting with on the web, but very few know how to create new media applications that can elicit that positive experience in users. That's where usability experts come in.

"Half the job of being a good user experience designer is learning to convey the reasons why a usability decision is made. Education can greatly assist user experience designers in learning to communicate the value of their contributions to their clients. This can only help the field's continued advancement as well as the individual designer's continued career growth."
Cynthia Vinney
User Experience Architect
RPA

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Resources
There are many nationwide professional associations involved in this area of industry. Explore the information they have available.

Boxes and Arrows Blog: www.boxesandarrows.com
Human Factors and Ergonomics Society: www.hfes.org and www.usernomics.com
Industrial Designers Society of America: www.idsa.org (industrial designers)
InfoDesign Blog: www.informationdesign.org
inspireUX Blog: www.inspireux.com
Interaction Design Association: www.ixda.org (interaction designers)
Octane: www.octaneoc.org
Orange County Business Council: www.ocbc.org
Product Usability Weblog: www.uselog.com
Professional Association for Design: www.aiga.org (design)
Usability Blog: www.usabilityblog.com
Usability Body of Knowledge: www.usabilitybok.org
Usability Professionals Association: www.usabilityprofessionals.org
UsabilityMatters.Org: www.usabilitymatters.org
Usable Information Technology: www.useit.com
Usable Markets: www.usablemarkets.com
User Experience Network: www.uxnet.org
UX Pond: www.uxpond.com (search engine)
Webcredible: www.webcredible.co.uk (User experience services)

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